Failed first Chemistry test!

SopranoKris, MSN, RN, NP · Mar 8, 2012

Have you considered making an appointment with the professor outside of the classroom to discuss your questions? It may be that he/she is in a much better mood to accomodate questions in the office. You can approach it from the "I want to work on some strategies for performing better on my next exam" point of view. If you were getting A's & B's on the homework questions, you should be grasping the info well. Could it be that you were just nervous and over-thought the answers on the first test? That can happen, so don't beat yourself up too hard.

Look into tutoring or study groups as well. Take a deep breath & keep telling yourself "I can do this!"

Good luck!!!

AaronsMommyxx · Mar 9, 2012

Don't worry! Does your teacher drop your lowest score? Some teachers do.. From my experience so far, the first test was actually harder than my 2nd test because there weren't conversions anymore and just ionic vs molecular compounds which are really easy! Good luck in your class:)

julibyrd · Mar 9, 2012

I just found out I got a 51 on my first Chemistry test. I had been getting A's and B's on the homework questions. I know I am not the only one to ever fail a test. But I just feel so horrible and embarassed. My teacher is the type that yells and gets annoyed if you ask a question. I have all the websites and books available to help me. But it just isn't sinking in well. I will need to get a tutor to help me through the rest of the semester (ending the end of April). Just needed to vent. Thanks for reading!

Thank you both for your words of encouragement!!

ProudStudent · Mar 9, 2012

Vent away! :) We're all reading. I'm going to side with other posters here and suggest that you just got nervous. Chemistry can be an intimidating subject, if you let it. I've bombed those first tests before too (worse) and sometimes it's just a matter of getting a feel for things. On those harder subjects, find a good partner with similar study habits as yourself and you'll be great! I'm sure there's someone else in your class looking to study with someone else too.

julibyrd · Mar 10, 2012

Vent away! :) We're all reading. I'm going to side with other posters here and suggest that you just got nervous. Chemistry can be an intimidating subject, if you let it. I've bombed those first tests before too (worse) and sometimes it's just a matter of getting a feel for things. On those harder subjects, find a good partner with similar study habits as yourself and you'll be great! I'm sure there's someone else in your class looking to study with someone else too.

Thank you very much!!! :)

CDEWannaBe · Mar 10, 2012

Chemistry is a tough subject and requires some serious time if it's not something you excel at. I did it as a summer class and spent about 30 hours a week on it! But I got an A.

First tests are the toughest because you don't know the teachers testing style. Spend time on the class and master the difficult concepts. Chemistry is like math, where the material builds each week. If you don't understand the basics you'll do worse and worse as you go.

The Chemistry for Dummies book is great and I'd also recommend getting the workbook, packed full with practice problems. There are great videos on youtube too that might help the info sink in, like the SigFigGig.

julibyrd · Mar 11, 2012

Chemistry is a tough subject and requires some serious time if it's not something you excel at. I did it as a summer class and spent about 30 hours a week on it! But I got an A.
First tests are the toughest because you don't know the teachers testing style. Spend time on the class and master the difficult concepts. Chemistry is like math, where the material builds each week. If you don't understand the basics you'll do worse and worse as you go.
The Chemistry for Dummies book is great and I'd also recommend getting the workbook, packed full with practice problems. There are great videos on youtube too that might help the info sink in, like the SigFigGig.

Thank you very much!! :)

jz77 · Mar 11, 2012

Does your professor let you drop your lowest grade? There is a website called www.khanacademy.com and it is wonderful!!! it is basically all youtube videos that this professor does on every bit of subject matter that you can think of! He just has a great way of explaining things and I have learned so much from him. I was able to do really well on the science portion of my TEAS V because of that site.

Try not to be hard on yourself. It happens! Definitely make an appointment with your prof. after class. I bet he will be a lot more calm when things are one-on-one. Good Luck!!

julibyrd · Mar 12, 2012

Does your professor let you drop your lowest grade? There is a website called www.khanacademy.com and it is wonderful!!! it is basically all youtube videos that this professor does on every bit of subject matter that you can think of! He just has a great way of explaining things and I have learned so much from him. I was able to do really well on the science portion of my TEAS V because of that site.
Try not to be hard on yourself. It happens! Definitely make an appointment with your prof. after class. I bet he will be a lot more calm when things are one-on-one. Good Luck!!

Yes, he does drop the lowest grade. I have heard of Khanacademy and will check it out. Thank you very much! :)

nguyency77, CNA · Mar 12, 2012

I definitely agree that chemistry builds onto itself! Get a hold of those basics. We're all rooting for you :)

julibyrd · Mar 12, 2012

I just found out he doesn't drop the grade. He will replace it if the score on the final is better.