WHats wrong with me? No matter what I do my grades just get worse and worse. I turned in all my late work and did all the extra credit possible, and they still get worse!! What the fuck??! WHat is wrong with me? what do I do? where and how did I go wrong? Please help me!!

Let's see..... Life.

If you asked what's wrong with school, I'm gonna answer differently, but since you asked what's wrong with you, I'm guessing you know better than me. Or anyone else for that matter.

Maybe you should start turning in your work on time rather than late? And also, you can ask your teacher(s) how you can improve your grades. I find that teachers are less inclined to fail you if you talk to them and show some effort.

Get a private tutor. 'Some' people lack the ability to study properly.

>>4 I did start doing that and it made no difference
>>5 I talked to all my teachers and school counselor and they were barely any help

Get a professional tutor online maybe? You could even try getting someone you know who is in college or a clever friend to tutor you. Friends learn better from friends.

Write a lot.
Writing notes "by hand" helps memorization unless you're taking maths or chemistry.
A skill people seem to forget these days.
Throw away those laptops.

You're fucked, and stop procrastinating.

Just how late were those assignments, and how many of them were there? If you slack off 90% of a semester/year (idk what country you live in, so idk where you are in your school year) you probably won't get a good grade in the class no matter what you do. Getting good grades takes consistent effort every day, including weekends.

My advice would be to get a planner--preferably paper, when you're just starting out--and write down EVERY SINGLE THING that is assigned, EVERY day. Don't assume you'll remember any assignment just by making a "mental note" of it. Then, make sure you do ALL of your assignments, every day. Don't let any of them fall through the cracks, and don't let yourself produce work that's of subpar quality.

Also, whenever your teachers are talking about the requirements for an assignment (i.e., 3 sources, 1 book, 5 pages, stay away from topics x, y, and z), write down every single requirement, and keep referring back to that list while you're working on the assignment.

And I second what Neko said about writing notes by hand.

school is not something you should hate but admire and want to go to day after day..

IKR. Though I envy some of my classmates who get straight A graded, even when they slack off.

*grades

>>13 Probably talented people. I'm not one of them, so I know how you feel.

As someone said in this thread, OP, you could take notes by hand. I do this as well and it helps with the memorization for some reason. It's probably got something to do with visual/muscle memory, but I'm not an expert on that field. xD

Well,taking notes does make memorization easier. But I can never take notes while paying attention in Math class. I really suck at math.

>>15 Just take the important ones and leave out the rest so you can listen to your teacher. Note-taking in Math isn't really that... 'important', I guess I should say. As long as you copied the methods and stuff, you'll be able to practice with that. Find examples online to help you study.

My grades are fucked too...same problem..

practice....practice....practice
i belive it is not about te information you have. exams are to test how you are able to present the information you have and you would not be able to do that without practicing past exams or practice question

if your school dos not offer these then search online for exams on your syllabus topics

I already solved my problem though :3 I don't coot notes during math class, because I borrow my friend's notes.

*copy

Just to you who were so rude about it, I don't slack off. I give it my all and it seems like every time I feel confident about a test I get a bad grade. As mentioned earlier, there are kids who do no hard work and dick around all through class and have straight a's. And don't tell me I'm stupid because I know I'm not. That's not the problem here. I just want some studying tips other than the ones that everyone knows and don't work like "study for 30min, take a 10min break."

>>21 I felt exactly like that when I was at school. You're giving it your all but the thing is (and you proabably know it really well by now) that genetically there are people born smarter. So they definitely dick around and still end up getting A's all around them. For years and years my parents didn't know this or didn't try to know it and I ended up moving schools 3 times 'because I'm not smart enough'.

School is very limiting and only targets a specific group of students, the academics. Just wondering but do concepts of anything seem to fly over your head at first? Do you find it a lot more difficult than other people to comprehend things or just take a little while for things to 'sink into your head'? Also, I use to have a lot of pride issues and that is the worst enemy, I fought against it so hard and I won to an extent.

Borrowing notes from smarter people was difficult. Asking them questions were difficult, making it seem like I understood what they they were explaining was difficult. The problem might lie in the fact that you're not being honest to yourself, like I was. Be a bit of a nuisance when asking questions no worries! Teachers should answer these and this will benefit you in the long run.

Another thing, because of our genetic 'not-academically-smart' brain, we HAVE to study twice as hard to even get to average. The one bad thing about schools is that they don't teach students how to research stuff on their own, they just rely on the curriculum and the resources they're provided. I can guarantee you that when I looked beyond what I had already, everything began to sit in place.

I am usually the opposite. I have received loads of grade reductions for various late assignments, barely studied for exams and yet have one of the highest GPAs in my entire faculty. However, this semester I was actually feeling like you. I pretty much locked myself in my room just trying to cope with everything and have still to find out if my luck still holds.

Anyhow, what I want to say to you is try doing it your way and fall in love with it. Different people learn better in different ways, such as by listening, observing, taking notes or by actually having hands-on experience of something. Find out what your learning preference is. There are many sources online regarding this.

Then develop a habit that can help you concentrate better. If you focus better when listening to dramatic music or classical music, then make a playlist. If you focus better when your hands are busy with something, then get a stress ball or twirl your pen. If you focus better when you eat, have some candy around. If you understand better by relating things to anime, then do that. It depends on you.

