BC Provincials

t3hmimo · Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 4:15 pm Post subject: BC Provincials

Ahh!! I don't know what to do!

Provincials are no longer required for graduation (except for English12) and a lot of post-secondary schools don't require them anymore (UBC just announced they don't for 2009) so I'm thinking I don't want to take it! It will only bring down my class mark! But should I take it or not? I know I might be limiting myself to some schools but what other cons can you think of?

For those of you not in BC, our provincials are like the final exam at the end of the year that's worth 40% of the final mark. Every student in BC writes the same one. No other province has this... I don't know why we do...

but y'all BC girls, I need your opinions!
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electricpearls · Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 4:45 pm Post subject:

Ahh, are you kidding?

Alberta has them. They're not optional...

They're called the Diploma exams and they're worth 50%.
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emcee · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 12:35 pm Post subject:

What the hell? I think that's kind of ridiculous. Our education system is getting all messed up. I think we should have mandatory exams...just because they really are all that's equal across all schools that can give us an indicator of how well students are doing.

I feel like there is so much wrong with our education system right now, don't even get me started on the whole colleges becoming universities thing.

BUT, as to your question: if you think it will lower your mark, don't take it. As a piece of advice, science provincials are pretty hard for 12th grade. Math isn't too bad...but then again that depends. Cause at our school, we were required to take both a mock provincial that counted for like 15% of our mark and then the regular provincial, and the mock for us was WAAAY harder so when we got the provincial we were like what the eff, why is this so easy. English and English Lit were really easy for me, I got like 91% on English and 90% on English Lit.

If you don't think they will you should consider taking them because they are worth such a big chunk of your grade that they will help boost up your mark.

And of course, if the school you want to get into requires it, I think you kind of have to, because if you don't you won't even get considered.

electricpearls · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 4:03 pm Post subject:

^I agree, sure I don't like doing Diplomas, but it standardized testing needs to be mandatory everywhere, in my opinion. Lol, I took a mock Bio exam and my teacher FAILED ME, two weeks later, diplomas... 90!!! But my teacher was a total idiot so I guess that allows for such variance.

Anyway, I think every province needs to adopt grade 12 testing. It will help fix any sort of inflation and allow students to get the mark they actually deserve rather than one too low or too high. For example, if I want to go to a university in Ontario, my mark could be lower than someone's from there, because I live in a province with a higher level education system. Looking at the grades, they end up taking the Ontario student early but reject me, even though at a performance level, we are similar (but I have the lower mark because of a province with an overall average curved much lower than that of Ontario's),

I would advise you to take the exam. If you prepare for it really well, you should do fine on it.

In fact, I studied so hard for my diploma I got a 90 compared to the meager 77 I got in class. It's a great way to bump up your average. You can take prep courses (at least here you can, I'd assume in BC as well)

Also, taking the exam, as you said, opens up more choices university-wise for you. I say go for it; it's great to keep your options open rather than be presented with fewer options.

It's also a great way to get an idea of how universities grade you. When you get to uni, you might end up in courses where the exam is worth most of your mark.
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SUGARR* · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 5:02 pm Post subject:

I think they took it out because too many "smart" students weren't doing well enough on their provincials. Like lots of people were getting 90's as such on their overall grades, then got screwed by the provincial.

I'm pretty sure you can just take the provincial if you want to, and it isn't included into your mark anymore. Like it's seperate.
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luvthevalleyoh · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 8:01 pm Post subject:

I'm having the exact same problem right now (UVic doesn't require provincials aside from English 12)

I talked to my counsellor today about it and she said that since some universities still do require provincials, you have to think about whether or not you will be transferring universities in your second year. Because for example, right now since I'm going to UVic I don't need to worry about provincials but then if I didnt take them and in my second year I decided I wanted to go to a different school that required them, I would be screwed.

She also said that (I'm not sure about all uni's but I know this applies to UVic for sure so you should ask your counsellor about whatever uni you were thinking about or look on their website) it wouldn't hurt to take the provincial at all because the university takes the higher of either your class mark or your blended mark (class and provincial). So if you do great on the provincial it brings you up, if you do the same you stay the same and if you totally bomb you stay the same! The only problem with that is once again, if you decide to switch universities, some of them don't always take the higher mark they just take the blended mark so if you don't do to great on the provincial, that would be the mark they look at.

I don't think I'm going to take mine, it's only extra stress at the end of the year that I dont need! But at the same time, I understand that it couldn't hurt and it might screw me over in the end if i don't take it. If I were you I would weight out your top university choices or the university you think you're most likely going to go to and then contact their undergraduate admin people/person and ask them for all the specific requirements, advice and whatnot. Good luck!!
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emcee · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 9:42 pm Post subject:

Yeah, electricpearls did bring up a good point with the whole universities thing. If not taking the exams is a stress sort of issue, or like you just don't like studying for exams, if you're planning to go into post-sec you might as well get used to it now in my opinion. A lot of classes only have like four areas you get marked on: term paper, participation, midterm exam, and final exam. Exams can be easily worth up to 40-50% of your final marks in university.

_TNA_ · Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2008 11:58 am Post subject:

What, realllly?
I hate provincials!
I know that UVic doesn't take Provincials, but UBC really isn't going to either?
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t3hmimo · Posted: Tue Jun 17, 2008 4:44 am Post subject:

^ starting in 2009.

Well I'm not taking them... unless I got 100% on the provs, it would only lower my mark.

yess im worried about the whole school thing~~ ._. but most schools in Canada don't require provs already.

and I usually do horrible on exams... x_X

._. yeah we do a practice prov too called "experience exams"

these diplomas sound scary o_O;;
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SUGARR* · Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 12:03 am Post subject:

^ i'm horrible at exams too. i dont understand why i have to take the socials 11 one this year. i dont know if i haaave to exactly, but htey didn't give us much of a choice.

getting used to it for uni is valid i guess. i NEED to desperately learn to study =[
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t3hmimo · Posted: Sat Jun 21, 2008 7:53 am Post subject:

^ nah we gotta take all the gr 10 and 11 ones.

how was the ss one for you? can't believe we had to write 2 essays. boo.
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