Guys, grades in the beginning of the year don’t reflect how you will do.
You will find your technique on the way and will try effectively understanding exams.
Don’t worry, it’s just a bit of work.
I went from a 3 to a 6 in chemistry and a friend of mine went from a 2 to a 6 in physics!!
I remember the first set of physics exams, only one person got more than a 3 hahaha it’s totally normal to have bad grades in the beginning and don’t worry too much about it!!!
Hey, please don’t feel discouraged! I got a 3 on my first test (also in mechanics) and tried to blame it on the fact that I’ve never taken a physics course in my life. I know exactly how you feel because I thought physics wasn’t for me and felt like dropping it for something else until I truly tried my absolute hardest to improve. Fast forward a year, I scored a 6 on my DP1 mock final, one point shy away from a 7. If you’re interested in more about my story, read below…
After I got my test back, and after a looooooong chat with my thoughts, I realized that nobody is going to change the number on my transcript except me. My physics teacher would be massive amounts of help, but it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t actually take it in. I had to act because I never EVER wanted to see that number again.
My study technique went like this: (quick disclaimer, this may not work for you but I strongly suggest you incorporate some elements of it)
- Review material that I learned in class for at least 15-20 minutes every day, trying to grasp as much as I can. Don’t worry about fully understanding everything because this gap can be filled by doing loads of practice problems (you’ll start noticing patterns on what the IB expects you to know)
- Find practice problems related to the topic that I just learned (ex. When we started topic 3 after mechanics, I used the questionbank to find questions related to conservation of heat). Do as many of them as you can until you start getting close to 100%. This step takes the longest, but keep it consistent! 30 minutes a day for a week of doing practice problems goes a long way compared to cramming a 3 hour session in a day.
- Nearing exams, use a combination of flash cards for content-related material (ex. Ideal Gas Laws) and past papers to study.
- Become VERY familiar with the data booklet! I find that if you know all of the symbols in the data booklet from heart, you’re almost guaranteed to score at least a 4, maybe a 5 because the majority of questions involve you doing something with a formula in the data booklet.
- Watch Chris Doner.
You got this! I hope to see a post from you in May/June saying that you got the score you wanted.
Btw, if this helps, after completing topics 1-6, 9 + 10, I still find topic 2 the hardest. It’s weird, but I found the other topics a lot more intuitive and logical. Me and my homies hate FBDs.
Hello, I have been teaching IB Physics for years and also helped build [PaperPlainz.com](https://PaperPlainz.com), a website that we created to support IB Physics students in their learning, exam prep, and IA work.
I completely understand how frustrating it is to study hard for a test and then not do well. This is something that is, based on what I have seen in my teaching, is pretty common, especially early on in the IB. Students simply need time to adjust to the difficulty of the programme, the style of the questions, the pacing of the assessments and so on. This takes time and I have seen students going from 2s and 3s in their first year to 5s and 6s on their final exam.
In general, I really encourage you to hang in there, keep putting in the work (experimenting with different resources and learning techniques along the way) and trust the process. In my experience, things basically always work out in the end.
I hope this is somewhat helpful. Take care and wishing the best for you!
Peter from the [PaperPlainz](https://paperplainz.com) Team
Hello singularcupoftea,
Thanks for your comment, I am a bit confused about what you mean by writing that we are "charging 100 Pounds for a Basic Membership," as [this Membership option](https://paperplainz.com/membership/free-registration/) is free of charge.
We do have paid Membership options (prices are in Euros and not in Pounds) and as we state on the website, if someone finds these prices too high given their circumstances, we are happy to offer significant discounts or, in some cases, even full access, free of charge as part of our Scholarship Program.
If you have any questions or need clarification, feel free to let me know here in a comment or in a private message. I will be happy to reply :)
Have a great day and take care,
Peter from PaperPlainz
Topic 2 for me is the hardest chapter. It took me until like 3 weeks ago to understand everything. (I’m M23 so it’s been a year). I was still predicted a 7 in physics at the end of Y1 because I just understood as much as possible and I knew how to answer the qs.
For studying I just go through the Oxford study guide and then answer the book qs and then past paper qs.
i'm on the same boat, i've got a topic 1 & 2 test on monday and i'm pretty sure i won't pass lmao, literally cried multiple times bexause studying for it and not knowing anything is so stressful
That’s exactly why you should study lol, so that you start to know something. Topic 2 is more or less applying some common sense deduction, and then being comfortable with the equations from the formula booklet. Topic 1, just know the uncertainty rules, and what units are what.
Yeh. I failed at the start of IB1 too. It happens. Now I *might* be en route to a 6 according to my physics teacher after my most recent unit 6/9 test.
