Exams: Making the last days count!

Glen Dhliwayo Cool Feature
Schools are now characterised by an ambience of seriousness that in itself depicts an Exams Ahead Traffic sign in the academic highway.
Most are driving with both caution and anxiety as they know the journey is about to end but they are unsure of what awaits them at the destiny. No need to press panic buttons when we are here to help you navigate and negotiate the remaining stretch of the road.

We have taken serious care in compiling these tips that will not only make sure that you are mentally geared for the final examinations when you arrive on that not so distant day, but these tips will also help you maximise on the few days left as time keeps plodding on to the commencing of the levelling process for the exam classes.

Just like the proverbial cow that gets fattened on the market so that it fetches a better price, you too will enhance your performance if you manage to make use of some of the tips as they are picked from reliable methods that have been tested and yielded a positive result for many students.

1. Do not Panic
This cannot be stressed enough. You cannot adequately prepare for exams if you have a wrong mind-set towards them. Do not press your panic buttons as yet. There is still enough time to convert those undesired, unwanted, ungraded grades (U symbols) on your midyear reports if you work at it. Put on a positive, it can be done, attitude and see if you will not transform your grades. Many have done this before you.

2. Analyse your performance
It is important to analyse your performance this far so you see and evaluate yourself. This analysis should be very honest and with the goal of helping you bring out the best results possible in this exam season. In your analysis look out for the following signposts; your weakest subjects, your strongest subjects, subjects that excite you, subjects that do not interest you at all. Why go through this short but meticulous process? So that you can come up with an overall strategy that will see you faring well in your finals. Get a parent, teacher or a trusted advisor to help you through this process.

3. Come up with an Exam
Preparation  Strategy
Once you have concluded your analysis you will be able to map a winning strategy that is aimed at seeing you achieving your goal. Remember your overall goal should be to get out the best possible results that you can. The first thing you need to do is to set targets for yourself.

After analysis you will be able to realistically ascertain what you are capable of doing and how you will do it. Your strategy will include how you are going to spread out and allocate your time to your subjects and all this should be reliably informed by your analysis.
In your analysis you might realise that there are maybe one or a few subjects that need priority attention and this will be reflected in your strategy.

4. Set Small targets and Goals for yourself.
This is part of your examination strategy. In order to achieve the greater goal you will need to set small goals that feed into the greater goals. The small goals should facilitate the attainment of the greater goal.

In order for this to be effective. Set these goals to the smallest unit possible, for example break them down into weekly, daily and session goals. An illustration could be deciding that you want to revise ten chapters a week, two a day, and one per session of that subject you have.
Once you do that it will be important to make sure that you achieve this.

5. Find ways to motivate yourself
Various people are motivated by various and different things. Some are motivated by pictures of a greater future to come. It is important to know what motivates and inspires you. For some it is that desire to explore a certain career path that will motivate you to keep pushing, for others it might be the consuming desire to make your parents proud that will make you go the extra mile.

A certain man talks of how he was inspired by his desire to own a Mercedes- Benz that he put the picture of the car on his desk when he was studying for his masters degree. You find out that thing that makes you tick and keep reminders around so that you are also motivated.
There are also immediate motivation methods like playing music at the background or eating snacks while studying. Whatever environment that works for you, create it.

These tips will help you make your exam season a success if you apply them. Look out for more tips and exam advice as we help you achieve your dreams.

Till next week, God bless you all.

Ciao . . .

The writer is a motivational teacher
He can be contacted on [email protected]