Screwed for Life

[Persuader]

I'm a sophomore in highschool. My GPA is 1.601. In Biology I have 34%, in Spanish a B-, in Civics a 69%, English a 77.24%, Small Gas Engines a 83%, Gym a 79%, and in Geometry I have a 66%. How hard is it to raise a GPA??? Will I ever be able to raise it to at least 3.5 by the time I graduate??? Any tips??? I really need to get myself on track so my life isn't screwed.

[YT2095]

so in effect you really just need to increase another 1.9 (not so bad when you look at it that way)

 

you already seem to be quite good in at least 3 sudjects! perhaps you can ask your tutors for a little extra help and explaination of things, I`m sure if they`re good teachers they will be more than pleased to spend a little extra time with you and go over parts you struggle with.

 

ASK them for help, would be My "tip"

[Phi for All]

You've got plenty of time to fix things and more importantly you understand the need to fix things. You've got the guts not to stick your head in the sand and that tells me you're going to be OK.

 

Do you think you study enough? What takes up most of your time? Do you have enough friends and family to support your desire to get a better GPA?

[the tree]

ASK

This is the best piece of advice anyone will ever be given regarding thier education, ever.

[Persuader]

Phi for All : You've got plenty of time to fix things and more importantly you understand the need to fix things. You've got the guts not to stick your head in the sand and that tells me you're going to be OK.

 

Do you think you study enough? What takes up most of your time? Do you have enough friends and family to support your desire to get a better GPA?

 

Well, it's not that I don't study enough or aren't smart enough it's just that I procrastinate a lot. Hanging out and just screwing around really takes up most of my time and I know I could be doing homework a lot of the time. I know I have a lot of support from my friends, but my mom and family at HOME aren't really all that supportive. My grandparents are really supportive though. My home environment is unorganized and messy and it makes me feel like my whole life is that way. My mother and I don't really get along. I just really can't focus at home when it comes to homework.

[Phi for All]

Well, it's not that I don't study enough or aren't smart enough it's just that I procrastinate a lot.

If you're smart enough to ask for help, you're smart enough for anything. And procrastination is... well, I'll tell you tomorrow.

Hanging out and just screwing around really takes up most of my time and I know I could be doing homework a lot of the time.

Friends are the best but if they aren't doing what you need to be doing then they'll understand that you need to be doing what you should be doing. If you're smart enough to figure *that* sentence out, you'll be graduating college when you're 19.

 

Do the people you hang with have similar problems? What are their GPAs? Are they doing their homework *before* they screw around? Do they care as much about this as you do?

I know I have a lot of support from my friends, but my mom and family at HOME aren't really all that supportive. My grandparents are really supportive though.

Can you ask your grandparents if you can study at their place? Sometimes a different environment helps you focus. And if I know grandparents, they'll be honored you came to them for help.

My home environment is unorganized and messy and it makes me feel like my whole life is that way. My mother and I don't really get along. I just really can't focus at home when it comes to homework.

If you can't change your environment, you've got to change the way you use your environment. Your ability to adapt is one of the reasons why humans are at the top of the food chain despite not having big pointy teeth.

[Persuader]

Do the people you hang with have similar problems? What are their GPAs? Are they doing their homework *before* they screw around? Do they care as much about this as you do?

 

Nah, they're all honor students with 4.0 GPA's and scholarships. Oh, and they're athletic superstars in this town.

[Phi for All]

Nah, they're all honor students with 4.0 GPA's and scholarships. Oh, and they're athletic superstars in this town.

Oooooooh, grab one of them and say, "Can I study over at your place?"

 

If it's not too personal, why you don't get along with your mother? It's usually every parent's dream that their kids hang out with friends like yours.

[Genecks]

I don't like giving advice any longer; it seems to anger others indirectly. I talk too much about myself, too.