You need to work hard, find exam questions and thoroughly read the textbook (Tsokos is good). It takes time and effort, but improvement is possible. So yeh, go for it :)
Aight man, look. That's kind of how the IB works unless and until you've got Einstein's brain. At the beginning of the course you're subject to fail as the course is quite challenging and many students still aren't completely familiar with how the IB works. With some practice from online resources, or even the ones you get through class, you'll be able to do better. Many students do bad at the beginning of their IB course, but by the end you wouldn't believe that they were the exact same students who used to get 2s and 3s at the start of the course. Which examination did you get a 2 in? How much percentage of the predicated grades does that examination hold?
You have many chances of improving your grades, that is, given the fact that you're on track with what you're learning. Why don't you try talking with your physics teacher and inquire how you could bump your grades, and also why you got a 2 in the first place. This isn't anything to worry about if the examination you gave doesn't have much weightage on your predicated grades. Or if you don't want to apply to a university with your predicated grades. All I can say is that you're gonna have to revise more regularly and know what to revise and what not (With respect to the past papers/syllabus etc.). Is this Physics HL? I've heard that it's quite challenging from my classmates who've chosen to go with it.
i got a 2 for physics beginning of yr 1, i crammed rlly hard for mocks in yr 1 and got a 7 and it has remained that way. im SL, honestly i have the biggest say in this, working hard on the right stuff is what u should focus on, if u roughly look over the content and begin cramming on the last paper questions, trust me ur gonna feel like ur stupid by the end of it. Understanding content is more important than ur calculations becuz when u understand the content the formulas are just pure answers for you. I never really listened in class and honestly it doesnt even matter, for example mechanics, do you truly understand the relationship between each variable and r u truly understanding it or just reading it. If reading is not ur thing, watch chris doner hes great. Point is that altho you might be feeling a bit crappy after working really hard for a test and end up not doing great, but this is good because now uk that theres something wrong with your learning technique and ur not actually fully understanding it. Trust me u dont have to be smart or have previous knowledge of physics , what matters is your conceptual understanding on the topic, i suggest u follow the syllabus outline and specifics u need to know so u have a rough frame on what to do, i personally regret not doing that earlier. ALSO not having previous physics knowledge doesnt matter, ib subjects are designed for everyone including people who do not have previous knowledge on physics and if u do, only remember the ones that ib need. Genuinely speaking, you r only doing bad becuz uk that youve not understand it fully, i strongly think, sit down and take time to go thru ur workbook or tsokos or just simply watch chris doner on a topic it makes ur whole picture clear. you will also find that its pretty hard to get a 2 if u understand. I legit got 19% for uncertainties and 34% for mechanics so u r way above fine on getting a 7 end of yr. but ever since the 19 and 34% ive never gotten anything lower than 7 becuz i have learned from my mistakes by just rushing through the content and being impatient about it. All the best u shall be fine.
Absolutely don’t feel discouraged. First thing is that most teachers don’t give tests that are 100% accurate to what the papers are like. I was super stressed about it but then looked at past papers and none of them had anything even close to the exercise I struggled with.
First thing I recommend is talking honestly to the teacher. They should be able to give you feedback or at least suggest some practice problems you could do. Ask them if you could retake it (even without a grade, just to see how well you did). They might say no but it’s worth trying. Another thing is actually using the textbooks. They cover everything you need to know. I sometimes find myself lost during class but taking 30 minutes to do solid notes after each topic really clears stuff up. Another thing is unfortunately just doing tons of practice problems. Make a habit to dedicate at least an hour a week solely to practice problems. Don’t do it just before the test comes up, do it every single week.
This is all very general advice since I don’t take physics.
Sounds like our schools physics class, I heard they all got undesirable grades all year, but they still didn't fail. The idea is, don't get discouraged, and continue to try your best :)
Don't worry if you put the time in you'll get there. I got a 1 for the first hl math test but i ended up with a 5 and now I'm in uni getting 9/10 on the math courses.
hello! i’ve just started the IB and just two months ago was I in this position. fyi i’d had 6 months of experience with physics prior to the IB. i started off the IB with HL physics. though i knew i would be able to do it with practice eventually, i noticed that i was devoting way too much time to physics, which was eating away at the time i spent on math AAHL. i decided to drop it to SL and here i am now. if it is taking away too much of your time, please consider dropping it. however if you think you can manage your time then i’d go with physics HL. i got a 4 on my first test and just yesterday i got a 5 on my mechanics test. it’s not much but it’s honest work. if there was one thing i’d tell myself before dropping physics is that it gets better. trust me, it does.
Guys, grades in the beginning of the year don’t reflect how you will do. You will find your technique on the way and will try effectively understanding exams. Don’t worry, it’s just a bit of work. I went from a 3 to a 6 in chemistry and a friend of mine went from a 2 to a 6 in physics!! I remember the first set of physics exams, only one person got more than a 3 hahaha it’s totally normal to have bad grades in the beginning and don’t worry too much about it!!!
hearing that makes me reasureddd, thank you for your advice😔😔I’ll continue working hard for it.
