<p>^^^</p>
<p>I got a 1950 as a freshman. I wouldn’t call that terrible. It’s OK.</p>
<p>And why do you keep stalking me and posting inflammatory comments?</p>
<p>Yeah, there are a lot of big “ifs” in this thread.</p>
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<p>Am I the only one concerned about how the OP just gave up just because he/she couldn’t get a higher grade? I mean, dude, you should’ve at least tried even if the highest you’re gonna end up with is a C-. The defeatist attitude here isn’t very good for much of anything.</p>
<p>Also, just to clarify: Rigor does not make up for bad grades. A B in a lower-level class >>> D in a higher-level class.</p>
<p>^
Yeah, I kind of did quit. This was my logic:</p>
<p>Cs and Ds are both completely unacceptable grades. Therefore, the difference between them is negligible. Since I CAN NOT retake a C, it would make more sense to get the D; prove that it was a fluke by retaking the course and getting an A, and maintain my rank.</p>
<p>That’s pathetic. You essentially gave up because you wanted the higher grade. AND You tell us that you’re taking a rigorous course. Grade grabbers disgust me. </p>
<p>Tell me, what class was this? What was this math course? Unless it was some disgustingly hard math course like Calculus AB (Many people in sophomore in our school take pre calc), you have no excuse.</p>
<p>What i’m curious about is what makes you think you can get a D. Are you capable of placing yourself just low enough to get that D, and just high enough so you don’t get that F. </p>
<p>And I disagree with your methods of trying to become Val. I feel bad for the students who truly try their best, and maybe get a B or C in a class that you intentionally don’t try in to ensure that your GPA doesn’t take a hit. I think a college would rather see a C than a D and then an A in class that you had to take twice.</p>
<p>^
I’m on the easy part now. I’ll probably finish in the mid to high 60s. If I had not intentionally let the last test hurt me, I could have had a C.</p>
<p>As for feeling bad for the kids who actually try and get a B or a C? Screw them. Those are the same kids that opted to take Honors Chemistry instead of AP Chemistry like me. If they’re going to pad their GPA, then I’ll pad mine. Simple.</p>
<p>Plus, let me add- I still have to earn the A at a private math school. It’s not like I’m getting it for free. If I indeed finish with an A at that school, then it really says something about my school math teacher. He is the consensus worst teacher in the school.</p>
<p>Mid to high 60s? At my HS, that counted as an F. (Actually, we didn’t have D’s at all, for that matter. 70s = C, 60s = F.)</p>
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<p>Or they were aware of their limits. </p>
<p>I mean, I don’t fault you for taking the harder course, actually. That’s a good thing to do, and you really showed some initiative in taking a more difficult class even though you were aware that you might end up with a lower grade in the class. I don’t know why you decided to do so, but all right - that’s pretty commendable in any case. It’s just that I’m questioning your strategy of failing only so that you can retake the course and get a higher grade. (Also, blaming the teacher is a bad thing to do, especially when it’s in your power to self-study. I empathize with you; I had an absolutely horrid AP Chemistry teacher [read: class average on every single test, without fail, was in the low 70s], but I put in several hours of study before every test and actually managed to pull out with A’s for both semesters.)</p>
<p>But, anyways, the point’s moot as what’s happened has already happened. I don’t know the answer to your question, but if it makes you feel any better though, one of my friends almost failed AP Calc BC her senior year (barely scraped by in the low-70s), but she was accepted at Northwestern, Emory, and Vanderbilt. None of them rescinded her, either. Colleges tend to weigh senior grades less, so I don’t know how that will help you.</p>
<p>Good luck. Study hard, do well, etc. (Also, psst, do some research on those colleges you’ve got there. They are all across the board.) ;)</p>
<p>^^^^ you spelled “cannot” wrong…</p>
<p>I kinda understand what you’re going through though-when you look at an AP class/whatever advanced class you’re taking in theory, it seems like you can do it. So you take it and think, “This will make me look so impressive!” But by the time you reach junior year, you’re stuck wondering how in the world you can manage the work load.</p>
<p>And good grades/GPA is amazing and all, but you gotta have some extracurriculars, too. Not fluff, but activities where you really demonstrate leadership and you can prove it in your essays.</p>
<p>But you don’t have to worry for another year and half at least…so just work hard until then, and then panic junior year over SATs, SAT IIs, ACTs…</p>
<p>^^
Yeah, you are 100% right. I could have done better. Realistically, I could have gotten a B. I hate to limit what I could have done, but I sincerely doubt that I would have gotten an A with maximum effort, and maybe even some tutoring. The teacher was abysmal, but there’s really nothing that I could have done about that. The bottom line is that I screwed up.</p>
<p>I wonder if my counselor will let me drop this late. (One week left before finals.)</p>
<p>Or maybe in some extreme luck, the colleges will only take the second grade.</p>
<p>I’m not sure if colleges really want people like you, regardless of whether they accept your A instead of your D, unless you behave very differently in real life.</p>
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<p>I second this. At the end of the day, a D is a D. Any college will see it and wonder why. It will help that you retook it for an A, but not enough to displace a D. Nonetheless, the main problem is your approach. You are planning on getting a subpar grade so you can retake it. That is a terrible attitude to have. I understand that you’re young and you will grow and learn from this experience, but you have a long way to go.</p>
<p>Out of curiosity, what course is this? How are you so sure that you can get an A later?</p>
<p>^
Honors Algebra 2/Trig</p>
<p>I’m confident that I’ll finish with an A because I’m not taking it at my school. It’s my fault that I screwed up, but the teacher was really hard and very bad. It wasn’t so much the material as his teaching style and pure choking on the tests.</p>
<p>you’re probably screwed for those schools honestly… you should have tried and gotten a B or C even if you lose your #1 ranking, it’s better than getting a D and retaking for an A</p>
<p>???</p>
<p>In my sons’ high school, the lowest passing grade in an honors/AP class was a 76.</p>
<p>And won’t the valedictorian of your class be one of the students who is doing well in this class the first time around? While you are re-taking this class, the students who did well will be taking the next levels of math and most likely doing well in them too.</p>
<p>They will have the transcripts most impressive to the adcoms, whether the D in this class counts in your gpa or not, or even whether this class appears on your transcript or not.</p>
<p>Is there any difference between a D and an F?</p>
<p>I also don’t see how you can do well in later math classes if you did so poorly in Algebra II.</p>
<p>Does anyone else find it peculiar that a Sophomore calls himself/herself by the title of Valedictorian?</p>
<p>Talk about counted chickens prior to hatched eggs…</p>
<p>Dude: don’t think that your teachers aren’t aware of your real character. Don’t be shocked if the “real word” on you gets onto the supposedly-excellent Letters of Reccommendation you’ll have to get when you’re applying to college. “Hmmm… why’d I get rejeced from THAT college too?”</p>