 

I don't think you should worry about people that have a 4.0 GPA and athletic super star abilities; the majority of these people are what some call "valedicktorians." The parents pick up the tab and pay for everything; this makes the life of the student a lot easier. Some people aren't as lucky, while others get all the help. I dislike people that have more money, support, and help than I do, and then I hate watching them making low grades. I'm anti-elitist, but I don't like watching resourceful people dumb down because they are too lazy to work hard.

 

Dude, I live in the basement and eat tuna all the freakin' time. I don't have the best life, but I make the best grades. Many people around this world have it all, but they become weak and pathetic because they don't have to work hard for things. People slack off because their parents or guardians provide them with everything they have. Don't slack off; you need to learn to fight for yourself and your own success.

 

I think you have to worry about yourself more than others. There is one thing I've learned about education and friends: friends get in the way of a good education.

 

Unless all of your friends want to help your education, they will most likely hurt it. A lot of people in the world are leeches; they suck the blood out of someone while taking the nutrients that give that person life.

 

Leeches target any person, and they don't care about who has power and who doesn't.

 

What you need to start thinking about is who has power, and who doesn't.

 

Who has the power to education you?

Who doesn't have the power to educate you?

 

Do your best to stay away from those that use improper English in colloquial speech. These people, unless giving good advice, are best ignored; they usually screw up the academic process of learning new words and using them properly.

 

I'm not as lenient as Phi for All. Friends suck and get in the way. It's best to learn how to use people; learn who to use; and learn as much as you can from them and leave them. Continually gain academic knowledge and power. A person that ignore others, uses them, and goes forth with his or her own life can graduate early from high school and college. All the person has to do is ignore others, use them, and go forth with his or her own agenda. Simple as that.

 

One could say I'm an antisocial psychopath, but I would say that's what makes me get good grades. People suck, and I won't let anyone else on this forum tell me otherwise. The people on this forum, however, are good people and I attribute them to my success. The people on this forum are educated in science. I come to this forum to learn.

 

Most people around school talk of foolish things that get them no where.

 

I've learned the majority of people in this world are idiots, and it's going to be like that for a long time. So, if you want to become successful and get good grades, then you're going to have to learn to ignore them, and listen to yourself.

 

You've taken the first step by asking for help; that's a good thing.

 

What are the next few steps to take? Looking at your GPA and thinking about what kind of grades you want to get from now on.

 

I'm going to tell you something I learned recently in college. This thing really helped me get to where I am now.

 

Many people live in the past, while others flow in the current. A person can't look into the past, and a person can't dream too much of the future.

 

Don't dream of the future. Don't look into the past. Don't flow with the current.

 

Prepare for the future; learn from the past; and work hard in the current.

 

I'm sure you've made mistakes in the past. What you need to do is look at them and prepare; prepare so those events don't happen again. When you're given a homework assignment, you should do it. That's what working hard in the current is all about.

 

You may dream of things in the distant future, but you're not going to get anywhere dreaming.

 

Some people have asked me about where I want to go for a university.

 

I tell them, "I'm more worried about getting the grades to go there first. I can't plan ahead, but I can prepare. It's not going to do me any good to say I'm going to go there."

 

If you want to go to a university or other institution, then you'll need to concentrate on your grades right now.

 

You talked about how your family and home life isn't the best. I'd give you pictures of my house, but it's a mess. Mice crawl in the sink, and they leave crap in all of the pots and pans. Ants crawl all over the bathroom floor, and the stench of urine is pungent. No one around my house cleans it. I stay inside my little basement, and I don't come out.

 

I've lived with an alcoholic in the family for many years. My other family member picked up hard drugs. My parent almost died from cancer a while back. There's a child of my constantly depressed sister that lives in the house and always dirties it. There's a dog that craps all over the kitchen floor.

 

How have I dealt with this?

 

I ignore the house and my family. My family isn't going to help me, so I've decided to ignore their stupid asses.

