My LC depends on You.

Valde

I have done nothing to this stage but I'm changing it starting today, I need over 320 points I know people will be saying "WoW low points get that in my sleep" well sorry I'm not one of you guys
Doing,

English(H)
Business(H)
Physics(H)
Irish(L)
Maths(L)
German(L)

I want to get 320 Points to nearly make sure I get the course I want, as I'm actually interested in the subject.
I have really bad concentration and can't study for hours on end,
I need help on what to do I know i can achieve these results if i set my mind to it but I actually need help, how do I overcome not being really able to study, I do have the Wil and Determination to do it but its just not working. I actually need it to work.

I know this is really confusing, but how do l achieve this I'm by no means a dumb ass except when its down to my attitude on studying,
What are the best ways to study I know people say we all have differnt ways of doing it but I'm geting desperate at this stage I will try anything except cheat.

Thanks.

Overheal

1) Look in the mirror before saying "My LC Depends on You"

2) I'd speak to your teachers. Do NOT be timid about admitted youve had yout thumb up your ass. They need to know you're in trouble before they can best advise you.

PurpleFistMixer

I find the best way to study is to sit down and study. No thinking about "oh i better study" or "this is going to take ages" or "i have so much to do!" or "maybe i'll just watch a bit of tv/go on the internet/method of procrastination of choice", just get to the books and concentrate on that subject.
What I do is I give myself 40 minutes on a subject, set my phone to go off in forty minutes, forget about the time until my alarm goes off and concentrate on the work. If you start thinking about stuff which isn't what's right in front of you, you'll lose your concentration, and wander off. I chose 40 minutes because that's how long classes are in school and I find it useful (3 40 minute blocks = 2 hours, then take a break). Also, to prevent myself being dead after that, I make sure I do something different/something I enjoy in between two less enjoyable subjects. It's like a break, but it's still productive. (Example: maths is my favourite subject, so doing maths for me can be relaxing, or practising for my music practical. Something like watching Aifric/TG4 in general/listening to RnaG/radio na life could even be counted as beneficial to your Irish study.)

However, it's also a good idea to have a study timetable, to prevent you from spending your time "studying" vaguely staring at a book and thinking you've done great work. You know the points you need, you know your subjects and levels. Calculate what grades you'll need in your subjects to get these points.. you'll know which are your strongest ones, etc. Maybe take your mocks results as a starting point, and see what needs working on.

Also, if your school does supervised study, sign up for that. Especially if you find you get easily distracted at home.

Best way to study.. well, there's been lots of threads about this, but it's generally accepted that active study is better than passive study. That is, you'll learn a lot more writing things down/making notes than just staring at a book and expecting it to go in. Test yourself on what you're trying to learn, see if you can repeat what you just learned in your head or out loud, then see if you can remember it five or ten minutes later, that sort of stuff. For maths/physics, do problems. Best way to learn is to work around problems, to ensure you understand it. Of course for physics also know your experiments and definitions.

Hm, this got a bit long didn't it.

The Walsho

That post above was excellent, well done.

Fibonacci23

PurpleFistMixer wrote: »

I find the best way to study is to sit down and study. No thinking about "oh i better study" or "this is going to take ages" or "i have so much to do!" or "maybe i'll just watch a bit of tv/go on the internet/method of procrastination of choice", just get to the books and concentrate on that subject.
What I do is I give myself 40 minutes on a subject, set my phone to go off in forty minutes, forget about the time until my alarm goes off and concentrate on the work. If you start thinking about stuff which isn't what's right in front of you, you'll lose your concentration, and wander off. I chose 40 minutes because that's how long classes are in school and I find it useful (3 40 minute blocks = 2 hours, then take a break). Also, to prevent myself being dead after that, I make sure I do something different/something I enjoy in between two less enjoyable subjects. It's like a break, but it's still productive. (Example: maths is my favourite subject, so doing maths for me can be relaxing, or practising for my music practical. Something like watching Aifric/TG4 in general/listening to RnaG/radio na life could even be counted as beneficial to your Irish study.)

However, it's also a good idea to have a study timetable, to prevent you from spending your time "studying" vaguely staring at a book and thinking you've done great work. You know the points you need, you know your subjects and levels. Calculate what grades you'll need in your subjects to get these points.. you'll know which are your strongest ones, etc. Maybe take your mocks results as a starting point, and see what needs working on.

Also, if your school does supervised study, sign up for that. Especially if you find you get easily distracted at home.

Best way to study.. well, there's been lots of threads about this, but it's generally accepted that active study is better than passive study. That is, you'll learn a lot more writing things down/making notes than just staring at a book and expecting it to go in. Test yourself on what you're trying to learn, see if you can repeat what you just learned in your head or out loud, then see if you can remember it five or ten minutes later, that sort of stuff. For maths/physics, do problems. Best way to learn is to work around problems, to ensure you understand it. Of course for physics also know your experiments and definitions.

