maths

passed my repeat maths exam

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Like i predicted the day i sat it, i passed my repeat maths exam. Yet again, i show i’m a master at valuing my own ability.

I got 42%. To quote myself from an earlier post;

I’ve got between 45%-60% overall by my own scoring. 45% absolute worst case scenario.

So that means, yet again, somebody was out to get me and i was marked harshly Anyway, it doesn’t matter, i don’t have to worry about it now and i can go through second year knowing i’ve no 1st year subjects to repeat which is a nice weight off my shoulders.

If i had to bet on myself failing a subject this year, i’d burn my money instead. It’s highly unlikely i’ll fail any subject this year for numerous reasons;

• I’m in a smaller, tighter group which is great for teamwork and a lot of my stuff this year will be team based.
• I’m more motivated this year - last year i knew it was meaningless to get anything over 40%… different story this year as i’m aiming for 70% across the board.
• I now have the experience of failing a subject, then having to repeat during the summer. That eats up a lot of time and next summer, i’m determined to keep it free from college work which will allow me to focus 100% on my online work.

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2nd year in college - here i come

On Wednesday, i tried ringing my college literally 10 times throughout the day and couldn’t get through at all… so i sent them an email. The problem i had was about registration for 2nd year. Other people had gotten their letters and dates - i got nothing. Some people were even registering Thursday and Friday (today) which meant i had to get in touch with the college quickly! Time to panic

Still no sign of an email or any post on Thursday so again, i tried ringing several times and eventually got through. I was told i couldn’t register until i had gotten the results of my repeat maths exam on September 10th.

Damn, not only could i not register, i’d have to miss 2 days of college. So i’d be playing catch up instantly plus i could guarantee there’d be a big mix up when i show up for classes not on the books and not having registered…

So then Sean from Leateds scanned and emailed me a copy of his registration letter… he failed the same subject as me, he’s in the same class etc… and he got a registration letter… WTF!

So this morning, Friday, i rang back AGAIN… for the third successive day and after a bit of explaining eventually i was told to call in today and register. Great - a nice two hour round drive that i didn’t want I got sorted eventually and i’m all signed up for year 2. I go back on September 9th so next week will be my last week of freedom

On the way up, some guy in a merc overtook me at what must have been 150km/hr+ on a fairly dangerous stretch of road… totally blind and i could see him shooting up behind me in my rearview mirror. Pure luck that nothing was coming in the oncoming direction. Northern reg plates, and he continued leap frogging cars in front on white lines and coming up to junctions… almost suicidal driving!

I was hoping i’d see him lying in a ditch later up the road… no excuses for that. People like that end up as statistics and sympathy headlines in newspapers. I’ve no sympathy for clowns who drive like maniacs and end up killing themselves - better them than innocent people they could potentially take with them.

Passed Maths

I had my maths repeat exam today. Fail it, and i’d have to wait until May 2009 to get another crack at it. No way did i want that… i’m the type of person that thinks about big upcoming events on a daily basis - i can’t just put something like that to the back of my mind for a year.

So i was determined to nail this exam today and start 2nd year with a clean slate. Although i won’t get the results for another month or so, i know i passed.

I’ve got between 45%-60% overall by my own scoring. 45% absolute worst case scenario. I’m not usually too far out with my own marking.

I also found out today that we have just 1 more semester of maths to go… so after Christmas, i won’t be going near maths again during my stay in college. Score

I start back to college on September 9th - just over 3 weeks away. Although i don’t really miss it, i’m looking forward to the challenge academically. From day one, my focus will be on getting above 70% in every single exam i have. Above 70% means i’ll stay on course for an honors ordinary degree (yes such a thing exists), plus it’ll enable me to do an extra year at a higher level (honors degree) if i wish - probably in IT management.

If i feel it’s too much work however, or it’s starting to have a negative impact on my online work, i’ll quickly drop my standards and just aim to pass everything and finish with an ordinary degree.

2 years is a long time however… it’s been 2 years since i started my first website and look how far i’ve come… so i can’t say where i’ll be in 2 years time or even if i’ll still be in college.

maths take two

At 3pm tomorrow, i’ll be getting stuck in to a two hour maths exam (yes i know the plural is technically ‘math’ but i prefer the more working class ‘maths‘). Why? Because i failed at the first attempt back in May.

Almost 4 months later, i’m back, much more pumped up for it and much more prepared. I’m pretty confident this time around and should cruise through the exam without breaking sweat.

I haven’t gone on an all out blitz like i’d wanted to, but i’ve done enough to pass comfortably and hopefully the exam will be kinder to me this time around.

I’ve quite simply been too busy with other things to focus on maths. There’s no incentive for me to get above 40% - all i have to do is pass.

I’ve spent about 2 hours / day for the past 4 days studying. I’ll head up to college early enough tomorrow and squeez in another couple of hours.

One thing that i’m gonna have to sort out this year is the journey up and down to college every day. Roughly an hour each way… it’s a huge waste of time as things stand. Although i don’t mind driving, it just gets boring if there’s rubbish on the radio. I get sick of CD’s too quickly.

What i might start to do is download some webmaster radio shows or podcasts from webmaster sites… it can only benefit me as i’m bound to pick up some new ideas or information from them.

Leaving Cert Results Out

Yet again high rates of failure in math - anyone who fails math is effectively banned from 3rd level education (ok, that’s harsh - but most 3rd level courses require passing maths as a minimum requirement.)

More people than ever (200) got the maximum available 600 points. Walsho got 510 - congrats

Here’s what the government have to say;

Mathematical concepts, models and techniques are central to working in technology, finance, pharmaceutical and medical devices, sectors the Government has invested in heavily.

IBEC said the situation is so critical that it needed to be reinforced by other measures, including the reintroduction of bonus points for higher-level maths as a short-term solution to falling numbers selecting science, technology, engineering and maths at third-level and more maths teaching time.

I’m telling you now the problem is a lack of interest and sheer laziness. Maths for the leaving cert was a nightmare for me - because i didn’t give a damn what x and y did - it was boring as it was just letters and numbers and useless equations i’d probably never use again… no stimulation, no games…

Until you can tell students WHY they need maths, you’re not going to motivate them.

The rise in 600 pointers imo, is a direct result of technology. It’s easier than ever to get information when you want it. It reduces time wasted in libraries looking for books etc… quick text to a friend or a quick google will most likely answer your question in 2 minutes. We’re also richer than ever before, apparently 7 in 10 students now take grinds at some stage - something i completely disagree with but that’s another thing…

Due to the heavy reliance on technology - students can’t go back to caveman times and study maths by reading. I know that because that’s exactly the way i am. I could get 100% in any maths exam you give me provided you can teach my the maths using computer models or relate it to real life situations, give me games etc…

That’s NOT being done and it’s having a detrimental effect on failure numbers. Maths should be fun, Irish should be fun… they shouldn’t make students turn against the subject but that’s exactly what’s happening and the statistics show it.

Apparently the maths course is being revised and rolled out on a ‘pilot basis’ - whatever that means. Too little too late. Should have been done 10 years ago.