How to Pass Exams

Fred Orr

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9780367718374
• eBook ISBN: 9781000257489
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Does the thought of exams and tests make you feel panicky?

Do you know how to make the most of those last days before an exam or test?

Do you worry you'll forget everything you've studied?

This bestselling guide explains how to control your anxiety and get good marks. Learn how to:

* avoid panic attacks
* improve your memory
* manage your time
* cope with different kinds of exams and tests

as well as many other essential techniques.

Whether you are studying at school, college, university or anywhere else, you need How to Pass Exams. Don't wait till it's too late!

Part I
Preparation for exams

1
Get organised!

‘I spend so much time trying to organise myself, I don’t have enough time to study.’

— Frantic student

Some students try to organise their time too much; others avoid the activity altogether; and a few get totally confused by the process. As exams draw nearer, time for study becomes critical. Passing your exams can be a function of how well you manage your time. Complete the following checklist to see how you rate on time management skills.

Time and study checklist

• I can waste hours, and sometimes whole days, doing unimportant things.
• I study in a disorganised fashion.
• I find it difficult to separate the major points from the trivia.
• I revise too late for large exams.
• I often start study tasks, but do not finish them.
• I am plagued by indecision.
• I often repeat work unnecessarily.
• Instead of studying, I ponder reasons for failing.
• I can’t sit still at my study place.
• I generally reorganise my desk top at the start of study sessions.

If you ticked more than five of the above items, then you need help in managing your study time. You may know of the common commercial adage, ‘Time is money’. The academic equivalent is, ‘Time is marks’. If you manage your time better, you will almost certainly get better results.

LONG-TERM PLANNING

How long is long term? The most appropriate time span here would be five to ten years, the time before you pursue your career goals in the work world. That might seem like light years away now, but having some idea of where your education is leading you can help you to manage your time better.

BRIAN—FUTURE VET

Brian had always related well to animals and decided in his early high school years that he was going to be a vet. In year 10, he spent two work experience weeks with different vets in his district. He found the work and long hours to be demanding, but he persisted with his plans. At university he joined the Veterinary Students Association, which held professional meetings and social functions. At one meeting, a country vet spoke about his large-animal practice. Brian approached him after the talk and discussed the possibility of spending some time at the practice during the summer months. The vet was receptive and the working visit was arranged.

How do these career-related experiences help with time management during the academic year? Brian was clear about his vocational goals, an unusual situation for most students. He knew very well that he needed the background of biochemistry, physiology and other demanding basic sciences. He found it easier to get motivated with a specific vocational view of his future. He planned his study sessions, putting the very difficult subjects first, as he knew they would be important to his professional work.

Even at a very early stage—say, high school years 8, 9 and 10—clarifying your career goals can be a significant help. You don’t have to sign a contract committing you to any selected job area. At this stage, it’s just a general guide to where you might be going. If you don’t have a clue about what you want to do, try completing the following 3 × 3 exercise.

3 × 3 EXERCISE TO CLARIFY YOUR CAREER

1. I am good at the following three skills: (a), (b), (c).
2. My close friends would say that I am good at the following three things: (d), (e), (f).
3. In my spare time, I prefer to do one of the following three activities: (g), (h), (i).

You might wish to list more than three items in each of the three categories. Throw modesty aside and give yourself credit for your skills, abilities and interests. The better you know yourself, the better planner you are likely to be. Having completed the exercise, see if you can identify any trends suggested by the answers. Discuss your responses with a close friend or family member to see if they can offer any career suggestions. You may be very tired of being asked by your parents and their friends, ‘What are you going to be?’ but persevere.

You might wish to discuss the careers clarification exercise with a counsellor or careers adviser. Your aim is to get an answer to the question, ‘Where is my study program taking me?’. Your career goals will be discussed again in the next chapter, ‘Motivate yourself!’, but now let’s turn to semester planning.

SEMESTER PLAN

Whether you are in high school, technical college or at university, your academic year will be divided into terms, sessions or semesters (for convenience, let’s use the semester). You will need to have a plan to guide your assignment preparation and exam revision for each semester of study. You might think that planning for end of semester exams in the first week of the semester is bordering on paranoia. Definitely not. In fact, exam experts say that the exam period begins on the first day of the semester. Any thought of exams might make you feel a bit uncomfortable, but unfortunately they are an academic reality and must be faced. At exam time, you will be responsible for the notes, readings, class activities, labs, field trips and any other academic exercises from the first day of the semester onwards. So, the sooner you plan for your exams, the better you are likely to perform.

One common student mistake is spending too much time on assignments during the semester and devoting too little time to exam revision. Students argue that their assignments are more immediate and demand attention—the exams are further down the track and less urgent. Urgency aside, you should really plan to spend preparation time in proportion to the total amount of marks which your various activities will earn—that is, put your time where the marks are.

