5 Tips To Exam Success

Ever step into an examination hall not knowing what to expect, feeling so unprepared or whatever you've studied throughout the night seems to have gone missing all of a sudden? Fret not, with these 5 simple exam tips; it will arm you with the right strategies and mentality to enter the examination hall filled with confidence and ready to take on the challenge.
I strongly believe that there is no such thing as pure luck in examination and the only way we can do well is to be prepared. So what I'm about the share with you are tips that will enable you to empower yourself in preparations for the exam.

Tip 1 - Create a study schedule. Well, this may sound like a no brainer, sadly, not everyone is doing it. The key in creating a study schedule is so as to give priority to subjects that you are slightly weaker in so that you can practice the questions more. You should also never be complacent with subjects that you are confident or less worried about, allocate a period especially for them. A well prepared study schedule also allows you to have a work life balance, and more importantly helping you to understand the subject you're studying better.

Tip 2 - Use a mind map. Mind maps are very powerful tool which many refuse to believe or have yet to experience. Mind maps allow you to summarize the whole chapter or subject within a single sheet of paper. Would you rather be flipping through pages after pages of long textbooks essays or have the whole textbook sized down to 10 A4 pages? I would definitely choose the latter. Drawing mind maps enables you to digest the key concepts in the chapter and helps in linking up ideas or procedures, depending on the subject you're on. This method not only helps in saving time, but more importantly to allow you to understand it quickly when you browse through your own mind maps, for you are none the wiser.

Tip 3 - Study beforehand. Many people that I've came across are very skeptical and complacent when it comes to studying before the lecturer or professor teaches. Common replies are, "He's going to teach tomorrow, why start earlier?" or "I wouldn't have understood anything if I studied on my own." These are common excuses and I can always counter that by saying, "if you don't understand it, will it make a difference when the lecturer is teaching you the same thing you were going to read?" The importance in studying beforehand is so as to give you a general idea on what is about to be taught, to grasp the concept with the help of a mind map. By not reading up, you are equally clueless when then lecturer is going through the lesson. Remember, prior knowledge always help in your understanding.

Tip 4 - Make a list of questions. Always jot down on a separate note pad should you have any questions when going through your own revision, this is important as it serves as a constant reminder that these are the burning questions that you have to get answers to. By listing questions, you commit yourself into doing whatever it takes to get those answers you desire. You should never highlight questions on your textbook as it will confuse you when you've understood them already.

Tip 5 - Stay committed and share. The above tips can only be useful if you are committed to do them every single day. Creating a study schedule can be easy, but I cannot say the same for being committed to it. We all know how powerful distractions like Facebook, YouTube or 9gag can be. Hence, to want to do well, we must always maintain focus at our end state and vision how we want to enjoy our academic success. Now sharing, by helping fellow mates should they have any questions, allows you to realize that you might have left out some important concepts. I strongly believe that by teaching, we are learning at the same time too.

Now, these 5 empowering tips as mentioned earlier are meant to help you prepare for an examination and not to be used as a last minute guide. When you have painstakingly committed yourself to the above strategies, I can assure you that you will be well prepared for any paper you are about to take. Motivate yourself to make the best out of the limited time we all have and not fall into the temptations of Facebook, etc. With that, I wish you all the best in your academic success.

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Improve Your Exam Success

Most people dislike exams and could use a few exam tips to help them achieve better exam success. Almost everyone these days has to take exams. Whether we agree with it or not our society places so much emphasis on the importance of exams. And yet, despite this, many people have never really been told about how to pass exams and achieve exam success. After marking thousands of exam papers I've come realise how few people really know how achieve their true potential exam success.

Most peoples experience of exam tips probably extends to having been told to work hard so that they will remember a whole bunch of stuff on exam day. In itself that advice is not terribly useful. It doesn't tell you how you're going to rememer that stuff, or what steps you need to take to ensure you are well prepared when it comes to exam time. How can you ever reach your true potential exam success if you don't know how to revise effectively, how to prepare yourself, or what approach to take to your exam paper on exam day?
I've seen education both as a student, a university teacher and an examiner. A few years ago, and ten years after completing my formal education, I did a part-time course in mathematics, and then later another in animal behaviour. At the time I was working full-time, so studying was confined to evenings and weekends. It was only then that I really discovered and appreciated the importance of study and exam technique. By following some simple guidelines I completed the courses and gained distinctions. If only I'd knew about these techniques the first time round. If only all students could follow the guidelines.
If you are serious about achieveing exam success you need to find out about exam and revision technique well in advance of any exams. Here are a few exam tips about some revision techniques, to get you started, and thinking about how to achieve exam success:
Try to compile revision summaries throughout the course, not just at the end of it.
Don't confuse making a neat copy of your notes with revision. Such an exercise is likely to takes lots of time and you may well still have little idea of what's in your notes when you've completed it! You'll remember things better if you understand them. To make revision summaries divide each subject into topics and list the headings under each topic. In this way you'll be creating an index of what needs revising as well as dividing your revision into easy to manage sections. Make revision notes of the key points for each heading. Use lesson summaries to guide you, if these were provided.
Condense your notes by creating a list of headings with keywords for each point, selecting the most important points. You might want to make your revision notes as a series of summary cards.
Some people remember better if they visualize what they are memorizing. If that's you then make visually memorable notes: use colour, diagrams and mind maps, for example. You might even consider putting up posters of key information around your home.
Note down each topic on your revision plan, to ensure that everything's allotted revision time.
Try to answer practice questions using only your revision notes. If you can't then modify your notes. When you're happy that you can answer questions from your notes revise from these.Eventually you should try and answer questions without the aid of your notes.
At least once you should simulate an exam situation with 'a set and timed examination paper'. The paper should be as near to the true exam format as possible. The easiest way to ensure this is so is to use a past exam or sample paper. This "mock" exam will not only test how much you know but also get you more used to the "exam atmosphere", helping to reduce your anxiety about the "real thing".
Evaluate answers by checking them against your notes. Re-revise this information.
To learn much more about how to pass exams and exam success I strongly recommend following this comprehensive exam guide. It is being offered at an introductory price of only $3: for exam help that might help you shape the rest of your future that really can't be bad! The guide includes advice on how to get prepared during your course, when to start revising, how use notes to revise, how to prepare for oral and practical exams, how to prepare for your exam day, tackle the exam paper on the day, and what to do afterwards.
Whatever you're studying this guide can help you maximize your chances of exam success. Let an experienced teacher and examiner give you more exam tips and adopt appropriate revision and exam techniques. You too should be given the chance to have exam success!

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