Rae01 Posted February 12, 2018 Report Share Posted February 12, 2018 I started off IB year 1 with math SL and i continued up until a couple of days ago when i dropped to studies because i was failing maths. I don't find math studies as simple as everyone said it was going to be... I do have to say though, it's relatively easier than standard level but it still isn't easy (at least in my opinion). Considering that I am struggling with maths, how much time shall I spend practicing problems daily? I personally find maths extremely boring but how do i trick myself into liking it? Lastly, i currently am using the oxford textbook. Is it fine or would combining it with the Cambridge or any other textbook be better? Any study tips would be much appreciated! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted February 12, 2018 Report Share Posted February 12, 2018 The bad thing about math is that there is only one right answer and you can't just "wing it" if you do not know what to do. The good thing is that the path to the right answer is almost always systematic and so it's not a shot in the dark. Don't think of it as how much you should spend on math, but instead how much time you are willing to spend. And in the amount you are willing to spend, spend it very efficiently such that you can always ask help whenever you are stuck. For example, you may choose to look up YouTube videos on math tutors solving a similar problem, but you shouldn't wander into off-topic videos. For example if you are willing to spend 7 hours a week on math. Instead of doing 7 hours Sunday afternoon in one go, maybe you can do 1 hour a day in which you are completely focused, without distractions of any kind. Let me know if that helps, or if I completely misunderstood your question. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rae01 Posted February 13, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2018 (edited) Yes, your answer is right on point. Thank you, I'm going to start doing 7 hours a week and see where that'll take me! Edited February 13, 2018 by Rae01 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lixter Posted February 13, 2018 Report Share Posted February 13, 2018 21 hours ago, Rae01 said: I started off IB year 1 with math SL and i continued up until a couple of days ago when i dropped to studies because i was failing maths. I don't find math studies as simple as everyone said it was going to be... I do have to say though, it's relatively easier than standard level but it still isn't easy (at least in my opinion). Considering that I am struggling with maths, how much time shall I spend practicing problems daily? I personally find maths extremely boring but how do i trick myself into liking it? Lastly, i currently am using the oxford textbook. Is it fine or would combining it with the Cambridge or any other textbook be better? Any study tips would be much appreciated! Personally, I don't really use the textbooks as my school mainly offers us the notes so I can't give much insight as to what textbook you should use. However, I find that math is really about understanding the concepts well. Before everyone starts rolling their eyes, just hear me out. I understand that practicing difficult questions will test your ability in a particular topic but the reason why you are struggling so much with math is really because of your inability to grasp the main concepts. Instead, go take the time and try to explain the mathematical concepts to yourself verbally and see if you really do understand the topic - try to elaborate as much as possible in your explanation to ensure that you are not just memorizing the steps. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rae01 Posted February 13, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 13, 2018 (edited) Thank you so much! Explaining the mathematical concepts to myself is such a helpful tip that never occurred to me. On another note, It's funny that you pointed out memorizing the steps because I really do memorize the steps rather than understanding but I do it subconsciously because memorizing the material worked wonders in some of my other classes but never in maths. Edited February 13, 2018 by Rae01 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kw0573 Posted February 14, 2018 Report Share Posted February 14, 2018 Adding to what @Lixter said, leave some margin in your notes for annotations, eg "used this formula from formula booklet", or "confusing" and it's a way to interact with your notes. It's the equivalent if highlighting or jotting down reading notes in other subjects. 1 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rae01 Posted February 14, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 14, 2018 Oh, that's actually a really smart idea. Thank you for this tip, I will def try this in math class tmrw! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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