PSLE. O levels or N levels. A levels or IB. Not to mention End-of-Year exams and streaming. It is inevitable for students to encounter exams throughout the education journey.
Not surprisingly, very few students will be excited for the challenge while most should be dreading it. We know it. It is VERY stressful especially when the results of these exams will impact the opportunities for the next few years. In the face of stress, some cope better while others choose to avoid and suddenly, months fly by and all’s done deal. Time is limited so the very first thing to do is to STOP wasting time and energy on the wrong things!
Having taught in Secondary Schools for more than 4 years and tutoring for more than 10 years, I have witnessed the different struggles faced by many students. In this post, I hope to share some tips which I think are CRITICALLY important for you if you desire to perform your best for examinations.
Ready? Let’s go!
1. LEARN instead of STUDY
Wait… You mean there is a difference between learning and studying?! You bet.
To understand these terms better, studying focuses primarily on the act which students engage in. It often involves reading, writing notes, doing practices, drawing concept maps. Learning, on the other hand, focuses on meaning-making. This involves an effortful use of mental capacities to engage, make sense and assimilate information into one’s knowledge pool.
It is clear that one can study very hard and learn nothing (or the wrong things).
The unfortunate thing is that we seldom emphasise or teach in our curriculum how to learn. As students, they are taught the importance of studying hard and smart, but what’s lacking is the know-how on the way to go about it. Here at LEARND.online, we are partnering with educators to create more resources to support our learners in this aspect. So stay tuned!
In the meantime, bear in mind to focus on the LEARNINGs (i.e. what you gain from your efforts) rather than studying (i.e. how long or how hard or even how you are studying). In this case, the process matters less than the product.
2. CONSISTENCY is key
Are you aware that our memory can “decay”?
Much like any organic matter, information that is assimilated into the brain does not last forever. Or at least not immediately. You have probably heard of short and long-term memory. It is a no-brainer that we want what we have learnt to be stored in the long-term memory but how would our brain be able to discern where information should be stored?
I think this is entirely based on impression. But… Aren’t impressions vague and subjective? Yes, that is definitely true.
What are some examples of impressionable information? These include positive experiences which you appreciate (e.g. food that reminds you of childhood, a song that you fancy, a touching movie) and interestingly, negative memories (e.g. traumatic experiences, embarrassing moments). We do not need to make any deliberate effort to remember these experiences, do we?
While this provides “some” justification for disciplinary actions in the name of education, it is not a very useful means of self-help in the preparation for exams. So I would like to share with you a 100% effective “hack” to impress your brain that the content that you are learning is deserving of long-term memory space.
That would be increasing the frequency of exposure to the information that you wish to remember. Think about it, the reason why you can remember the lyrics of your favourite song or the lines of your favourite show is not merely because you enjoy it. A huge part of this is also due to the fact that you are listening/watching it on loop! When constantly exposed to a specific set of information, the brain is signalled to remember it as important. And when that happens, amazing things occur! You start to compose tunes/chants out of formulae/constants (does anyone still memorise mobile numbers?), invent mnemonics (TOH CAH SOH for trigonometry anyone?), create memory palaces to “store information”, take on imaginary tours through time and space to replay history or explore the impossible.
In summary, make it a point to constantly expose yourself to information that you want to remember. In simpler terms, be consistent and do your revisions regularly. Riding on the first tip, revision does NOT have to involve strapping yourself to your chair and rewriting notes for 2 whole hours. You can revise on your way home from school by simply recalling what is taught in each lesson of the day! Repeat this at the end of the week to check in on what was taught versus what you have learnt for that week.
Remember that understanding the content does not guarantee that you will remember this content.
3. Seek the TIPS
There are multiple ways to get from one point to another. But it is always easier to take a tested path created by those who have walked it before you. While effective, one of the most inefficient strategies that I see my students use in revision is the writing of notes. Not only is it time-consuming, note-writing only allows the students to interact with the content. This does not improve your ability to apply the concepts or present your answers. Furthermore, many students fall into the need to keep the notes flawlessly beautiful with multicoloured ink, professional calligraphy and even mesmerising doodles. The output is a masterpiece which I feel is at a publishable grade (if you are such an artist, please share your work at LEARND.online so that others can benefit from your hard work). Yet, the expense would be time and energy.
Instead, a better use of time would be to, as suggested in Tip #1 again, interact with the content and make meaning out of them. Focus on organising the information instead of documenting them in your own style. Seek out examples of how others make sense of these content. When reading notes/guides/textbooks, pay extra attention to the way the information is presented and connected. It is also common for some strategies to not work or resonate with you. Fret not! Seek more resources! It is likely that you would not be the only person struggling with the concept/content. Simply ask your teachers, seniors or the web. Browse learning resources such as guidebooks, websites or videos which are readily available online (download FREE guides on LEARND.online)!
Keep your mind alert for tips and tricks that your teacher or learning resources share when it comes to approaching a concept or way to memorise challenging content. You would be surprised by how much these little tips and tricks can make learning more manageable and enjoyable.
More Hacks?
I think 3 is a good number and to be honest, there are A LOT of changes that need to be made with just these 3 tips. Many of which are fundamental approaches towards learning that you will most likely find very challenging to change. Nevertheless, I encourage you to invest ALL your effort to make these changes happen. When done successfully, every unit of effort that you spend on learning will yield you more progress than ever. If you find these suggestions useful, share them with your buddies. Consider subscribing to us at LEARND.online as we try to build a community of learners and educators and make education more accessible and sustainable.
As your buddy on your education journey, we wish you every successful and we will see you around!