Everything that has a beginning has an end

posted on April 2nd, 2009

end of jc Tomorrow will officially mark the end of my sixth form. Two years that have changed and molded my personality, into hopefully, being a better person. First reaction is how fast it went by. I still remember the first day as it was yesterday... meeting new people, checking out timetables and the lot. Honestly I will miss these days. Yes sometimes it was really crappy, sad and depressing, most notably first year. After the first initial joy of a new school and new people, an anti-climax followed. Second year was pretty cool though, people who were going to JC biex ipappuha (to get stipend and do nothing else apart from being a nuisance to those who want to actually learn) were not promoted and only people who are actually interested in getting the Matriculation certificate remained.

Lecturers actually improved from first year too. Some of my first year teachers remained, notably my English teacher who I am very grateful towards. My Pure Math teacher this year was unbelievable. I never had such a great teacher. He knows the subject inside out (and actually beyond our level), very confident around students, dark humoured and an excellent problem solver. I will certainly miss him. Respect also to the computer department. There are some great people over there, who actually know a thing or two about the subject. They certainly opened up even more doors for me to pursue, modules which I didn't know much about and had a different opinion about before engaging in the study of the topics. Compiler theory, Assembly language, Data Structures & Databases.

I will also certainly miss my new friends. Some of which, I will hopefully see over at university. Honestly, I have met some great people. What I love about this, is that, through our friendship, we shared our dreams, our hopes, even though everyone has a different view of life.

While reflecting back about these two years, what have changed in me, what could have been done better, the bonds that were created... I would like to show my appreciation to anyone who helped me become a better man. A better person. Anyone who encourage me pursue my dreams and hopes. Anyone who made these two years a pleasant experience and a great memory I will look back at with a lot of nostalgia.

Congrats!! So, JC is over :) I am sure that you will look back at it with some nostalgia, we all do :) but life goes on and well, we have to keep on walking.

So, what are your plans now? :)
Hi Wen! :)

Heh plans.. well there are lots, but hopefully, get into university, study computing, make new friends, get a degree, and start doing some work in the real world!

We'll see how much of this works out! Iz-zmien itina parir!
Prosit! I have many beautiful memories of the time I spent at JC, though I think that my university years were even better! :)) When I was at JC, I felt that even though most of the teachers I had were great, the degree to which they prepared us to get good grades in our Matsec exams was debatable! :)In fact, I remember that most of the people who got As normally went for extra tuition.

Anyway, wish you an exciting journey ahead! Keep up your interest in learning new things because life will never get boring when you are searching for knowledge! :)
Hi David, long time no see! :) Hope everything is all well! :)

To be honest, I don't really believe that great lectures means great grades, and vice-versa. Yes, having a great lecturer does help a lot, mostly because you have to do less of an effort to learn something, but at least in my case, whenever I wanted to be good at something, I just have to set my mind on it and learn it the hard way. A great lecturer just makes it a lot easier to grasp topics.

Thanks for the heads up!
The thing is that the syllabus for each subject is sooooo vast that it often takes a good teacher to be able to guide you as to what you should really focus on if you want to get a good grade. I can still remember certain peers who went for private lessons in Maltese and since the teacher was apparently aware of the best ways to answer A-level questions, many of those guys got As or Bs.

I remember that when I was at JC and they had the mock exam for the Chemistry A-level, only two people passed! One of them had been going to private lessons. A similar situation is often witnessed with Maths A-level students.

I believe that it is essential for students to learn a subject, but appreciating knowledge is one thing whereas focusing on the most important parts in order to get a good grade is another story.
I agree with you here, Red. The A-level syllabus is so vast it's nearly impossible to know everything inside out because when you start studying a new module, you start forgetting the one you studied before.

Hehe private lessons and Maths A-level students.. they're like "il-hobza u s-sikkina" ;) practically all students I know (and I know a lot since I'm studying Maths) go to private lessons, only a handful don't.

This year I was lucky enough to have a great lecturer, I really couldn't ask for a better one. Knows the subject beyond A-level, knows what to focus on, and really confident, which I think is a great trait for a teacher to have, because it enables you to believe in what he's saying and trust him.

Appreciating knowledge vs focusing on important parts to get a good grade.. I hate it. I hate its guts. I'm that type of person who likes to go beyond the syllabus and learn more about the subject. I mean what's the use of accepting something like let's say E = mc^2. I want to know more about it and understand how it came about. Otherwise it's of no use for me to learn it by heart just because "all we have to know for our syllabus is the equation and that's it". Then what really pisses me off, other students, usually the ones who are happy enough with knowing the basics get the good grades.. I usually get an answer like "but you should get a better great because you know more about the subject". It's bullshit, the exam won't ask about the details, and by going into details I start forgetting the basic parts, which is what the exam will test.
Hey Man. Haven't seen you since Secondary School. I stumbled on your blog while lookin for something maltese in google. It seems you're still in the biz. Hope to see ya soon. Maybe keep in touch too. Don't worry I'm still the same as ever. ;D
yo! what's up dude? long time no see eh! :) maybe we'll meet up this summer, you're gonna be around bugibba? still got my number?
yeah i still got your number whenever im near bugibba ill give you a call.