Preparing for Exams

For many students, a block of examinations can be daunting. Some students have no idea where to start and what they should work on. The first thing to do with examinations approaching is to find out what topics will be tested. Even a simple question to teachers can get you started such as ‘are we being tested on the whole year’s work or just this semester?’. Once you know what topics will be covered, organize all of your learning materials and make sure nothing is missing and you have everything you need to review those topics. The next step is to make study notes on these topics if you haven’t been doing this throughout the year (hopefully you have!). You can visit the SUMMARISING unit to learn more about making effective study notes. Next it is time to start learning the notes (testing yourself on them over and over) and doing practice questions to make sure you can apply your knowledge to different types of questions. The ACTIVE STUDYING unit will give you lotsof ideas on different study techniques to help you achieve your personal academic best. If you have a number of weeks prior to the examinations, it is a good idea to make a plan in your diary or phone or on a whiteboard of what subjects you will study when. Try and allocate each subject once or twice each week, depending on the number of examinations you have. The PREPARING FOR EXAM BLOCKS unit explains in more detail how you put together a study plan for exams. You can learn more and find grids and planners to help you at www.studysamurai.com