Online Reporter
SCHOOLS are opening their doors once again and for boarders, Monday marks the beginning of another important chapter in the academic year.
By Tuesday, it is back to business for everyone. This is not the time to ease into the term slowly or wait for the pressure of examinations to force students into action. It is time to start working hard from day one.
For Grade 7, Form 4 and Form 6 learners, this is an examination term. The results they obtain will have a significant bearing on their next stage of education and their future opportunities. The message, therefore, is simple: start serious revision now. Do not wait until examinations are around the corner to begin preparing.
There are no shortcuts to success. Examinations are passed through consistent reading, understanding, practising, revising and correcting mistakes. A learner who spends the term waiting for a miracle is likely to be dis-appointed. Success is a process and that process is gradual. Small efforts made every day eventually produce significant results.
As learners return to school, they must also make deliberate decisions about the distractions they allow into their lives. Relationships, drinking, smoking and other behaviours that take attention away from school work can easily derail academic progress.
This is the season to put such distractions aside and focus on the goal: good points, good grades and a successful academic future.
Learners who are not writing examinations this year should not become complacent. They should work hard knowing that this time next year, their own examinations will be waiting for them. The habits they develop now will determine how prepared they will be when their examination year arrives. The best time to build a strong academic foundation is today, not tomorrow.
Every learner should begin the term by identifying his or her weaknesses. Which subjects are difficult? Which topics are not well understood? Which areas are producing poor marks? Once these weaknesses are identified, learners should seek help. Teachers are there to guide them, while fellow students can also provide valuable support through discussion and collaborative learning.
Remedial work must become part of every serious learner’s routine. Difficult concepts should be revisited until they are understood. Corrections must be written and studied rather than simply completed and forgotten. Mistakes are opportunities to learn and a learner who studies corrections carefully can avoid repeating the same errors in examinations.
Attendance is equally important. Learners should attend all lessons, participate actively and make the most of the time their teachers give them. Missing lessons creates gaps, and gaps eventually become weaknesses. Every lesson counts, particularly in an examination term.
Parents, teachers and school authorities also have a role to play. Learners need encouragement, accountability and a supportive environment that keeps them focused on their academic goals.
However, the learner must ultimately take responsibility for his or her own success.
As the new term begins, let every learner make a personal commitment: I will start now. I will read.
I will revise. I will ask for help when I do not understand. I will attend my lessons. I will do my remedial work. I will write my corrections. I will avoid distractions. I will work consistently.
The examination journey is not won in the final week. It is won through the discipline of the days and months that come before the examination. There is no need to wait for tomorrow. Tomorrow’s success begins with what you do today. Start strong, stay focused and finish strong.
Dr Manners Msongelwa is an author, educationist and youth coach.