For example, in Subject A, if you are assigned three essays worth 10 per cent each, two tests worth 15 per cent each, and one final exam worth 40 per cent, then you should devote your preparation time in proportion to the worth of each of these events. How can you work this out? Use a ‘Semester-at-a-glance chart’ (see page 8).

You can see that a fourteen-week semester has been charted and that four subjects—A, B, C and D—have been listed in the left-hand column. Adjust the chart to your present semester schedule. Having set up your chart, now place in the relevant boxes all mark-earning activities: quizzes, tests, essays, lab reports, class presentations, exams and any other assessments. Add to the chart any further assessments as you go through your present semester.

With all the relevant information charted, the next step is to record the preparation time for each event. You can do this by drawing a dotted arrow representing the amount of time you believe is needed for thorough preparation. For example, you might have only a very short arrow leading up to a quiz, but you might want to place a long arrow extending across the entire fourteen weeks for your final exam. That long arrow might seem too long, but that’s the ideal. I highly recommend that you ‘learn as you go’ from week 1 onwards and revise each week for your finals.

Semester-at-a-glance chart

Key Tst = test, Ass = assignment, Rpt = report, Prj = project

Your chart may now look quite complicated. Don’t worry—this is the norm, as most students have too much to do and not enough time to do it all.

Look at week 7, a period which might seem to be relatively quiet as there is only one test scheduled. But, looking down through the column, you see eight dotted lines in addition to the test. Those dotted lines represent preparation activities for assessable events coming up in the future. Considering these preparation tasks, week 7 does not seem so quiet after all. With this work load, you will recognise the academic value of the Boy Scout motto, ‘Always be prepared’. Thorough preparation is the solution to good results. Inadequate preparation the night before is a pathway to panic and poor results. Think ahead and organise your preparation. No matter what type of exam you will be facing, you need to know your notes and other study materials very well. Revising stacks of notes takes time—generally much more time than is available during the two or three weeks before a major exam. As suggested earlier, assignments are often due in the final few weeks of semester and many students are more concerned about assignment completion than exam revision.

Rather than cramming too much activity into these final few weeks, prepare for your exams over the long term, right from week one. That way, there is no last minute panic and pressure. Revise the general concepts and themes for your final exams in a relaxed and confident state.

One additional point in planning your semester chart—include any time-consuming social activities, such as a weekend away. Losing a weekend just before a week in which three assignments are due could be disastrous. Place the important social event on your semester chart and then plan to finish the assignments beforehand. That could mean some late nights over the preceding two weeks, but you will enjoy yourself more knowing that your academic work is complete.

You might wish to make a copy of your semester chart so that you have one on the wall in front of your desk and the other in your notebook. Update the charts regularly so you have a clear picture of your current and future work loads. The general messages conveyed by the charts are: start early and revise regularly. Look ahead and note the assessments and assignments due in the next two weeks. Use this information when planning your time and work each day.

ELECTRONIC DIARIES AND COMPUTER PLANNERS

The electronic age has been with us for some time and many students now use electronic diaries or computer planners. Electronic diaries are slightly larger than hand-size and are programmed to accept dates, times and events which you enter into the diary’s memory. Many of these diaries have alarm functions; address, telephone and fax memories; birthday reminders and other useful functions. Most have the facility for downloading information onto your computer at home.

There are several major problems with these very handy devices, the foremost being that they are frequently lost or stolen. A stolen personal planner can place the owner at organisational risk, especially if the information has not been downloaded at home. You may also be at risk if your home address and other personal details are retrievable by the thief. Be certain to take appropriate safeguards if you use an electronic diary.

Most computer shops will be able to recommend a variety of software planners for your home computer. These programs have all the functions of the electronic diaries and many more. You do have to spend some time keying in the data, but you will benefit in the future. Talk with any friends who are familiar with various personal planner programs and ask their advice. Visit your local software shop and see the programs in action. Once you have decided upon a time planner and personal organiser, read the user’s manual and then key in the relevant information straight away. You will save heaps of time and energy and your results may well improve as well.

ORGANISING YOUR DAYS, EACH DAY

Whether you use electronic gear or pen and paper, you need to organise today and tomorrow—very critical periods of time! By making these days efficient and effective, you establish a success path for the rest of the week and further on.

The most important planning goals for any student are mapping out times to prepare for all mark-earning activities. Plan your days and weeks so that you have plenty of preparation time for your assessments. You will also need to budget for reading, research, note-taking and oth...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication Page
• Contents
• Preface
• Part I—Preparation for exams
• Part II—Performing in your exams
• Appendix