IB HOA

IB History of the Americas. This class is so god damn difficult that absolutely no one in the program got higher than a B first quarter. It's basically an advanced level history class about the history of the U.S. and Latin America mostly. I'm not doing well in general. I have to get an A or else I'll lose the $20 bet I made. So, if anyone did well in history their junior and senior years, please, HELP ME!!!!

It depends on what you are learning. So I'll ask: what are you learning?

I can't help (or anybody else) without an idea where to start.

Well, I need to learn better narrative history in general. Any good study tips on nightly history readings would be very helpful. And the essays that we write each unit are like the spawn of satan. I need to learn to address better historiography. If you've ever taken an advanced, college level history class, feedback on good essay writing would be good. Preferebly your strategies for getting A's on the essays.

I'm only an IB sophomore, but it sounds like only a few things should fix it.

-Re-read the part of the textbook that you're on ("for fun")
-Do the work as soon as it's assigned
-Practice your writing skills so that you can write a lot about a little without rambling on
-Keep faith and study daily

Junior year is the hardest, but if you try as well as you can, you should be able to make a C or a B.

IB SUCKS guys, I hate it so much...

haha the cursed IB program.

For your essay tests:

Make a rough bulleted outline version of your Essay. Something that will jog your memory with only a few key words.

Memorize that outline and write it out in the margin or on scrap paper during the test. Then you shouldn't have any problem remembering the stuff you prepared for the test and it will be in a cohesive order, assuming the outline is in good shape.

That's how I got through it. I think I had an A- first semester, (but I didn't bother w/ the second semester.)

A quick IB question: is junior year really the hardest of them all?

Originally Posted by Captain Crusader

A quick IB question: is junior year really the hardest of them all?

meh. Depends on the course, I think. I thought IB math was easier senior year because it was all calculus. German V was the same course as German IV except higher grading expectations. IB Chem senior year kicked my ass 'cause it was organic chemistry. I dropped History and english after the 1st semester so I can't really say. TOK is a breeze. (I took it twice, lol.)

Hope that helps.

Originally Posted by Azarimanka

IB SUCKS guys, I hate it so much...

This is the fundamental problem: You don't like the class to begin with. See, I love history, all I ever needed to do was pay attention in class, and read my textbook. I enjoyed it, so it was easy. In the same sense: I usually enjoy school learning in general, including Math, Science, and even english.

Meh. It's just easier when you stop pressing and just find ways to enjoy what you are trying to learn.

I am an IB junior, and I can tell you, it is the hardest of them all.

HL Chemistry is the most difficult of them.

That depends...in some schools, it's Chem, while in others it's other things. For example, while St. Pete has a difficult HL Chemistry, here it's Spanish, Physics, and Math.

Our school is actually the third-best internationally and the best in the U.S. on the exams, which is cool.

Originally Posted by Nathan

This is the fundamental problem: You don't like the class to begin with. See, I love history, all I ever needed to do was pay attention in class, and read my textbook. I enjoyed it, so it was easy. In the same sense: I usually enjoy school learning in general, including Math, Science, and even english.

Meh. It's just easier when you stop pressing and just find ways to enjoy what you are trying to learn.

Wait...I am doing three subjects I love...but then IB makes you do more...no wonder its so unpopular.

Originally Posted by William

HL Chemistry is the most difficult of them.

I would agree with that. Especially the second part of the course. So ....many....lab ....reports. There was what, over twenty labs to do, right?
(I had them all backed up on my computer, then my dad decides to wipe the hard drive while I'm away. ****ing genius move, that one.)

Nitrating the toluene molecules lab was fun though.

Originally Posted by Devia Erasmus

I would agree with that. Especially the second part of the course. So ....many....lab ....reports. There was what, over twenty labs to do, right?
(I had them all backed up on my computer, then my dad decides to wipe the hard drive while I'm away. ****ing genius move, that one.)

Nitrating the toluene molecules lab was fun though.

If u think chemistry is hard, try goddam HL classical Greek.

Lol. Nobody in my school has ever taken HL Chem and Physics at the same time, and gotten an A in both.

Chem + Phys = Lolno.

Calculus isn't too much fun either.

Originally Posted by Azarimanka

If u think chemistry is hard, try goddam HL classical Greek.

Do you have to write your stuff in Greek or something? They didn't even offer that at our school when I was in the program.

I got A's and A minuses until the very last semester of HL Chemistry where I got a C minus. = / It's mostly hard because the tests alone are grueling then on top of that the lab preparation + execution + final report process is time consuming.

[quote=Devia Erasmus;2635078]Do you have to write your stuff in Greek or something? They didn't even offer that at our school when I was in the program.

No, its just an insanely difficult language, and the translation passages are specifically chosen to be hard, for example I have done a practice paper in which the entire thing was about ploughing a field...just a question to those of you doing any language whether classical or not, how many of you know words such as plough yoke or furrow?