My brain is fried... 0_0

[Voldemort]

I've got AP tests the next two days (Computer Science, aka Java, and Calculus) and even though I haven't been studying today, my brain just fried. I was sitting in a chair reading when I just couldn't think of what the next word was (it was 'generally')...

 

48 hours from now this will all be over... sigh...

[john010117]

I wish you good luck on your AP test. I hope you pass. 

[steelmanronald06]

Yeah, I got finals all this week. Chem, Bio, Computer Forensics, Database Management, and Plane Trig.

[jcombs_31]

I sometimes miss college, learning is a good thing. Challenging your brain is great.  I can remember feeling very stressed on big test days, especially with programming classes.  Writing programs with pen and paper and the spot is pretty stressful and difficult.

[roopurt18]

I'm what you'd call a good test taker so while there are a few exceptions, for the large part I barely study and pass every test I barely care about and ace those that I consider important.  Anyways, the AP tests aren't as bad as you think.

 

My high school science career looked like this:

 

Freshman: Biology © - Normal entry-level class for freshman

 

Sophomore: Integrated Science (A) - For dumb juniors or sophomores not quite smart enough to take Chemistry Honors

 

Junior: Physics AP (A/B, I forget) - For all the juniors that took chem. honors their soph. year.

 

Short story:

My integrated science teacher, at the end of the year, said to me, "You're smart...what are you doing in this class?"  I told him I didn't like bio and that I was good at math.  So he recommended me for physics my junior year.  I eventually found out that he was the physics AP teacher so I badgered him constantly until he said I could take that class.

 

Outside CS, physics is my favorite subject.  I did well in the class but I didn't take the AP test.  The reason is because I was an average student, I don't work hard.  I saw all these people with above 4.0s going nuts over the test, most of which I knew wouldn't pass, so I figured I didn't have a chance and never bothered.

 

Now, towards the end of the year, the teacher started recommending us for our senior science class.  His name was Mr. Johnson.  There was another Mr. Johnston that taught the chem honors and the following year he'd be offering chem AP; both of these teachers were highly liked by their students.  So naturally I wanted to take chem AP.  My physics teacher recommended me for the course based on my performance in phys. AP, not knowing I'd never had any form of chemistry in my life.

 

Now as luck would have it, they hired a new teacher over summer who ended up teaching chem AP, Mrs. Neip (or something like that).  So my senior year of science sucked arse.  I knew nothing about chemistry, did poorly on every homework assignment, failed almost every test, and barely squeaked out of the class with a C-.  However, I was determined to take the test and show all the 4.0 students I was better than them and their HW and busy work scores didn't equate to balls.  So in the end:

 

Senior: Chemistry AP (C-, but a 4 on the AP exam)

 

The long story short is all those kids freaking out in my physics AP class about the test were the type of personality that blows everything out of proportion;  I'm not.

 

As a last aside, Mr. Johnson is the coolest teacher I've ever known.  I spent a total of 7 semesters in his classroom.  Four of them for classes, three of them as a TA grading papers and oddly, my first semester aiding for him was my second semester of physics AP as well.

 

Here are two brief conversations he and I had during my senior year:

J:  How is<pause>Mrs. Neip?

M: Ugh...terrible.

J:  Well<pause>did you bring her a shrubbery?

 

J:  So<pause>how is<pause>chemistry?

M: It sucks.  I don't know anything.  I can't balance an equation, I don't even know the damned periodic table.

J:  Didn't you learn that<pause>in honors chemistry?

M: I've never had chemistry before!  I had integrated with you.

J: <blank look>

[Voldemort]

Ya, I passed the AP physics test last year with a 3, and I didn't study at all. I came out of it feeling better than people who studied their butts off and got 4s and 5s, because I didn't stress out about it.

 

CompSci today was a... dog.

[ober]

Too bad a 3 won't do much good for you.

[roopurt18]

I knew lots of people that loaded up on Honors and AP courses that just ended up retaking them in college.  Made me glad that I never invested a whole lot of time in them.

[Voldemort]

Exactly.

 

I don't care that it won't do much good for me, if I have to take it again in college, I'll be that much more prepared.

 

I'm expecting a 4 on CompSci, 2 or 3 on Calc... I totally bombed the second multiple choice section and the last free response question.

[steelmanronald06]

I didn't get valedictorian because I took all AP honors classes and college classes my senior year. I put my grade on a 4.0 scale, and they grade you on a 3.0 scale.  Bunch of shit, if you ask me.

[ober]

That doesn't make any sense.  If you didn't make valedictorian because of AP classes, that means you didn't apply yourself in the AP classes.  I don't know what kind of messed up system your school runs, but myself and other people in high school actually had the ability to get better than a 4.0 because of the AP classes.

[steelmanronald06]

I made all A's in my classes,but those grades counted on a 4.0 scale and my school grades on a 3.0 scale.  So when they went to average it in with my grades from 8-11th grade, which were all 3.0 scale based, it lowered my overall average considerably.  It was really fucked up. I got a golden knot, and an honors award, which was the first they have ever done that, but that is all.

[cruzreal]

In any case, remember this: It's only cheating if you get caught. 

[roopurt18]

People that are willing to lie to themselves are dangerous indeed.