Getting Down To Work
Keep in the front of your mind why you need to work hard to be successful in your exams.
· You want to feel real good when you get your results because you know that it will be important to the rest of your life
· You surely do not want to have to go through the same thing again when you could be moving ahead with your life
· All the little distractions can wait until after your exams when you have all the time in the world
Get focused for revision.
· Start each day by looking at your plan for that day
· Clear your work area of everything except the materials you are working with. Get everything you need before you start
· Start each session with a watch or clock on the table right in front of you where you can see it at all times
· Stick to your timetable. Revise for fifty minutes and then take a ten minutes break
· Arrange to study with a friend who also wants to take revision seriously. You should spur each other on, to start on time and keep at it and you can share a small reward at the end of each session
Things to do while revising.
· Make notes of key points
· Underline useful quotations and points of interest
· Draw diagrams or make flowcharts from lists of points
· Put away your notes and attempt to note down essential points from memory, then check for accuracy
· Do question and answer sessions with a friend
· Answer past exam questions
When practicing past exams:
· Take note of how the exam paper is set out. If you are told how much time to spend on a given question, do not spend more time. It is better to return to the question if you have time at the end
· Read each question carefully and ensure that you give the answer to the question that is asked and not what you wished the question was
· If you have a choice of questions in a section of the exam paper, read through all of the questions before choosing the ones to answer
· If you are not told how long to spend on each question, work out how long to spend on each question from the marks available for each question. Spend more time on the questions that carry most marks
· Before answering an essay question, make a quick list of the main headings, subheadings, key points and examples that you need to include in answering the question
The exam
Before the day of your exam
· In your revision planning, plan to complete all topics one week before your exams. Use that week to refresh your memory on essential or difficult points
· Plan that you have the day before the start of your exams free from hard study and use it to look over brief notes and diagrams
· Get a good night’s sleep before each day of exams
· Set an alarm to get you up on time
· Remember to use the techniques that you have practiced
· Pack all the things you will need for your exams the day before, such as pens, pencils, eraser, ruler, calculator, geometry set, tissue, etc. If in doubt about what you can take into a given examination, ask your teacher long before the day of the exam
· Make sure you know the exact time of your exam and the room that it will be held in
On the day of your exam
· Have a decent breakfast
· Check that you have all your equipments
· Get to the exam room on time
Before you start
· Read the instructions on the front of your exam paper carefully
· Fill in the relevant sections on the front of the paper or answer booklet
· Check the number of questions in each section that you need to answer and if there are compulsory questions
· Check the marks available for each question and the time recommended to spend on each question or section
When you are told to start
· Read through the paper carefully, underlining key words that tell you what the examiner requires
· Mark at the beginning of each section, how many questions you are required to answer
· If you are given a choice of questions, put a tick against the questions that you have chosen to answer
· Work out how much time should be spent on each question if advice is not given
· If not instructed to do the questions in the order they are set, decide on the order in which you will tackle the questions
· Plan the answer to each structured question, making sure that you understand the question
· Do not spend more than the required time for each question.
· Check that you have answered all the required questions
· Return to complete unfinished questions if there is time
· If you have completed the exam, use any time remaining to double check your answers for completeness and look for spelling errors
· Finally, check that your name, centre number and all other relevant information are entered.
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