Short messages on Education from Respect Yourself, the guidance site for young people to help make good decisions in life.
You’ll study better if you take care of yourself. Make sure you eat well and get enough sleep and physical exercise. Don’t reward yourself with too many sugary or fatty snacks or push yourself to study late into the night, and make sure you drink plenty of water.
It doesn’t matter where you study as long as the space is quiet, comfortable and distraction-free. Wherever you choose to study, put up motivating quotes, pictures, or anything else that makes you feel good.
When you invest in yourself, you can never lose, and over time you will change the path of your life. The more time, energy and money you spend learning things important to you, the more control you have over your life.
If travelling to a different country, learn the culture before you go – especially the do’s and don’ts. Behaviour that is acceptable in this country may get you into real trouble in another.
If you didn’t do as well on a mock or practice exam as you would’ve liked, ask your teacher to go through it with you and find out where you can improve.
In some exams you can choose which question to do. Look at the language carefully, so you know how to give a complete answer, then pick one that allows you to show what you know.
Aim to spend 5-10 minutes at the end of an exam checking over your work, to see if you can pick up extra marks.
You can go over your notes the night before and on the day of your exam, as long as it’s not the only revision you do. Sometimes it’s less stressful to sit and quietly focus your thoughts before an exam instead of trying to cram in extra information.
Give yourself a few minutes to think about your essay question and plan the points you want to make. It doesn’t have to be long – a few bullet points will do.
Create your own personal exam kit: extra pens, scrap paper, water, snacks, a watch to keep track of time, comfortable clothes, and any books or special aids.