Is It Too Late to Become a Straight a Student?

Definitely not too late! If you are mainly an A/B student and are J. putting in the basic effort, I am sure if you work hard and put in extra effort you can do it! Check with teachers on extra credit or look into tutoring or study groups which are a great help. You are very mature as a sophomore to make that conscious decision that you want to improve. Plus, making those changes now and developing good study habits with help you later on in college. Good luck...I hope my boys have the same aspiration when they are older.

No way. It's totally NOT too late!! Good for you.

It's not too late and it's a great goal, but not at the expense of obsession and your health. Talk to a trusted adult and work out a plan, but make it reasonable. Where there is a will there is a way, but sometimes the route is different than what we originally planned.
Take Care of Yourself. Make Good Choices,
P.

Along with getting good grades look into doing extra curricular activities like sports, decathlons, or community service. I served as a candy striper at the local hospital and earned a scholarship when I graduated. Good Luck.

IT is never too late to become a straight A student, especially if you are an A/B student now and you know that you can do better if you stop slacking off. I am on the advisory committee for several scholarship foundations and we consider a student's record throughout their high school career. If a student consistently improves their grades throughout their four years, we consider that an accomplishment and take that into account when making our decisions. Good luck!

You can do it! Work on creating a realistic study routine, with built-in rewards based upon achieving your goals. Also, talk with your teachers about how they may be able to help. Get into a study group with other serious students for topics where you may need some extra assistance...or seek out tutors, if necessary. You can do it!!! :)

Establishing a strong work ethic and pride in what you do will not only help your grades as a high school student, but also a college student and then as you enter the work place. Putting in those extra hours studying and making sure your homework is top-notch will carry over into anything you do. Think about how good you will feel when you get that report card and there are all As on it! Remember that A work is excellent work (I am a college professor, and that is something that many students have forgotten). "A" work goes above and beyond the average, and that is why people who gets As are rewarded. This is the same for when you start your career--the people who go above and beyond are the ones who get the recognition, the promotions, and the raises.

I know it is very easy to slack off--I watch TV, go on Facebook, talk to friends, play with my kids when I should be grading or working on my own research/writing. But the bottom line is that you have to eventually make yourself do it. I use little tricks to motivate myself, like a new pair of shoes when I finish a major project. Some parents pay their kids for good grades--what can YOU do for yourself? Because the bottom line is that it is not about wha tyou do for your parents or for your teachers--it is about what you are doing for yourself. Maybe make some new friends--try to meet other kids who are making straight As and see what you can learn from them about your study habits. Take advantage of anything your school has to offer--free tutoring, online assistance, writing help. It all makes a difference. Remember, too, that you need letters of recommendation from teachers and other people in your school, so form strong relationships with your teachers and others in your community. And like other moms have said, involve yoruself in some meaningful extra-curricular activities. Charity-related organizations are good and always need help. Good luck.

My best advice is to get into a routine of good study habits. For example always start your homework/studying for a test at a certain time and follow through. After you accomplish your task reward yourself with a treat. If you have a good routine, the grades should take care of themselves. I can't provide motivation, it's only short term, motivation has to come within.

No, its not too late! You realize the error of your ways and are making a change. There will be students who do J. the opposite too. Dont look back and fret about what could have been better focus on making positive changes in the future. I recommend finding someone to help you stay motivated, who will encourage you, and when necessary give you a swift kick in the butt. (we all occassionaly need this)

Asking about education is never a dumb question. As they say, the only dumb question is the one never asked. My niece was a junior in high school and the school counselor told her it was too late to get straight A's and end up in the Honor Society for her Senior year. Let me tell you it is never too late. She did it, mainly to prove a point to him. You are at a point where you have to make a choice. Evidently you are smart enough to make the grades as you are making A's and B's now. You can pull it together and get A's from now on and it will put you at the top of your class with the opportunity for scholarships. Scholarship committee's can see how you made the decision at this point to work to better yourself and will see that you made it. Good luck on your decision and your future.

You've gotten a lot of good advice--I J. have one thing to add. As a college professor who serves on a scholarship committee at my university, I can tell you that we would ABSOLUTELY look on your favorably for having straight A's from sophomore year on, even if you got some B's freshman year. When we have two scholarship candidates with similar GPA's, and need to make a decision between the two, the first thing we do is pull out their transcripts and look for the overall trajectory of their grades. A student who shows improvement over the 4 years of high school will get the scholarship over a student who did consistently "pretty well" through all 4 years. GL!

No it's not too late. I am a high school teacher, so I see kids all of the time that goof off and then try to make better grades their senior year (that's probably a little late). If you start trying now, you should definetely be able to pull your grades up. If you are already making A's and B's then you are in good shape. The one thing I would suggest is that you sign up for more challenging classes next year (like Pre-AP or AP). However, you don't want to overload yourself with too many difficult classes (if you're really not ready for the demands). When college admissions officers (and scholarship committees) look at your transcript, they will see what classes you were taking as well as the semester grades. If they see a big jump up in your grades, they will probably see that you really buckeled down (and they might reward you for it). They will also be impressed if you start taking higher level classes. You are smart to start working on this now. You should be able to do it, J. remember, there's no such thing as a small assignment. Every assignment can affect your grades - either positively or negatively. Good luck!

M.

Of course it's not too late to become excellent. In almost three years, you will be demonstrating to a college recruiter, though examination of your transcript at the end of your senior year, that you may have slacked off a bit in Freshman year, (many people do), but that you got it together, matured, and have been bearing down ever since. They love to see a rehabilitated slacker! LOL. Go for it!
They need to see growth as evidenced by increasingly better grades, a good strong SAT score (take it as many times as you can, because you can improve between takes by working those SAT books and taking a SAT refresher course offered by many school districts), and probably most important of all, though they are drawn to a high rank position, they need to see that you took challenging courses, such as Honors, Advanced, AP (and take the AP exam for each AP course), as well as higher level math, science, Senior year English, plus electives that challenged. They like to see dual credit courses from the local college with grades of B or better. And in case of a tie, they also love to see that you have done extensive community service, and participated in extracurricular activiites. Create the image/profile of a well-rounded student, with people skills and generosity of spirit, as well as taking care of your academic business, and you'll have no trouble getting into a college you will respect, probably with scholarships.
I can advise all this because I was recently the Academic Coordinator at a Magnet Engineering high school, and these are the criteria that interest and impress most college entrance committees.
Good for you for becoming concerned now, while you still have a chance to reinvent yourself!

I teach senior high students and can tell you a few things:

Creating better study habits and improving your grades will help you as you transition into college. Yes it will help improve your GPA which will improve your chances of getting a scholarship. Also getting involved in school related activities will make you a better candidate for scholarships. Most of the scholarship committees are looking for well rounded individuals that are both active in school and making good grades. Your school counselor can help you find the scholarships that are right for you and there are a ton out there that students never apply for.