With exam season right around the corner, here are some quick tips that can elevate your study and squeeze every mark out of every test you take. Exam Tips:
- Read the question
- It sounds silly to have to say, but it is essential to ensure you completely understand what you are being asked to do. It feels so stupid to lose easy marks just because you misread the question or missed a few words.
- Read the question again
- Once you have answered a question, it is good practice to quickly read everything again to double-check that you have actually answered it. I’m anxious enough that I reread it four and a half times before moving on.
- Put yourself in the mind of the examiner
- Always try to think, “What do they want from me?” It can sometimes be difficult to infer what the examiner may want your answer to look like, so it takes practice. I try to imagine key points of information I need to include and ways of writing that make sure I answer the question as completely as I can.
- Maximise how many points you can get
- Check how many marks the question is worth; it is normally a good guide to how many ideas/key points your answer must include. This is especially important for science and humanities, where three marks might mean you need to explain three things. Always be on the lookout in exams for ways to maximise your marks.
- Break down a question into key points
- This is especially useful for information-dense subjects like History, Biology, or Business. Most topics or questions can be broken down into bullet points that you can then answer more effectively.
- Make a plan
- For essay writing exams like English, History, or Global Perspectives, it is essential to plan out your essay before you start writing. You can do it in your head, but writing a quick sketch is better. Outline the key points you will answer, what each paragraph will contain, and the overall structure of your essay. It improves the quality of your writing immensely, allows you to fully answer the question, and may actually save you time as you don’t have to stop constantly to think about what to write next
- Skip the hard questions, do what you know
- It's a good exam strategy to manage your time; don’t waste it by spending 30 minutes on one 3-mark question. If you look at a question and genuinely don’t know what to do, move on. Speed through all of the questions you know how to answer for sure to guarantee you get as many marks as you can; you can always come back later.
- Check your answers
- If you have enough time at the end (unlikely), go over the test again. Do any questions you skipped, check all of your answers, and redo every calculation. This may just save you from small errors you made the first time you answered a question. You want to be working for the entire exam time.
- Skim through the exam at the start
- It’s good to take a small 20-second glance over the test, just to get a rough idea of what’s on it and how long it will take
- Manage your time
- This is very important, especially for Cambridge exams. They are multiple hours long with pages of writing. Look over your questions and allocate time accordingly. Try to leave yourself enough time to do the important things. On essay questions, if you are taking way too long on a 10-mark question, it might be better to forgo writing a conclusion or an extra point and skip straight to a 25-mark question
- Show your working out
- This mostly goes for Science and Maths, but failing to show your work will lose you easy marks.
- Answer everything, even if you just guess
- Even a small chance of some marks is better than guaranteed nothing, it’s worth having a guess if you have time at the end of the exam, you might get lucky
Revision Tips:
- Start early
- My biggest personal issue. Give yourself enough time in advance to actually study and plan so you aren’t all rushed and panicking when it’s time for exams. You will still rush and panic, but if you start revising early at least you are more prepared.
- Make a study plan
- It can be helpful to plan out specific days or times when you will study different subjects. This ensures that you are able to plan out time for everything you need to learn, and can help motivate you to begin studying.
- Cover a broad knowledge base
- Seems a bit obvious, but make sure you cover everything in the syllabus; anything could appear on the exam.
- Past papers are amazing
- It doesn’t matter what subject; past papers are a great way to prepare yourself for an exam. The more practice you do, the more you'll be ready for every topic or question type you might be asked. The test questions are always harder than those in the textbooks. If you don’t have enough time or motivation to do full past papers, at least read through them and answer questions mentally or write bullet points. If you come across a question you don’t know how to answer, then you can immediately study it.
- Ask for help
- If you don’t know how to answer something and can’t find it on YouTube, then it can be helpful to ask a teacher or a fellow student
- Keep up your mental health
- One of the most important things you can do is take care of yourself. You work better and are much happier if your mind is fresh and healthy. You can help yourself by doing anything from taking breaks, rewarding good behavior, or giving yourself time to relax
- Do what works for you
- I could sit here and write 5 pages about the different study methods or techniques you could use, but in the end, it all comes down to what is best for you. Finding your own style of learning and studying is the best thing you can do to help you revise, you don’t always have to do what someone else tells you to. As long as you actually do revise, doing nothing is a poor move.