One could say I hate my family, but I learned to deal with them by ignoring them. I have to use them as if they are some type of economic tool. I'm not telling you to hate your family; you'll need to accept them, but learn to deal with them. I don't like living life this way. However, this seems to be the way life has been for me since I was young. I've been though a lot of emotional and physical pain. I'm not going to go into this on this, but I think you'll understand that lots of people have a shattered life. You'll have to learn to become stronger in your mind to fight off these things.

 

What do I say for you?

 

Ignore the family and get out of the house. Ignore them, but respect them. Something I highly avoid is bringing people down, even though I may be more intelligent and powerful than them. I like to act stupid around others; it makes people feel comfortable.

 

Go to the library and learn to start making meals for yourself.

 

Maybe you'll want to start going to a college library.

Colleges often have many things that are resourch to scholarly people.

They also have a microwave to cook meals made at home.

 

You could spend time at the library. After you are done going to the library, you could go to your grandparents to sleep at their house. Some people don't have a problem sleeping at their house; people have a problem with someone living at their house. You'll have to talk to your grandparents about this, and you'll have to create a time schedule for everything.

 

Now onto the 3.5 G.P.A. part of the discussion.

 

I like to think of GPA's like this:

 

1 point per high school year.

 

You have a 1.6 right now.

 

I don't know if that's left over from your freshman year or the calculated GPA for this year, but I do know you will need to make straight A's from now on.

 

It's high school; it can't be that hard. College is hard; high school is breezy.

 

Procrastination you say....

Let me ask you something: Why do you want a 3.5 GPA?

Why now?

 

If you've been procrating all along, why have you decided to start making the grade?

 

When I decided to make better grades, I had a motivation. I had a reason, drive, and want to go further academically than possible at the time. I still have this drive.

 

What's your drive? Are you trying to get into a specific college or university? From what I understand, college like someone with at least a 2.0 GPA for admission. But you want a 3.5, and I don't know why.

 

For what ever invisible reason this may be, I'm going to have to make some advice for it.

Whatever you reason is, you'll have to keep that reason strong. If that reason is short them, then your drive will not last very long. The reason to struggle and keep going must be a definite one, and you must keep struggling to obtain a goal. This goal must be a long-term goal. Nothing is a dream until you make it a dream; dreams are things that are never obtained; goals, however, are things that can be obtained. You have to sum up the will power to obtain it.

 

To make an A in all of your courses will be a complex thing to do. I don't see an A in any of the courses you have right now.

I assume I'll have to give you the resources.

 

First, you'll need dead accurate English usage skills. Mine in this post aren't the best, and I'm not going to proofread (or copyedit for those that are picky) this post. When you do a paper, you'll have to edit everything to perfection.

 

The problem with secondary education is its inability provide knowledge that is useful to the student.

If you're ever going to write a paper for someone, be it teacher or other, I want this to be the first thought to come through your mind:

 

"Now in order to do his best a man of ordinary intelligence and education should be able to express himself correctly both in speaking and writing, that is, he should be able to convey his thoughts in an intelligent manner which the simplest can understand." - How to Speak and Write Correctly by Joseph Devlin

 

This is the whole basis of college English. You don't have to use complex words, but you do have to make your audience understand the topic at hand.

 

If you are truly serious about breaking through the GPA plateau you've recently come across, then you'll need to bring your drive and academic fight to the next level. You can't procrastinate anymore. You can't watch TV and slack around. You'll have to keep your eyes on the prize. You'll have to constantly struggle to study, learn, research, and become a better scholar.

 

Becoming an intellectual requires reading. You can't procrastinate when it comes to reading. On my signature are a multiple books on reading and writing. Read ever sentence in each internet book.

 

Ever wonder how to increase your reading speed?

Read, read, and read more. The more you complex and elongated things you read, the more your reading speed and comprehension will increase. You'll have to learn to keep a dictionary close to your heart.

 

Once you've enhanced your writing skills, then you may want to go over to this forum: http://writingforums.com/

 

Now you be may more curious about how to get an A in any class. There's an easy way to do this: go to the professor and ask.