When you get in that zone where you have your attention fully focused on what you are studying, then stay in that zone until you snap out of it.

I understand the need to borrow notes sometimes but try to take your own notes whenever possible. Borrowing notes will just give you basic facts and a surface understanding. Writing your own notes will actually get your brain working and you will comprehend better.

Asking others is also a good thing. However, before you do that, try doing your own research and finding the answers you need by yourself first. Do an online research (there are various sources you can use like Google Scholar, JStor and Britannica Online) and go to the library. Do this not only for the things you don't understand, but also the things that catch your interest as you go through a topic. They can provide extra knowledge that can help in future assignments.

Not getting good grades does not mean that you are not smart or that you are not a diligent student. So don't be discouraged and do try your best. :)

I'm going to disagree with the academics comment to start with, its not about how smart you are in regards to academia. I have friends who are in all honesty, not very smart, but get solid, above average grades because they talk to teachers, study every night, do all the homework set, line EVERYTHING that is taught in class with the State set subject syllabus. Its not about natural intelligence, its about ethic and method.

To start with you really do need to avoid turning in assignments late, that does make a big difference. I know that there can be problems with motivation, i personally have huge shortcomings when it comes to motivation to do the work. When you talk to teachers it shouldn't just be about "what's wrong with me", you should be bringing work that you've done, no matter the quality, and ask them for their help in improving it. That can be done with past assignments as well as current ones. Any half decent teacher will be more than willing to sit down with you for a while, provided to give them pre-notice to set up a time for meeting, and help you try to understand where you're not meeting the requirements. Remember, they want to help you be your best, they just can't magically make it happen so you have to be willing to work with them through it.

Study time tables. I hated them at first and i still have trouble implementing them, but they work. If you can write up an after school time table of doing (x) hours of work after school on subject (y) and (z), or (w) and (v), etc., then you'll find that it greatly helps your production levels.

Exercise. Yeah i know, but don't roll your eyes, it really does work. I could go into all the reasons, like endorphin levels and health, but we all already know them and are tired of hearing them. But it really does work, it helps clear your mind and you end up happier too. Diet as well is a big part, if you eat meats and veg then you'll find that you mentally feel a lot better. (I am no saint in these two areas though, but i have been diligent with them in the past and it really does help, i topped my year in science despite having crippling depression, due to which i did hand in multiple late assignments)

Notes. Its so tiring but just summarising all your theory by hand over and over again really is one of the best ways to do it, so long as your summaries get shorter each time. With equation based subjects like math, chem. and physics, you really do need to just practice exercises over and over again.
Also, make sure your class notes are in order, its a nightmare trying to study something that is just all over the place.

So yeah, thats all i can think of, you really should try some of those and it might help. You need to put the time and effort in, but that being said, don't forget to relax a bit, but make sure you do 2-3 hours a day before you relax. Its hard yeah, but it will pay off if you can be dilligent.

I hope you do well, and i hope you're happy, how you feel is important but don't let your emotions hurt your future.

>>24 "I have friends who are in all honesty, not very smart, but get solid, above average grades because they talk to teachers, study every night, do all the homework set, line EVERYTHING that is taught in class with the State set subject syllabus."

That's exactly my point! We're on the same page. What I meant was that people are born more academically smart than others. It's those who are not that smart that have to try really hard and your friends are an example of what I talk about. It's the only way we get to level with the top guys even though (I've seen it with my own eyes...) they laze around more often.

Interesting fact, people who daydream a lot in class are artistically driven people, so if you're that type you might want to consider a field somewhere there once you're out of school

So, when it comes to grade and such, studying and all is good and is a great way to help you do better in class but I think its just better to pay attention in class. I'm what some might call "smart" since I make all A's and B's but I never study. I just pay attention in classes even if it's a really lame class. I think if you have some sort of end goal, a reward, to give yourself at the end of the grading period you might actually do better. For me in my worst class, I told myself "If I manage to get 80 or higher on my report card i'll buy all the art supplies I want." With this type of thinking I managed to pass the class with a high 80 and in the end I did end up buying all the art supplies I want. It's good to use something you enjoy doing into some sort of excuse to do something you dislike.

But turning in Make-Up work and such is also a big factor into making a good grade, trust me as I'm someone who tends to miss a lot of school days due to illness.

But I hope I managed to help you even by a little!

>>25 sorry i misunderstood what you meant!! I'm glad we're on the same page there :)

>>24 I tried to do that multiple times, talking to teachers I mean. I even went to the counselor for help but all she did was avoid the topic and did't even suggest anything to help. The thing is, with the teachers at my school, they don't give two shits. All they want to focus on is getting out of work by 3:00 PM. Teachers don't see themselves as teachers anymore, they only see it as a job. At least that's how it is at my school. I probably got the most non-caring teachers in the school. Only one of them offered to help me and give me advice at the beginning of the year and even she didn't uphold her word. When I went to her for help she would just tell me that it was my fault that I didn't do the work (which I did) and that I don't try hard enough. She even made me write a letter to myself saying, "Dear me, I failed to complete my work this year and therefor have learned nothing. My teacher works very hard to keep her students in a progressive state, and I have failed to keep up with them and listen to my teacher. My goal next semester will be to not waste my teacher's time and actually read a book." Well, that's it in a summarized version.
Anyways, the teachers I have have barely any kindness to give or help. All they do is criticize criticize criticize.