Hm, this got a bit long didn't it.

Currently on the way out of my printer!


Ta!

marge18

Hey,
i really want to go to UCD and do the vet nursing course but dont have the results from my leaving cert so this sept i am repeating two subjects and next year another two and hopefully get what i need and get into college. does any one know of a school/college in the dublin 24 area or some where nearby that do home economics as a night class????
cheers

*Tripper*

Valde, firstly let me tell you the I did the exact same subjects as you. I ****ed around when I did my LC two years ago but came out with exactly what I expected. Its only like what two months until the LC. Well the only advise anyone can give is:

1. Study you funking ass off until june, give it socks! 320 points isn't unachievable yet. You've the whole summer and college to piss about!

Don't even think about this yet but:
2. No matter what you think now there is always the option of repeating or doing a plc and then getting into college.

The Weasel

The Walsho wrote: »

That post above was excellent, well done.

+1! Genius I tells ya!;)

thatone!

I wouldn't regard 320 points being low or easy to get.

golly-pop

Look Valde - there is NOTHING more frustrating and soul destroying than looking back next Autumn and saying "Why didnt I ****ing well study while I still had the chance?????" . Because colleges are full of (1) people doing courses that they have no interest in; (2) people who could be doing the thing they wanted but arent. And all for the sake of a few hours per night going over stuff that some decent skin of a teacher has been trying to knock into you during the day. Its not rocket science. Turn off the PC and TV. Have a coffee (not a Red Bull) and a sambo. Get out books from Subject One. Open them. Read. Take a few notes. Read more. CONCENTRATE. Recall what the teacher said about it. Spend 30 mins at a specific chapter in the book. Dont try to cover unrelated aspects of the topic. Do a small specific area of the topic properly rather than than trying (panic-stricken) to cover huge tracts poorly. After 30 mins - Change subject. Dont leave your worst/ least favorite subject til last. (Do that 2nd/ 3rd.) Take a decent break half way through the whole process - kick a ball around or chase the dog ( i.e something in the fresh air to stretch the legs). Then back to next subject. Thats roughly 4 hours. ITS WORTH THE EFFORT. The rest of your life is probably going to be a LONG LONG time. Dont spend it kicking yourself. And Good Luck!!!!

x_Ashy_x

iv started using flash cards...writing a word on the front n the definition on the back etc...n im finding them really good! if i cant sleep at night i take a few n go over them n im finding it must easier to learn stuff.my brother n boyfriend are doing it too now n theyv said its good too...my boyfriend cant study at all either but he says that flash cards work for him....good luck with it all anyways n if u put in abit of work everyday you'l get the points u need =]

jager-bomber

I'm on the same boat. I've done f*** all study. I need 350ish points and can't motivate myself to do it. Does any one have tips on what is very important nd most likely to come up in any of the following subjects: Physics(H)
Chemisty(H)
French(H)
Biology(H)
English(H)
Irish(L)
Maths(L)
Thanks, all help appreciated!

teckoda

Some great responses here alright. I've tried it all myself.

I just find it hard to link the fact that i need these results to get into the course i want. I simply don't have any care for the leaving cert at all. Take a lot of days off, never do homework and certainly don't do study.

And believe me, this is the mentality of 70% of our year. Nobody seems bothered at all. The farmers all have their courses because they dont need points for agri college. So there's a handful of people who are free to mess and distract everyone else.

If my mentality towards the leaving cert will change in the next few weeks i don't know. I certainly hope it might and that i get my act together and do a bit of work.

leninbenjamin

PurpleFistMixer wrote: »

(3 40 minute blocks = 2 hours, then take a break).

that's setting the bar awfully high for someone who finds it really hard to study. I agree on everything else, but if you haven't studied before this is going to be seriously difficult to do. OP for the first while I recommend 20 on 20 off, to build your 'mental stamina' up. and yeah, take a good long break every 2 hours.

and OP, i failed a sizeable proportion of my mocks when i did the LC (can't remember how many, but it was well over half). i ended up with over 500. 2 months is plenty of time to get a decent return.

remember too, it's not how much you put in, it's how effective the study is. if you're sitting down at to study and find nothing is going in or you cant concentrate, stop. go for a walk or do some activity to freshen up the mind, then try again later.

PurpleFistMixer

leninbenjamin wrote: »

that's setting the bar awfully high for someone who finds it really hard to study. I agree on everything else, but if you haven't studied before this is going to be seriously difficult to do. OP for the first while I recommend 20 on 20 off, to build your 'mental stamina' up. and yeah, take a good long break every 2 hours.

Yeah, that's true, though I find I don't have enough discipline to take short breaks (20 minutes turns into an hour very easily...), so in a way it's easier for me to go for a longish time.