<p>I see that you are doing EXTREMELY WELL in your other classes so you are a hard working student. The key is NOT to say you will LIKELY get a D average in that class but work hard to rise that grade. You are doing great in your other classes, so now, spend MORE time on your math class and less time on your other classes. </p>
<p>Also, make sure you seek help from your teacher. The key to rising that grade is to NOT BE AFRAID to seek help and learn it. I was an English major in college and WAS NEVER GOOD AT MATH and so when I was in college (and in college you still have to take math even though you're an English major) I HAD to seek help and I did and I improved drastically. </p>
<p>I don't know what major/career you want to pursue when you apply for college but if it is ANYTHING related to the medical field- you will have to learn Calculus 1, 2, and 3. You can't possibly finish a SCIENCE major without taking some kind of math course so right now, put in that extra effort so you can have an easier time when you go and take math classes in college. </p>
<p>Not tell yourself you will get a "D" average or else you're limiting yourself to getting JUST THAT. Don't ever believe you are ONLY CAPABLE of getting a D. As an English major, I hated and didn't understand math but because I put in the time, I ended up getting an A in a pretty hard math class. Just go to your teacher before class, during lunch, and/or after school and seek up and then when you go home, practice like crazy. And make it a routine to visit your teacher often--I was a tutor in college and there was one freshmen who just got tutored in Chemistry (that was what he was having a hard time with) everyday and he came in everyday to get help and he ended up getting an A in that class although he started off with a D average. So please get help and work hard. </p>
<p>Colleges don't want to just see a student who just gets good grades but wants to see a student who is capable of taking on challenges and working through difficulties because trust me, you will have plenty of those experiences if you go to a top school--which it looks like it because of your grades. If you put in the time and effort and raise your grade to an A/B and believe me if I can do it and I never even had high level science classes or AP classes in my life, you can do it too. </p>
<p>Let me end by telling you a true story. I had a friend who never was good at math yet his passion was to become a doctor because when he was little, he had a major head injury when his mom's car got smashed because of another car accident and a doctor practically saved his life. He wanted to do the same for other people. But, like most Latin Americans out there, he didn't have the money to hire a tutor and because his mom had to work all day (plus she didn't understand English), he didn't get that much support although their relationship is very good. But, he just wanted to be a doctor. So he worked extremely hard at his math, sciences and went to the teacher everyday to get help after school and in the morning came to him again to check how he did. He did this his sophomore, and junior year in high school. At home, he would spend hours and hours doing and redoing math questions and science problems because these were the classes most important to him if he wanted to be a doctor although they were also the ones he struggled the most in. He did all these problems in his notebook to the point that his notebook was wrinkled and ragged from the many times he spent, reviewing the homework to study for tests--(which meant he touched it off and so the notebook looked like someone had beaten it so many times). Although he tried his hardest and he improved greatly--going from literally a F to a B--he still didn't get that A he wanted. When it came for him to apply for college, he was scared because he wanted to go to a top school but he feared that his B/C average would keep him from getting in and in his freshman year, he didn't seek so much help so his grades there are horrible. But I told him that he an an "A+" for his effort although that didn't show up in his grades and that he should not discourage himself and go ahead and apply for the top schools. I even dared him to apply for Harvard and he was really reluctant to do it until I printed the application myself and gave it to him and together we filled it out. When it came for him to ask for recommendations, I told him to ask his math and science teachers because they DID SEE the amount of effort he put in and ALL OF THEM were enthusiatic to write him recommendations. When it came to write that college essay--I further told him to write about his struggles at school--to tell his dreams to these top colleges. Because he was low income, he also was able to get fee waivers to most of the schools. After doing all he could do, he sent out his college applications. </p>
<p>Winter break came and both of us, in need of money went and worked together at the mall. We didn't work in the same store-but luckily we were able to find seasonal jobs in the same mall. We worked full hours during winter break--with no rest. I told him that if he wanted to visit colleges that he got accepted to, he would have to work like 8 hours a day for a good 2 weeks in order to get enough money to visit them. He worked harder than me...taking another job (night shift) in some place in LA--I forgot. Spring semester came and soon we started to get college letters. Many Cal States accepted him but only the lowest UCs and none of the top colleges accepted him. He was devastated. I told him to appeal and I said, no matter what you need to stay strong. The first university I told him to appeal was Harvard because after applying he said that would be the school he wanted to go to the most. I never discouraged him. I told him to get in contact with the Admissions at Harvard and ask them for an interview with one of the admission officers. I told him to bring his notebooks and everything he had--examples of his work, along with everything he had and I told him to fly over there. His parents thought he was crazy and it took a long time to convince them but we eventually did. He told his teachers about it early, got the homework ahead of time, and flew to Massachusetts. </p>
<p>This is what he told me when he came back: He said that when he went to Harvard--he immediately went to see the interviewer and he only asked him for 20 minutes of his time. This interview had already been set. He already filed an appeal a couple of weeks ago and so they knew who he was and had his application in a folder. He told me he was in this room with the interviewer and she said that after looking at his records and his grades and everything, she didn't feel that he was ready to come to this school. She said it would be intense. That was when he told him his life story and how he wanted to be a doctor and all the effort he placed into his math classes. He took out his series of math and science notebooks that have been wrinkled, ragged, torned, but still in tact and showed them to the admissions officer. The notebooks were dated and two years of material along with the notes in his current math class (senior year) was there and he showed her what he did as a sophomore and as a junior and how he improved drastically. He told her that as long as she gave him a chance, even 1 semester, he would be able to show her what he could do. </p>
<p>After talking to her for another 15 minutes, she said she would re-look at his application. She told him he would hear from Harvard again and that was the end of it. </p>
<p>Jose came back to school and continued to work hard. 3 weeks after he went to Harvard, Jose, received a letter in the mail. The letter was thin just like his rejection letter and he was scared. He went into his room and opened it, and the first word he noticed on the paper was "Congratulations!" Miraculously he was accepted and he called me immediately afterwards to tell me. Later that day, we met up with each other and celebrated. His parents were sorta in shock but was greatly happy. Harvard provided full tuition to low income students so he didn't have to pay money to go there. When he went back to high school, he told all of his teachers and they congratulated him. </p>
<p>He worked extra hard and didn't stop with meeting with his teachers for help. That last semester, it was close but he managed to get a B+/A- in his math class and his teacher certainly gave him the A-. </p>
<p>That was 4 years ago. Since he went to Harvard, he worked exceptionally hard in his classes. He managed to keep his grade up to a 3.5 average and graduate. Now, he's in Harvard's medical school (1st year) and doing great. Remember, you need to believe in yourself because anyone can do well as long as they put their hard work to it. Everytime I encourage people, Jose's name always get mentioned. Take care and thanks for reading. I hope it has changed the way to view yourself.</p>