BlogStudyYear 11: How to Bounce Back and Save Your Marks

Year 11: How to Bounce Back and Save Your Marks

Year 11 is your chance to play trial and error, to try out all those different study tactics and words of advice you’ve heard from friends, and see what works for you! But when things don’t go so well with study, how do you save your marks?

The mentality that “Year 11 does not count” is not the strongest mindset to get you started with your senior years of high school. We’ve had a chat with Jack, who made a comeback in Year 11 and managed to improve his marks! 

So, if you haven’t performed your best so far in Year 11, or you’re in Year 10 looking to step it up in Year 11, keep reading to see how you can bounce back and save your marks! 

Jack’s Year 11 Journey
The Pathfinder Program
What Jack Learnt from Pathfinder
How to Get Through the End of Year 11 Exams

Jack’s Year 11 Journey

With COVID-19 and online learning, it was harder than ever for Jack to maintain focus on his school work. He didn’t do his homework, and on the occasion that he did, it wasn’t completed on time. 

I understood the work, but didn’t apply it,” Jack said. “I procrastinate a lot and struggle with discipline.

The three main challenges that Year 11 brought to Jack, and many students in general, are:

Save Marks - Challenges

These challenges can obviously hinder students from performing at their best. So how did Jack bounce back from this?

The Pathfinder Program

Jack took part in the Pathfinder Program with his mentor Ryan, who helped him get back on track with his school work, regain focus and find a sense of direction and purpose in what he was studying. 

[Ryan helped me with] planning out what I want to do, and why I want to do it… How to study, when to study, and why I need to study,” Jack said. 

Jack was mainly extrinsically motivated by the idea of “getting a good ATAR”. So by thinking about what he wanted to do with his future, where he wanted to go after high school, or even tertiary education, Jack felt more inspired, which ignited the intrinsic motivation to buckle down and do his school work. 

A large aspect of this is also having the self awareness of knowing when you’re in the mood to do work, or when you just aren’t going to be able to sit and focus. 

We all have these days where we don’t want to do work. If you know that you can’t push yourself any further, be self aware. Step back, take a break, and come back to it with a fresh and more productive mindset! 

Jack’s Takeaways from Pathfinder

Start your assignments when you get them!” Jack said.

Sounds pretty simple right? But, it’s often easier said than done. It’s important to know that starting an assignment a week after you get handed the notification is simply delaying the inevitable. It’s self-sabotage, it’s choosing to leave your shoelace untied before a race! 

Figure out what needs to be done for the assignment, break it into smaller tasks and write up a to-do list. This will help you progress on the assignment gradually, and your future self is sure to thank you and you’ll be able to save your marks! 

How to Get Through The End of Year 11 Exams

For most students, preliminary examinations (prelims) are often the first time you are faced with an exam block. Although Year 11 doesn’t necessarily count towards your HSC marks, it can help you with early entry applications and certain scholarships, so it does become a stressful time of year. 

There are three simple steps you can follow in approaching end of year 11 exams:

Save Marks - Tips

#1: Get your study notes done

It is important to get your study notes done and dusted, ideally before prelims, so that in the couple weeks leading up to it, you are able to focus on past papers and practice questions. 

#2: See what you need to improve on, and what you don’t know

Organise your time by intentionally planning what subjects you’ll focus on each day. Take note of your weaknesses so that you can focus on doing practice questions to solidify your understanding.

#3: Do a lot of past papers 

It’s important to get used to a variety of exam style questions and answering them under a time limit. So it is equally important that you do timed papers, or even singular timed questions, so that you can develop speed and quick thinking skills. 

Jack’s Final Words of Advice

“Definitely study ahead, make sure you’re on top of your study notes and start your assessments as soon as you get them — that’s advisable!” Jack said.

And book in time to have fun! Don’t work yourself to exhaustion,” he concluded.

Now that you know how Jack managed to bounce back and save his marks, we hope you’ll be able to as well and succeed in Year 11!

Looking for some extra help with your studies?

We pride ourselves on our inspirational coaches and mentors!

We offer tutoring and mentoring for Years K-12 in a variety of subjects, with personalised lessons conducted one-on-one in your home or at our state of the art campus in Hornsby or the Hills!

To find out more and get started with an inspirational tutor and mentor get in touch today! 

Give us a ring on 1300 267 888, email us at [email protected] or check us out on Facebook!


Nandini Dhir is a Content Writer at Art of Smart and is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Marketing) and a Bachelor of Advanced Studies (Media and Communications), as a Dalyell Scholar, at Sydney University. She enjoys covering local issues in her area and writing about current events in the media. Nandini has had one of her pieces published in an article with the Sydney Morning Herald. In her free time, Nandini loves doing calligraphy, ballet, and sewing, or is otherwise found coddling her cats.   

45,861 students have a head start...

Get exclusive study content & advice from our team of experts delivered weekly to your inbox!

AOS Website Asset 2

Looking for Academic Support?

Discover how we can help you!

AOS Website Asset 1