Episode 19 - Are Exams Worth It?

Hello, this is James Davey, The Exam Coach and Welcome to Episode 9 of Davey Discusses a podcast series I'm putting together in time for the 2016 Exam Season. If you're on The FUN Exam Plan I hope you're sticking to the routines and exam techniques in it - keep going and use this podcast to support you. For more info on The FUN Exam Plan go to www.theexamcoach.tv/the-fun-exam-plan there you'll find the tried and tested routines and exam techniques that make exams as easy, effortless and enjoyable as possible...something like this wasn't around when I was taking my exams - so I created it - if you're in the same boat as I was and looking for the best way to get you through your exams with a solid set of grades whilst not becoming super stressed or a nerdy hermit for half the year then check it out. It's all online and easily accessible, moreover, it demonstrates exactly what to do rather than chuck a load of half formed ideas and recommendations at you and let you pick out the good stuff like I had to during my own education. This short podcast series is designed to tackle everything to do with exams from preparation to performance whether you're at school, college or Uni there is certainly something of value to be taken away. It's designed to fill that period of down time you may have when walking to school in the morning, in between lectures at Uni or whenever else you have 5 minutes to spare and put it to good use. Let's crack on.    Okay in this episode I'm going to a talk about a question that was running through my head constantly when I was at school...   That question was 'are exams actually worth it?' - are they worth all the hard work, or is it better not to bother too much about them.    I'll take you through exactly what I was thinking on both sides of the argument....   So lets kick things off by talking about some of the reasons why I thought Exams were just not worth the hassle. I used to do it all the time and so did many of my friends and people I hung around with. Exams have always had the reputation of being an inconvenience and I certainly thought a lot about why they just weren't worth all the time, hassle and hard work they demand.   So here's what I was thinking:   I'm Young, I Should Be Having Fun and Enjoying myself   I thought to myself I'm young, I should be out partying, having fun and enjoying what most people say are the best years of their life rather than worrying too much about exams. I shouldn't have to be dealing with all this hard work, potential stress and pressure. I'll worry about the future later, right now I'm going to have as much fun as I can, take risks and enjoy myself.       It's Pointless and Boring   I knew I was learning stuff that I would probably never use again. Some of it I couldn't care less about, I just wasn't interested.  I couldn't see why I should be spending my time doing something so boring that I don't want to do in the future.   It's Not A realistic test of Intelligence   Spending hours and hours memorising stuff, understanding concepts and trying to perform under pressure just wouldn't come in handy later in life. I want to be doing exciting work in business or some other career path and these things won't require any of the skills needed for exam success, I'' do all my learning when I'm out of school and the real world doesn't seem like it involves many pressurised situations like exams.    I wouldn't mind doing well in my exams but I don't want to work hard for it   Hard work just isn't cool....furthermore working hard and failing is embarrassing . Not being seen to work hard and succeeding is pretty cool, not caring at all is also pretty cool, not working hard and failing is accepted by most people.    I Don't Need Exam Results To Do What I Want To Do   All of my friends say its about who you know not what you know, adults are even saying it. So why should I need to spend ages studying when really I'm going to get my job through a contact. Also, I want to be an entrepreneur like Richard Branson, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates - they all dropped out of education - that proves how you don't need exams to do what you want to do. They all say its not the grades that matter but whether you are passionate about what you want to do and whether you have got the other skills required for success. If the thing I want to be when I'm older doesn't require good grades then what's the point in spending so much time getting them?     So there are the reasons for not trying in your exams...and here are the reasons why I sometimes thought they might be worth it and what I also think now.       I'm Young, I Should Be Having Fun and Enjoying myself   When you're taking exams it's important to look at the hard work, hassle and pressure in context.   There are three main parts to this:   - How long you actually spend revising and doing exams compared to the rest of the time you have to do whatever you want when you are young - the answer is its not very much so you do actually have plenty of time to have FUN and do your exams - The long term impact of results - the short term pain long term gain idea - Earned FUN is far more fun than the you just take it for granted.   It's a bit like being thirsty versus just drinking water to stay hydrated...when you've just done a run or worked out and haven't drunk any ice cold water for a while it really does hit the spot, whereas the you're just sipping away at your desk its not quite the same....   Also, it is fair to say that revising for exams doesn't actually make up much of your time per year at all - at a push lets say on average 3 months a year between the ages of 13-21 it takes up 25%...if you don;t know how to have Fun in the other 75% of your time then you don't know how to have FUN.   It's pointless and boring and no one else cares so why should I    - Going by what everyone else your age does is a bit silly as no one really knows anything more than you about what the future holds and whether exams are really that important - period, it doesn't matter how cool, streetwise or how many older brothers and sisters they have who have told them x, y and z then don't know it... - Older people and adults also don't always know what's best for you, just because they turned out alright after having flunked their exams doesn't mean you can do the same thing. The careers and job market is completely different from what it was 20 even 10 years ago...  Don't listen to those people in the year above you who tell you its easy - its always seems easy when you've crossed the finish line, in hindsight many things seem easier than they actually are when you are doing them.    It's Not a Realistic test of intelligence    The absolute basics do end up helping you out. But I was right in thinking there's a lot that you will never use again. One thing I would like to remind you of is that exams can be seen as the current market conditions. They're the way things currently work and they are the first hurdle or the first hoop you have to jump through to get in front of future employers. They may not be perfect but when you look at them this way they are worth paying attention to. Perhaps what you understand and memorise for exams may not always come in so handy, some of it might do, but the majority probably won't. However, the invaluable training you receive in an exam situation on how to prepare and perform in a highlight pressurised situation is vital - in the world after education these situations come up on a daily basis and it's those who have learned to overcome them that really get on in life.    I wouldn't mind doing well in my exams but I don't want to work hard   Hard work is what it's all about, it's a skill, it has to be learned and developed over time. Start now with your exams and you'll be way ahead of the game. Hard work is a key ingredient in any achievement in whatever field, it's necessary and it's something that you have to come to terms with and begin to enjoy, the more you try the more results you start to see and the more you begin to enjoy the whole process of working towards a top set of exam results because when you are no longer relying on lucky breaks or good fortune you start to see that in all most all cases in life if you put something in you will get something out. If you're not willing to put anything in you're going to get the same amount out - the earlier you can learn and understand the lesson that hard work is a skill and the earlier you start refining and working on you ability to work hard and achieve something this massively increases your chances of achieving whatever you what care about at a later stage.    5. I Don't Need Exam Results To Do What I Want To Do   I'd encourage you to think about human development and what we find appealing when thinking about unconventional success stories. The media knows that is what sells, the inconventional and unusual interests us. We love the against all odds stories of people beating the system or achieving in spite of something. Like, for example, Richard Branson being a hugely successful entrepreneur after having had a tough time in   education. People also look to figures like Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates as University and College dropouts and misleadingly suggest as a consequence they didn't care much for hard work, educational excellence or taking on challenges. They all passed exams to get into the prestigious colleges they eventually dropped out of. Lastly, you don't hear about all the people who achieved a lot at school and university, got great exam results and then went on to achieve even greater things .... why? Well it's not a very good story is it, its expected and predictable - hardly worth talking about. What I'm saying is do't be drawn like a fly to a lightbulb to the against all odds success story, also think about those whose education clearly set them up for what they later went on to achieve - there are far more of the later than the former and it doesn't make their success any less notable - only in the eyes of the media and the human bias of wanting to hear the extraordinary over the calculated and predictable.      So there you go, there are 5 ideas that were running through my head as to why exams weren't worth it and 5 rebuttals to those arguments that I gradually developed through personal experience and my observation of and conversations with other people. See you next time.