Steps
- Buy an extra notebook for each subject at the beginning of the year so that as you finish a chapter in class, you immediately write notes and summaries in that book. The classwork will still be fresh in your mind so at exam time you merely have to take the notebook home from school. Write down the key points you learned from each lesson onto a cue card. This helps your mind to retain the day's important facts. On the weekends look over the cue cards. Get your parents or friends to quiz you on them.
- Learn how to make mind maps, cluster maps and other memory aids. Mind maps are graphical illustrations of a subject and a great memory tool to use, especially during exams.
- As soon as you finish a topic take out a book from the library and read more information about the subject. Take notes to refer back to them before and at test time.
- Don't do rough drafts for essays. Just do the good copy straight away, but thoroughly as well. In an exam situation you won't have time to write out a whole draft copy, so practice writing out good copies straight away.
- Make a timetable for exam days by marking the dates on a calendar, so you can be prepared by the time the test comes around.
- Make a list of your classes and the topics covered in class. As you study a topic, mark it in a way that is meaningful to you, to remind you which topics have already been studied.
- Set aside a study time each day when you are not too tired, or too hungry. If you are going to study for a long time, remember to take a break in between.
- Set up a study group. Study groups share notes, thoughts and ideas or how to solve or understand a particular problem. Be sure to honor the class rules on what work may or may not be done in groups.
- Plan out 'trial' exams for yourself. All you have to do is redo one of your past tests or quizzes within a time limit. Get into the exam mode by clearing your work desk of everything except your paper and pen.
- Get enough sleep at night. It's harder to concentrate when you got less than six hours of sleep the night before.
- When choosing individual subjects to study, start with the least enjoyable or the most difficult subject. Master it, and you'll end up loving it. At the very least, you won't have to worry about putting it off until it's too late because you don't like it
Tips
- Don't panic on test day. On the night before the exam, and in the morning of read through your notes a few times, then put them away.
- Don't panic if you have not studied well. Just think over the question and you might remember something the teacher taught you. After all, you are studying things that men have discovered before without previous knowledge.
- Eat a healthy breakfast that day, so you feel energized, but don't eat so much that you feel full. Something to consider is a study that says males do better on tests if they are slightly hungry, and females do better on tests if they are slightly full. Again, don't overdo it.
- You gain less by studying for exams at the last minute. One way to think about it is to start studying for the next exam as soon as you get the material, don't wait until a week before the test to start.
- Try and have all your study notes complete at least 2 weeks before the exam. This allows you plenty of time to work through past papers for revision and go over and re-read anything you're a bit hazy on.
- In the lead up to exams, try and get your hands on some exam papers for previous years. Doing these before the real exam will give you an idea as to what you'll be up against and will highlight anything you still need to revise.
- If you suffer from exam stress then take a calming antidote, perhaps an herbal tea. Just don't overdose because it'll make you drowsy.
- Don't stress out, it makes your mind work slower.
- Have a balance in life, exams are simply a quick and lazy way to assess people. Don't panic, just study.
- Develop a positive attitude towards exams. If you are well prepared you'll walk into the exam room thinking "WOW! I can't wait to prove myself to these examiners, I'm gonna Ace this test, just to show them." Negative attitude: " Oooh, I'm so nervous. I hate exams; what's the point? I really don't feel up to this".
- Ever heard this? "Good luck with your exam!" This is false hope, you shouldn't need a pint of luck to help you succeed,and if you DO need good luck, then you obviously haven't prepared enough.
- While some can be, most exams aren't really this big. Exams are really just large quizzes with a time limit. No big deal.
Warnings
- If you have not prepared yourself for the test, during the term, and before the test, do not expect a high mark!
- Too much study can be as bad as not enough study because the mind shuts down when too much information is crammed into it.
- Mind blanks are possibly the most frightening things to occur in an exam. They can happen in any subject, but you can overcome them. The only way to overcome mind blanks is to relax the brain from its hysterical state. In the exam room, close your eyes, breathe in for 5 seconds and let it release through the mouth automatically. Repeat this until you can feel the facts crawling back into your memory.
- Don't try to learn a new chapter a day before the exam; instead, revise what you already know.
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