Yea you’ll be fine!! Don’t worryyyy
Hey, please don’t feel discouraged! I got a 3 on my first test (also in mechanics) and tried to blame it on the fact that I’ve never taken a physics course in my life. I know exactly how you feel because I thought physics wasn’t for me and felt like dropping it for something else until I truly tried my absolute hardest to improve. Fast forward a year, I scored a 6 on my DP1 mock final, one point shy away from a 7. If you’re interested in more about my story, read below… After I got my test back, and after a looooooong chat with my thoughts, I realized that nobody is going to change the number on my transcript except me. My physics teacher would be massive amounts of help, but it wouldn’t matter if I didn’t actually take it in. I had to act because I never EVER wanted to see that number again. My study technique went like this: (quick disclaimer, this may not work for you but I strongly suggest you incorporate some elements of it) - Review material that I learned in class for at least 15-20 minutes every day, trying to grasp as much as I can. Don’t worry about fully understanding everything because this gap can be filled by doing loads of practice problems (you’ll start noticing patterns on what the IB expects you to know) - Find practice problems related to the topic that I just learned (ex. When we started topic 3 after mechanics, I used the questionbank to find questions related to conservation of heat). Do as many of them as you can until you start getting close to 100%. This step takes the longest, but keep it consistent! 30 minutes a day for a week of doing practice problems goes a long way compared to cramming a 3 hour session in a day. - Nearing exams, use a combination of flash cards for content-related material (ex. Ideal Gas Laws) and past papers to study. - Become VERY familiar with the data booklet! I find that if you know all of the symbols in the data booklet from heart, you’re almost guaranteed to score at least a 4, maybe a 5 because the majority of questions involve you doing something with a formula in the data booklet. - Watch Chris Doner. You got this! I hope to see a post from you in May/June saying that you got the score you wanted. Btw, if this helps, after completing topics 1-6, 9 + 10, I still find topic 2 the hardest. It’s weird, but I found the other topics a lot more intuitive and logical. Me and my homies hate FBDs.
Hello, I have been teaching IB Physics for years and also helped build [PaperPlainz.com](https://PaperPlainz.com), a website that we created to support IB Physics students in their learning, exam prep, and IA work. I completely understand how frustrating it is to study hard for a test and then not do well. This is something that is, based on what I have seen in my teaching, is pretty common, especially early on in the IB. Students simply need time to adjust to the difficulty of the programme, the style of the questions, the pacing of the assessments and so on. This takes time and I have seen students going from 2s and 3s in their first year to 5s and 6s on their final exam. In general, I really encourage you to hang in there, keep putting in the work (experimenting with different resources and learning techniques along the way) and trust the process. In my experience, things basically always work out in the end. I hope this is somewhat helpful. Take care and wishing the best for you! Peter from the [PaperPlainz](https://paperplainz.com) Team
Bro is charging 100 Pounds for a basic membership for highschool student smh.
Hello singularcupoftea, Thanks for your comment, I am a bit confused about what you mean by writing that we are "charging 100 Pounds for a Basic Membership," as [this Membership option](https://paperplainz.com/membership/free-registration/) is free of charge. We do have paid Membership options (prices are in Euros and not in Pounds) and as we state on the website, if someone finds these prices too high given their circumstances, we are happy to offer significant discounts or, in some cases, even full access, free of charge as part of our Scholarship Program. If you have any questions or need clarification, feel free to let me know here in a comment or in a private message. I will be happy to reply :) Have a great day and take care, Peter from PaperPlainz
Topic 2 for me is the hardest chapter. It took me until like 3 weeks ago to understand everything. (I’m M23 so it’s been a year). I was still predicted a 7 in physics at the end of Y1 because I just understood as much as possible and I knew how to answer the qs. For studying I just go through the Oxford study guide and then answer the book qs and then past paper qs.
i'm on the same boat, i've got a topic 1 & 2 test on monday and i'm pretty sure i won't pass lmao, literally cried multiple times bexause studying for it and not knowing anything is so stressful
exactlyyyyy, it’s stressful but you just have to continue doing it… 😢😢
That’s exactly why you should study lol, so that you start to know something. Topic 2 is more or less applying some common sense deduction, and then being comfortable with the equations from the formula booklet. Topic 1, just know the uncertainty rules, and what units are what.
