It’s getting closer to that time of year again, when all your learning, revision, and preparation over the past year (sometimes longer) is assessed. It might be one of the most important hours of your life and, no matter how much preparation you’ve done and how well the teachers have explained the exam, it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous.
Some tips for your exams:
Before the exam:
It is ok to be nervous. And, no matter how well prepared and cool some of your classmates are, they’re probably just as nervous as you are.
I was one of those annoying kids who arrived half an hour early with their pencil case already out and sat chatting to my friend about music or something. You would think I didn’t have a care in the world about my exam. Wrong. This was just my way of coping. Don’t feel bad because you’re doing last minute revision or relaxation techniques. It’s ok to be nervous.
That said, last minute revision is probably not the best thing to be doing before your exam. It might be the case that, if you don’t know it by now, you’re not going to know it at all. Maybe having a little flash card of the most important information might be a good idea, but going through a textbook worth of material is only going to do you more harm than good.
Have all your equipment ready. Pen, and a spare pen, and another spare pen (make sure they’re all black, as a lot of exams ask for only black ink), a pencil (a mechanical pencil is a good idea, as you won’t have to waste time sharpening it if it breaks), a sharpener, rubber, ruler, colouring pencils, a calculator (if allowed). Your school or college may have the equipment already, but there’s nothing wrong with having your own.
Don’t bring your phone. Leave phones at home, or in a locker if those are available, or in a cloak room if possible. It saves so much time after your exam. If that isn’t possible, and it sometimes isn’t possible, you will have to hand your phone in. Believe me, it is so much better to be safe than sorry. Even turned off, at the bottom of your bag, it could still be a problem and it is not worth the risk.
During your exam
Manage your time well. Don’t spend fifteen minutes on a question that doesn’t call for fifteen minutes. Those fifteen minutes could be spent perfecting an answer for a longer questions or picking up a couple more marks elsewhere. Allocate your time wisely, knowing where you should be up to at half time and keep one eye on the clock.
If allowed (and it sometimes isn’t allowed, so make sure at your school or college) it may be a good idea to keep a watch on the desk, in case you find it difficult to see the clock (you probably won’t, they’re usually fairly big, but it’s a possibility). Having the watch on the desk will reassure you.
Write down important formulae you’re likely to need if you’re not given a formulae sheet. Those are probably the things you’re going to have on your flash card, right? Get them down quickly, before you forget about them.
After your exam
Don’t go and find the mark scheme. There is no point in doing this, though a lot of people do. You can’t change your answers and you’re likely to get caught up on the questions you got wrong. It’s much better to put the exam in the past and focus on the future.
That’s it. The exams over. There’s nothing more you can do now.
The Ghoul Student 