AdamDyk Posted March 27, 2012 Report Share Posted March 27, 2012 Personally in my opinion the difficulty level of HL Maths really depends on the level of math you get prior to entering IB. I unfortunately had the great misfortune of having a terrible teacher in 10th grade. Despite getting A's in that year and the previous years, as I entered HL Math, I had an average of about C. It took me a while to adjust. Now I'm fine and getting A's and predicted of 6 or 7. I think it's really about becoming a mature enough math student for it; because some people are just not ready to understand some of the stuff you learn. Or in other cases, they are not willing to put the effort. If you haven't studied for math tests before HL Math, now you surely will. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChocolateDrop Posted April 5, 2012 Report Share Posted April 5, 2012 Maths HL isnt actually hard, getting good grades depends on whether you adore the subject and how much time you spend on it. The hardest thing about it is trying to refrain from procrastinating and the thought of revising it. And picking up that big textbook is hard, I get tired and exhausted just looking at it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasmeena Posted April 5, 2012 Report Share Posted April 5, 2012 Everyone at school seems to say that HL Mathematics is near impossible. My teachers tell me that i really need to love maths to be able to have a chance of getting above a 5 int his subject. What are your thoughts? The fact is that HL is really for those who enjoy doing maths and consider that to be an easy subject which is there only to have fun. I have two of those in my school. They both have 7's in math without any work... Any work, literally. They don't even do their portofolio's on time. They make it during their break in school in about 45 minutes and get a 7. ... But they're naturally gifted ofc, and I think they want to do sth like that in their life... So as everyone is saying. Unless you want do be a mathematician, physician, an engineer... You don't need HL maths. But if you're one of the talented ones and you do maths without any fuss, any kind of maths... then take HL - it can only be fun for you Generally speaking, your teach is right. My friend, she finished IB the May 2011, she had HL maths, and was reeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaally smart. And did her best and everything... And she had a predicted grade 7, but she messed up on her finals and got a 6, or even a 5... Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
krakaton Posted April 12, 2012 Report Share Posted April 12, 2012 If you don't try, you'll never know.You need to love maths and you need to work your ass off, but there is no reason that you cannot get a 6 or 7 in Maths HL.If you ask me, I'd say give it a shot, try it for 3 or 4 months and see how it goes. If you're failing miserably or can't cope with the workload, then quietly shift to SL. If you find yourself doing well, then why not? Stick with it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Incendiary Posted April 16, 2012 Report Share Posted April 16, 2012 No it's not that difficult once you know the stuff. You will start to notice some patterns in the questions and you will get the hang of it with enough practice. What it needs though, is dedication and commitment, if you want to achieve a high mark in HL maths, you really need to study the syllabus and know the general style of questions that are in the exam, and of course, a pretty decent math background. Take me as an exmaple, I have been practicing maths regularly over the past 10 years and all of the maths in my school had been a breeze, including most the HL math topics, but then that is because i have done a wide range of problems before hence I am familiar with the topics. Honestly, I really do not know why people always complain math HL is difficult, I mean, surely IB psychology or philosophy is much harder to get a 7, especially in HL, at least there is a standard answer in math! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Stark Posted April 16, 2012 Report Share Posted April 16, 2012 No it's not that difficult once you know the stuff. You will start to notice some patterns in the questions and you will get the hang of it with enough practice. What it needs though, is dedication and commitment, if you want to achieve a high mark in HL maths, you really need to study the syllabus and know the general style of questions that are in the exam, and of course, a pretty decent math background. Take me as an exmaple, I have been practicing maths regularly over the past 10 years and all of the maths in my school had been a breeze, including most the HL math topics, but then that is because i have done a wide range of problems before hence I am familiar with the topics.Honestly, I really do not know why people always complain math HL is difficult, I mean, surely IB psychology or philosophy is much harder to get a 7, especially in HL, at least there is a standard answer in math!Remember, in humanities subjects you're not marked on the answer you give, but how you argue for it. For people who're more verbal thinkers, liking to reason everything out in words, it comes as easily to them as Maths does to you. Then there's the matter of whether or not you like the subject - Personally I believe much of the rumours of HL Maths' exaggerated difficulty comes from those who simply dislike Math, a real cultural cringe in modern Western Society for numerous far-reaching reasons. I, for example, have a quite similar Maths background to yourself, scoring 7 in Maths SL despite not having done a question outside of a test in years, yet detest Math because the lack of scope for argument bores me. I'm sure I'd find the HL Course more engaging, but I wouldn't take it over options such as Economics, History, English or French (though the point is moot as my school unfortunately does not offer HL Maths due to a rather History-biased IBC).Ultimately, it all depends on the way somebody thinks, and what interests them. The only way somebody can determine for themselves whether or not HL Math is for them is to try it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Masoomali fatehkia Posted April 16, 2012 Report Share Posted April 16, 2012 Maths HL is all about practice and how good your foundation in maths is. Certainly if you have done IGCSE (International General Certificate of Education) maths then it can be quite difficult to do HL maths because most of the stuff you learn in IGCSE math is easy and basic. But If in addition to math you did IGCSE additional maths then it gives you a good grip to take maths HL.I personally did additional maths and it has really helped with maths HL.And yes practice is important as well. You should practice almost everyday even if its for 1/2 hour. make sure you practice each topic as you learn it in class. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antrikshy Posted May 3, 2012 Report Share Posted May 3, 2012 I did the Indian standard 10 before the Diploma Programme. I got 148/150 on the final math exams. Thought I am HL material, and I struggled in the second year. About two hours to go for my final paper 1 exam. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
opus92fan Posted May 6, 2012 Report Share Posted May 6, 2012 My school stopped offering Math HL a few years ago. The teacher couldn't stand teaching it and the students found it way too stressful. In the past, there were some really successful HL math students at my school, however, most of them were certificate and Math HL was basically the only IB subject they were taking. We still use the HL math textbooks in the IB math classes, but we only do the sections relevent to SL. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dinstruction Posted May 10, 2012 Report Share Posted May 10, 2012 I loved every second of HL math. I truly believe many of the people at my school who were unable to take HL math due to lack of preparation or the rigid class structure are missing out on something ten times more fun than any Dostoyevsky novel or Totalitarian state. One day I will lead a glorious mathematical revolution at my school and Groups 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 will tremble at the might of my series and differential equations!Sorry, I tend to get riled up about this. I'm going to go study for the AP statistics exam. 3 Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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