So in my school, our HL classes require a teacher’s recommendation to ensure that we can handle the course and therefore perform the best on the exam. And as math has always been my strongest and favorite subject, I was sure that I’m going to get math HL. But I was informed by my teacher yesterday that she will not be recommending me to math HL but instead math SL because she believed that I will most likely struggle in HL and my test scores weren’t as high.
My school gives an appeal option, where you can tell your counselor that you will take a course not recommended by your teacher. But the counselor told us that this is highly discouraged, and that there are plenty of people who are failing the class that they appealed for (especially for math).
The classes that I want to have are:
English HL (required), Math HL, Physics HL, History SL, Spanish SL (required), and Biology SL.
But if I cannot take HL math, I would most likely have to take biology HL. I don’t have anything against biology HL, I think I can do well in the class, it’s just that biology is not a class that I would want to go an extra mile for. I also talked to a friend of mine, who was recommended to SL but had it changed to HL after talking to the teacher. I had similar scores with her, but she had a slightly higher test average and I had a slightly higher semester exam grade.
Would it be wise to appeal or would it be better to just listen to my teacher? I think I can do fine in HL math and I’m willing to put in the work for it, but at the same time I’m scared off because of what my counselor said.
Math HL is pretty challenging. Personally, I would heed the teacher’s recommendation. But if you seriously are thinking about it, why not talk to the teacher who advised against it, specifically to hear what he thinks is going to be a challenge for you and also to hear what he would recommend to you as a strategy if you do it. Summer prep? A tutor? Summer course? With that input, you can make a more informed decision.
Don’t forget that if HL ends up being somewhat beyond you, not only will you have that course and grade to deal with, but it will be taking time from your other courses. You may find yourself giving up good grades in these because all your time is being sucked into math.
You’re risking your IB diploma (and the money you paid for the exams and all your hard work). If you care more about taking the class than earning your diploma then take it. I personally would not take the risk, especially if you are considering colleges that give credit for the diploma.
Math HL in my kids US IB school is for the very. very mathy kids. Kids do SL (usually also AP stats in jr year) then BC calc, the kids who do HL are mostly the ones who did BC calc as sophs. What is your current math level? If you want a mathy science as well as physics, pick HL chem over bio.
I’m currently a sophomore and I’m currently taking trigonometry (required at my school to be considered for HL) and AP stats. I had a 91 test average in trig and scored a 98 on the semester exam; scores that my teacher referred to as “not as high”. I have been getting high As in stats and I haven’t found it challenging.
I’m going to consider chem HL if after talking to my teacher again I decide that math HL isn’t really the right path for me. But I think a chem and physics HL is even more impossible at my school, both of these HL classes have lower passing rate than math HL and this combination is unheard of. But maybe that’s because the math teachers talk with one another and spends longer to decide.
I’m currently a sophomore and I’m taking trigonometry (required at my school to be considered for HL) and AP stats (elective). I did not find AP stats challenging and have been receiving high As, but the decision of going to HL/SL is based on trigonometry, and I have a 91 test average and scored a 98 on the semester exam, scores that my teacher referred to as “not as high”. From what I know, two of my friends who got into HL, one of them had a 94 test average and a 96 on the semester exam, and the other one had a 95 for both test average and the semester exam.
I will talk to my teacher and the teacher who will be teaching HL once I get back to school, asking for the scoring distribution and whether its true that most of the students that appeal perform poorly. I think I have a general idea of where I place if I took the class, so if the scoring distribution is bad, I will definitely think twice.
As for chem HL, I believe it is even more discouraged to take both chem and physics HL because the teacher for the two classes aren’t the best (and not the worst) and the pass rates are the lowest out of all HLs. Bio, on the other hand, has a really good teacher and one of the highest passing rates.
Thank you for all the advice, I will take them into consideration.
The 98 on the semester exam would be good enough - was the test average lowered by a slow start or did you do poorly on one test? (if that: due to illness, stress, poor preparation, not understanding a concept that you now know?)
I did poorly on the first test (a high C) because I misread the instructions for one problem and made an error while multiplying for another.
I think I will most likely take bio HL if I’m not taking math. I did really well with the prerequisite biology class that my school offered, so I think I will definitely do fine in bio HL. Just a class that’s not necessarily I would choose to take.
Yes, I do think that I should value my teacher’s recommendation a decent amount, as she has been teaching for a long time and would know which students will succeed and which will not.
It’s just bothering me that she is refusing to give any other reason other than my test scores when my test scores are similar to those that got in.
Perhaps you can show her the test pattern, that it went up after the initial test. She may have remembered but … she’s not super human, she may not have had every single grade you got in mind.
It is fine to speak with the teacher but don’t try to push her into recommending you for the higher level class. Understand the reasoning and listen to the advice. IMO the worst scenario for you would be to take a class that is too difficult where: 1) you may not get the strong foundation you need to go forward’ 2) you might struggle academically causing you to take time away from other classes; 3) and you could still end up with a mediocre grade.
What grade are you aiming for? Are you gunning for a 7 or would you be happy with a 5? Would it be possible to start in Math HL and drop to SL if you are struggling? Our school is fairly flexible for the first couple of months and allows these types of changes. I know several top students who started in Math HL junior year but got 5s or 6s on the first couple of tests. They wanted to maintain a high GPA so eventually dropped down to Math SL where they did end up with 7s. Others continue with Math HL but are satisfied with 5s or 6s. If you want to do well, you should find as many practice tests (such as previous IB tests) and do as many as you can to learn the material and prepare for tests for each unit. Perhaps you can ask your teacher for old tests or you can certainly find examples online.
But all in all, after talking to my teacher again and evaluating the pros and cons, I will be taking SL math. And if I do find that not as challenging and that I’m having free time aside from all the other classes and activities, I’ll consider on doing AP Calc BC.
SL math is a survey class starting with algebra 2, trig, calculus and probability and statistics. It is a very good all around math class for most students, even those aiming for engineering, but engineering majors may be better served by taking BC Calculus simultaneously as you suggest. BC Calculus is a faster paced class than SL Math, that covers Calc 1 and 2 in one year, often meeting extra time in the fall to cover all that material. SL math covers Calculus 1, but also gives you a lot of other math practice and probability problems too. AP BC Calculus is a gold standard class and will give you credits at most colleges, if you score well on the AP exam. SL Math will not earn you college credits but still prepare you very well for Calculus 1 in college.
HL math while it covers different material than BC Calculus also will usually place you out of Calculus 1, and maybe 2,
if you score well, but its more difficult to score well on HL math exam than BC Calculus exam.
HL Math is challenging because its proof based math as well as calculus, some analytic geometry, and differential equations. Some kids in our school do BC Calculus as 11th graders then follow it with HL math, which rounds them out with proof based math thinking for college . Other students take SL Math in 11th grade then HL math in 12th grade, so get a double whammy. If you are aiming for college math or physics major, HL math may be a good choice, but look over proof problems and see if thats the sort of work you want to try.
Math HL is hell. It’s absolutely difficult, even if you think you’re really good at normal high scool level math. Forget the course material, the IA for HL math is scored on an extremely tough basis, yu have to be sure you really love math and writing essays about math to do Math HL.
I also see you’re doing Physics HL? Sounds like suicide to me. A pit hole of doom and despair.
But if you can do Physics HL, math HL is actually easier. Depends how much of a conceptual thinker you are.