It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas and for many young people, this can cause the onset of exam stress and anxiety. While the rest of the world seems busy decorating trees and doing Christmas shopping, it can be lonely and stressful trying to study for Christmas exams.
It goes without saying but the importance of taking time to unwind is critical during exam period. Perhaps a good idea might be to make a blanket rule of always switching off from exam preparations at a specific time every night. Taking time before you go to sleep will ensure you get a good night’s sleep and knowing that an hour of Netflix in the evening is awaiting you makes it a small bit easier to refrain from logging on during the day! Getting a good night’s sleep ensures that not only do we have loads of energy for tackling exams but the act of sleep itself helps to consolidate information we learn throughout the day. Cut yourself some slack from the books and think of a good night’s sleep as a form of studying.
When it comes to studying, there are a lot of myths out there about how best to utilise the limited time you have. First off, there is very little evidence to suggest that someone is a ‘visual learner’ or an ‘auditory learner’. Sure, we might have preferences for one over the other but a mixture of learning methods produces the best results. That means that rather than only drawing mind maps on certain topics, you could try explaining the topic aloud to yourself or reading material online.
Also, something that students tend to dwell on in their study patterns is that of taking in the information but what’s being overlooked is practising getting that information back out. Testing yourself using questions from text books or past exam papers practises retrieving the information you’ve learned and getting it down on paper, which is exactly what a test is!
A barrier a lot of students face when it comes to sitting down to study is avoiding social media. One solution may be to turn your phone off but more often than not, you’ll come back to it during a five-minute break and inevitably that five minute break turns into a ten, fifteen, maybe even a twenty-minute break. How about using social media to your advantage? There are so many YouTube tutorials online that guide you through different concepts that could aid your understanding and improve the quality and enjoyment of your study sessions. There are also loads of online quizzes you can take on various topics to test yourself and your knowledge. Not only are you practising getting the knowledge back out, any gaps in your knowledge get highlighted and it gives you more of a focus of what you need to do.
Sitting in an exam hall can be nerve wrecking. The silence is sometimes overwhelming and no matter what the other students know or do not know, they will always seem to be much busier than you are. Take one question that comes your way at a time. If a question in presented to you and you haven’t the foggiest notion what the answer might be, skip it and come back to it once you have answered everything else you can answer. It only makes sense to use your time as economically as possible. Getting as many marks as you can means getting as much relevant information you know down on the paper in the given time.
Don’t forget to breathe. Our breath is so powerful and it can send a message to our body about what we want it to do. When we get nervous, we tend to take short breaths into our chest. In order to relax, we can do two simple things. Firstly, direct each inhalation to your stomach and secondly, try to make each exhalation last longer than the inhalation. In other words, breathe in to your tummy for three counts and exhale for four counts. This sends a message to your body to relax and when you are relaxed, your mind is clear enough for you to tackle the exam head on.
Remember, they are only exams and it will be Christmas before you know it! Best of luck!
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