Prepping for exams

Prepping for exams, both mid-terms or finals begins at the start of the term.

If you reviewed just 10 minutes for each subject every day, you would not need to spend hours studying the night before an exam. So, what happens if you didn’t know that vital piece of information and now you are stuck and really need to get this whole studying thing mastered? Do not fear life is not over as you now know it. You can still pull off those stellar grades, but you will have to be VERY strategic about it.

Studying is only a small portion of doing well on exams.

Yup, you read that correctly. Studying techniques are just a part of being successful when it comes to writing exams.

Some things to remember

When it comes to exam strategy there some things to remember. An exam is a predictable set of patterns. Know what type of test you are taking. Do not hang out with your friends before the exam and quiz each other. Why: If someone asks a question that you cannot answer it will erode your confidence.

First things first

Once you are in the exam room take a scrap piece of paper and jot down everything you remember about the subject. Yup, I mean everything. If it is a science or math exam include all of your formulas. If it is social studies write down dates, names, etc. and if it’s an English exam jot down definitions, character names, story sequence, etc.

Cycle the exam

When you get your exam cycle through it. DO NOT answer any questions. Just read each item and rank it either easy, medium or hard. (If you have to read three pages of text to answer two multiple choice question mark those questions as hard because you have to do a ton of work to get two points.) Once you have cycled through the exam, then you can begin answering questions. Answer all of the easy ones first, then go onto the medium once and finally the hard ones. By doing the easy ones first you gain momentum and by the time you get to the hard ones the answers to those may very well be in the easy and medium ones.

You are not being rude

Lastly, ignore everyone else in the room. If someone leaves after 30 minutes don’t panic. They may very well be out in the hall beating their head against the locker because they didn’t know anything on the exam. If you become distracted, close your eyes, give yourself three, big deep breaths in for the count of five, and out to the count of five, then continue back with your exam plan.

For more in-depth information on studying and exam writing, please check out our study skills program on our website. https://www.engagededucators.com/programs-services

or please contact us