 

"How do I make an A in this course? What will I have to do? What things will I have to accomplish? What is the best way to do the assignments?"

 

Atypical personalities go places. Teachers and professors like to see courage and interest from people. This is called the brownie point system. The brownie point system is where you show interest in a course subject and the will to succeed. Teachers sometimes act lenient on a person; other times, the teacher will be a bit more tough on you. More times than not, this atypical way of doing things works.

 

I would also suggest you don't take any art or drama courses. Many artists do not think people should get a grade on an art assignment. This thing is controversial, but I don't like the idea of grading someone's art. The courses are very subjective. I've been through drama and the arts before. I can testity these courses are subjective, and a person could learn more from a local drama/art workshop. Art belongs in art schools. Like Harvard *sarcasm*

 

You'll have to work hard on any assignment you do. You'll have to bring it to the teacher ahead of time and ask how he or she thinks of it. "What corrections could I make?"

 

After understanding your writing and teacher, you'll have to understand the course. The course is the most important thing to understand. The book you are given that comes with the class will allow you to stay ahead of others. The book is one of the most important tools of the classroom for getting an A in the course. If you read the whole book ahead of time, understand the material, and can tell people about it, then you'll be more likely to get an A in a course.

 

If you want to make all A's in your courses, there will be no room for procrastination. You'll need to be constantly reading, comprehending, working problems, and understanding the topic at hand.

 

You may want to look on the Internet for forums that relate to your school work. I can't help you on Gym, but I can tell you most things in such fitness courses pertain to a type of "if you do everything as told, then you'll make the A."

 

It's hard to make a good grade in Spanish because there aren't many people that like to conversate in it on forums. This would be a good chance to make use of those friends you have. If any speak spanish, you could always talk to them in Spanish. Most people have no problem with practicing their language skills with someone.

 

sosmath.com is a good forum for math help. I don't use math forums anymore. I believe the lady who made purplemath.com is a moderator on that website. It's an excellent website for math help.

 

I'd give more advice, but I'll wait.

[mike90]

Wow man that was just scary.

[Cloud]

persauder - you've got 2 years left so thats plenty of time. No sweat.

 

To get a better GPA I think I'm right in saying you have to keep a consistent level over all your courses. So I would really knuckle down on Biology and geometry and bring them up to 70% +. That would probably bring your GPA up to 2.5. And since your so good at 'sge' I would advise taking that into 90% for an A. To get the 3.5 you want - Its basically sacrifacing two weekends per month - which you're probably not willing to do. I'm sure you can definitely achieve a 3.0 by the time you finish.

(Which is a overall B - its good !!!)

[Phi for All]

Genecks, you make some good points and give some good advice. Persuader sounds smart enough to pick out what will enhance Persuader and what will keep Persuader from being a basement-dwelling tuna-eater who hates humanity.

 

No offense, Genecks, I truly realize things have been pretty bleak for you. And you're spot on about focusing on what's good for you and what will help you get ahead. Drive and determination are the keys to getting what you want. But you must also remember that you live in a society full of people, and often times those people can make life a lot better for you.

 

It's true that the vast majority of those people will not be your close friends. But the secret to people is that there is *something* about almost EVERYONE that you can like about them. You can get pretty good about finding those *somethings* pretty quickly. Those who have many *somethings* will be your friends, and the friends who also care the most and end up sharing the most activities with you will be your best friends.

 

Beyond friends, you 'll have people you work with, and while many people dismiss co-workers as mandatory acquaintances, you're going to be spending quite a bit of time with them. Learn to emphasize what you like about them and make sure your dealings revolve around those points. People are a resource and can make life a whole lot better. Sure, there are a lot of jerks, but everyone acts like a jerk sometimes. Learn about the Fundamental Attribution Error and how to avoid it's evil clutches.