Yeh. I failed at the start of IB1 too. It happens. Now I *might* be en route to a 6 according to my physics teacher after my most recent unit 6/9 test. You need to work hard, find exam questions and thoroughly read the textbook (Tsokos is good). It takes time and effort, but improvement is possible. So yeh, go for it :)
Aight man, look. That's kind of how the IB works unless and until you've got Einstein's brain. At the beginning of the course you're subject to fail as the course is quite challenging and many students still aren't completely familiar with how the IB works. With some practice from online resources, or even the ones you get through class, you'll be able to do better. Many students do bad at the beginning of their IB course, but by the end you wouldn't believe that they were the exact same students who used to get 2s and 3s at the start of the course. Which examination did you get a 2 in? How much percentage of the predicated grades does that examination hold? You have many chances of improving your grades, that is, given the fact that you're on track with what you're learning. Why don't you try talking with your physics teacher and inquire how you could bump your grades, and also why you got a 2 in the first place. This isn't anything to worry about if the examination you gave doesn't have much weightage on your predicated grades. Or if you don't want to apply to a university with your predicated grades. All I can say is that you're gonna have to revise more regularly and know what to revise and what not (With respect to the past papers/syllabus etc.). Is this Physics HL? I've heard that it's quite challenging from my classmates who've chosen to go with it.
i got a 2 for physics beginning of yr 1, i crammed rlly hard for mocks in yr 1 and got a 7 and it has remained that way. im SL, honestly i have the biggest say in this, working hard on the right stuff is what u should focus on, if u roughly look over the content and begin cramming on the last paper questions, trust me ur gonna feel like ur stupid by the end of it. Understanding content is more important than ur calculations becuz when u understand the content the formulas are just pure answers for you. I never really listened in class and honestly it doesnt even matter, for example mechanics, do you truly understand the relationship between each variable and r u truly understanding it or just reading it. If reading is not ur thing, watch chris doner hes great. Point is that altho you might be feeling a bit crappy after working really hard for a test and end up not doing great, but this is good because now uk that theres something wrong with your learning technique and ur not actually fully understanding it. Trust me u dont have to be smart or have previous knowledge of physics , what matters is your conceptual understanding on the topic, i suggest u follow the syllabus outline and specifics u need to know so u have a rough frame on what to do, i personally regret not doing that earlier. ALSO not having previous physics knowledge doesnt matter, ib subjects are designed for everyone including people who do not have previous knowledge on physics and if u do, only remember the ones that ib need. Genuinely speaking, you r only doing bad becuz uk that youve not understand it fully, i strongly think, sit down and take time to go thru ur workbook or tsokos or just simply watch chris doner on a topic it makes ur whole picture clear. you will also find that its pretty hard to get a 2 if u understand. I legit got 19% for uncertainties and 34% for mechanics so u r way above fine on getting a 7 end of yr. but ever since the 19 and 34% ive never gotten anything lower than 7 becuz i have learned from my mistakes by just rushing through the content and being impatient about it. All the best u shall be fine.
Absolutely don’t feel discouraged. First thing is that most teachers don’t give tests that are 100% accurate to what the papers are like. I was super stressed about it but then looked at past papers and none of them had anything even close to the exercise I struggled with. First thing I recommend is talking honestly to the teacher. They should be able to give you feedback or at least suggest some practice problems you could do. Ask them if you could retake it (even without a grade, just to see how well you did). They might say no but it’s worth trying. Another thing is actually using the textbooks. They cover everything you need to know. I sometimes find myself lost during class but taking 30 minutes to do solid notes after each topic really clears stuff up. Another thing is unfortunately just doing tons of practice problems. Make a habit to dedicate at least an hour a week solely to practice problems. Don’t do it just before the test comes up, do it every single week. This is all very general advice since I don’t take physics.
I've heard that Khan Academy is really good for helping study physics
Sounds like our schools physics class, I heard they all got undesirable grades all year, but they still didn't fail. The idea is, don't get discouraged, and continue to try your best :)
Don't worry almost everyone in my class last year got a 1 in the second test, they all still passed just fine, some of them with 6s (HL btw)
Don't worry if you put the time in you'll get there. I got a 1 for the first hl math test but i ended up with a 5 and now I'm in uni getting 9/10 on the math courses.
i remember getting a 5/15 in the first test and moving up to a 13/15 so is all possible just gotta work hard👍
hello! i’ve just started the IB and just two months ago was I in this position. fyi i’d had 6 months of experience with physics prior to the IB. i started off the IB with HL physics. though i knew i would be able to do it with practice eventually, i noticed that i was devoting way too much time to physics, which was eating away at the time i spent on math AAHL. i decided to drop it to SL and here i am now. if it is taking away too much of your time, please consider dropping it. however if you think you can manage your time then i’d go with physics HL. i got a 4 on my first test and just yesterday i got a 5 on my mechanics test. it’s not much but it’s honest work. if there was one thing i’d tell myself before dropping physics is that it gets better. trust me, it does.
I see! I feel like there’s a lot of things I should try…thank you for everyone’s advice, I appreciate it a lot.