Revision Technique
How does highlighting help?
Highlighting is a great revision aid because it lets the information that you need to know spring out of the page, so you got it immediately. You don't need to read a full page of information to get what you're looking for. If all the important information is highlighted in some sort of way, it will be very helpful for your revision.
How do past exam papers help?
Past papers make revising like being an athlete. You don't just train; you've got to run the race. Sometimes, athletes don't do well in training, but they come out on the evening and something makes a difference, and they come to the occasion and they win. That's what you're doing in examinations. You're training for 2 years to sit for an examination, and it would be a falsehood if you didn't actually run the race or sit the examination, so it's crucial that you get used to sitting down and doing it to the appropriate time given in an examination hall under the examination conditions as closely as possible. The more examination papers you do, the better prepared you will be for sitting at an examination.
I have to answer a certain number of questions in my exam, should I revise just a few topics or all of them?
You mean, should I try and guess what the questions are going to be beforehand? That's a false way of going ahead. You might be lucky. There is a certain amount of information that's going to be asked and you can get that from the syllabus book. It'll tell you what the weightings are for different topics so you'll know that there are particular topics coming up, and if you've looked at past examination papers you might feel that you can guess what the questions are going to be. However, there are many students that fail the examinations because the examiner hasn't been thinking along the same lines as the student has, and they haven't guessed the right questions. The thing to do is to prepare yourself as well as you possibly can for the examination. If 50% of the examination is about writing essays then make sure you write a lot of essays, because you know 50% of the paper is going to deal with that.
Should I use different revision techniques?
Use the revision technique that works for yourself. There are many techniques that can be used but there's not any simple answer that will work for everyone. Try different ones if you find you're not being successful. I think one of the most important ones is what I call the ten minute rule. A lot of youngsters spend four hours in their room with the intention of working and perhaps only do ten minutes in that time. Some of them get so desperate that they even tidy up their room to avoid studying. Instead of doing that, go to your room for ten minutes and work for ten minutes. Don't do anything else. Don't phone friends or do anything at all. Then, have a break for ten minutes, and then go back for another ten minutes. Gradually build up the working periods into 20, 30, or 40 minute periods and keep the breaks to ten minutes. The important thing is that when you're working, you're working, and when you're relaxing, you're relaxing, and the two don't mix. I think that's the best revision technique that I can pass on to anybody.
Is cramming a good idea?
In general, I would say that cramming is not a good idea. I have to confess, I once tried it myself and stayed up all night, and it didn't work for me. I don't think cramming will work for other people unless they are very, very lucky. Much of the information I give in revision tips comes from my own experience and the experience of other colleagues. I wouldn't advise cramming. Everybody advises against it. If you cram you are beginning to get desperate for some reason. It's better to have a proper revision plan and make sure you carry that out.
When should I stop revising for an exam?
Really the night before the examination is the best advice. The degree of revision of course will be less tense near the examination because you will have done the bulk of the revision by that time assuming that you are not going to try to cram information in. So you should be looking at your notes and if you want to, at school at the morning of the examination, be thinking about one or two things, maybe about the examination or some various other things and be thinking about other things of course, be thinking beyond the examination but not putting too much stress on yourself. But the real work of the examination comes into the early part of the course when you start your real program of studying.