[Louise]

You have a couple years, good thing you're noticing this now. Sounds like you're exactly like me, cept I don't have any parents to stop me from procrastinating. No, I don't recommend you do this, but this is me: I had a 69% average in grade 10, and a 72% in grade 11. Not like I wasn't smart, I just didn't work. A month from now I'll be graduating with an (estimated) overall average of 96%. Guess I decided that getting into a university was a good thing to do. I'm so concentrated now that I even forgot to get my grad tickets; my friends had the lovely pleasure of reminding me at the last minute.

 

You don't have to be a little stressball and working-hermit to get good grades, either. I'm the most relaxed person I know, and still go out every weekend because I've got myself a good system to work with.

 

It sounds like you just need a kick in the ass to get you going. The fact that is was my last year, my last chance, was a good enough reason for me. Perhaps it'll work for you. You might take awhile to get into the groove... hell, you might even work for a full day on something that would take another person half an hour. That's the bloody procrastination, practice will help you get faster. Just ask yourself this question consistently, "Right now, am I doing the most important thing I could be doing?"

 

Oh, and you need passion for the subjects. No one can work well without it.

 

In the end, procrastination prevents you from reaching your goals and leads you into a world of 'if only...'

Don't ever let that happen.

 

Here's some advice to beat procrastination.

 

Become mechanical

Study at the same time everyday, and don't let anyone bother you. Its your time, and do it everyday, even if you don't have any homework you can always study. Make yourself the goal to finish an assignment in a certain amount of time to help you concentrate fully on it.

 

Sausage method

I'm about to use an analogy here, so, you know, enjoy. You can't (normally) wolf down a sausage in one bite, can you? It would be hard to swallow and I'll bet that you'll choke and porbably even die. Same goes for assignments and studying. Small, managable tasks are less intimidating to get started and are easier to complete. Oh, fancy that, you may even make yourself more free time.

To-do-today list

Sounds nerdy? Too bad, it works wonders. It keeps you on track. Use your agenda.

 

Oh, and don't say no to friends, they keep you sane. Get yourself a close friend who is one year older than you, preferrably someone who has taken all of the same subjects. Leach to them, make them tell you what areas are important to study.

 

And always ask yourself 'why' you're doing the assignment, or studying for a test.

 

All these things probably sound pretty daunting. However, fear comes after you beat the shit outta procrastination, so that's a good thing.

 

Alright... I'm done now.

[Y-S]

stop playing games or watching porn

[iglak]

are you procrastinating because you don't want to work?

or are you procrastinating because work doesn't help you in any way?

 

i'm a huge procrastinator.

i was mildly depressed for the last 4 years of my life, starting in freshman year in highschool, and gradually getting worse.

 

the reason was because the way school teaches is not compatable with the way i learn. homework taught me nothing, and even degraded my knowledge and intellegence. lectures were boring and pointless. projects had their moments of being interresting, but were often so regulated that i couldn't do anything useful.

 

i got lucky, and got good grades. i was smart and was able to do some of the work, and i did well on tests when i wanted to.

i got into a pretty good college, with the hope that college would be different from highschool. that i might be able to finally learn something.

i was, unfortunately, wrong. college was exactly like highschool. i was unable to learn anything. i was talking to people, and found out that it never changes, not even in their senior years.

 

so i dropped out and lived on my own.

 

now, 2 months later, i'm finally feeling healthy again. my depression is finally gone, because it came directly from homework and teaching techniques (and my parents). it disapeared slowly because my emotional state was heavily ingrained in my mind, but it's finally gone now.

now, i'm miving in with a friend who's going to a community college. i'm getting an entry level job. i'm making a video game with a friend. i'm making electronic music. and i'm self-teaching martial arts and meditation.

i'm pretty certain that i'm going to have an awesome future.

 

 

 

i guess what i'm trying to say is,

as long as you have integrity, you can't screw up your life.

take the others' advice and try to figure out why you procrastinate, and why you want to get better grades. that will give you motivation to work for it.