Session 8 Exam techniques Study Methods Session 8 Exam techniques

Gaining marks The mark you obtain in an exam is a reflection of two main things that are in your control: 1. The amount of revision that you have completed. 2. Your exam technique.

Exam techniques What are exam techniques? Exam techniques are the skills that a student implements during an exam that help to maximise their mark. Even if a student has an excellent amount of knowledge on a subject, failure to adopt appropriate exam techniques can result in a disappointing mark.

Time allocation The most important exam technique is time allocation. Many students that run out of time in an exam and do not finish have either; not catered for enough time for each section of the exam, or they have not spent enough time on particular sections of the exam paper. Both of these mistakes can mean you lose a lot of marks.

Strategies If exams have a cover sheet with suggested times, then USE THAT AS A GUIDE!!! Be time-effective, try and complete easier parts of the exam (i.e. Multi-choice sections) faster than the time suggested, this will give you more time for longer sections like written responses. Quickly check the time after every few questions to make sure you are not spending too much time on certain questions.

Strategies Marks will be lost if students do not work within time constraints. During the exam, keep a close eye on the clock-better still, bring your watch with you and place it on the desk. Be disciplined!

Multiple choice Out of the three types of questions asked in an exam, multiple choice questions are probably the hardest questions to predict and study for. These questions require a thorough understanding of all the information that you have been asked to study. Be careful with the wording of the question. Even top students have to read over the questions at least 2 or 3 times. Look out for questions that contain words like “NOT” and “INCORRECT” so that you don’t make the mistake of answering the opposite to what the question is asking for.

Multiple choice When answering multiple choice: Eliminate or cross off the irrelevant options to narrow down your choice. If you are unsure with the answer, put an asterisk next to the question number and come back to it once you have finished the multiple choice section, or after you’ve completed the rest of the paper.

Multiple choice Never rush multiple choice! If you have studied well and are confident with your answers then this section will be an opportunity for you to have a head start and spend a little more time on the written tasks. Don’t Forget! NEVER EVER EVER LEAVE A MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTION BLANK!!! Even if you have no idea which option is correct choose one because there is a chance you could guess it right and earn an extra mark. It doesn’t hurt to guess one question but it will hurt if you fail by one or two marks!

Short answers Look at content in the multiple-choice section to help with short-answers. Before you start revising for the exam (weeks in advance), make sure you know how long each teacher expects the short answers to be. This will determine how long your practice questions and answers should be when you revise at home. Match revision to exam conditions. Work out how long you can spend on each question. If answers are to the point and accurate, you will often get a better mark than if you write huge amounts of text that does not relate. But nevertheless, always make sure you write enough.

Short answers Again, Read over the question many times!!! Students often confuse sections and provide an incorrect response. Do not mix up causes with impacts, or give three points when the question asked for four. Make sure you address each question in your answer properly and ANSWER THE ACTUAL QUESTION! THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!

Short answers IMPORTANT Answer the question. Have an adequate depth of theory and general arguments. Provide examples. Have statistics, dates, etc., Use appropriate terminology. Be descriptive, and if appropriate, show some reflective ideas.

Essays Always give adequate time for the essay! (s). Effective revision will take the surprise out of essay questions as you will be able to identify the information that the essay will be constructed from. Quality essays should include theory, examples, statistics, dates, terminology quotes and even diagrams (if asked for) Check with the teacher if diagrams are appropriate for the subject. Concept maps could apply to almost any essay.

Essays Jot down the main ideas in point-form on the question booklet before writing the essay. There should be points for an introduction, body and conclusion. These ideas next to the question help to structure the paragraphs for the essay otherwise time will be wasted trying to think of what to write for each paragraph. Aim for quality AND quantity. It is best to jot your essay plan down as soon as the exam starts.

Reading Time Before any exam that you ever sit in your life you will be given Reading Time. The point of Reading time is to allow students to READ through the exam paper. Why? If there is a multi-choice/short answer section that applies to a reading or passage then students can read it before the exam has started. This allows you to get straight into answering the questions when the time starts instead of wasting precious time doing the readings.

Reading Time So Remember! When you sit down in Reading Time open your exam up and READ all the passages and questions that you will need to answer in the exam, it will save you time. Also, read your Essay (Extended-written-response) questions too, this way you can start thinking of the essay points that you want to write about in your response. Jot down a small essay plan before you start the rest of the exam so that you don’t lose your ideas.

Conclusion All the topics covered during this course are extremely important to your study technique and academic success. If you make sure that you are on top of all these study aspects then you will succeed as a student and make the most out of your studies and education. All the best for the future!

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