How To Prepare For an Upcoming Exam

Sometimes exams can be scary especially when we think of them often. If you are in that tight corner; scared and bothered if you will nail your upcoming exam, then this article will teach you how to prepare for an upcoming exam, perfectly.

Many people beat up themselves until their mind goes into shock because of how much fear they have for an upcoming exam. The truth is, that exams can be scary, especially if it is a final exam or one to certify you. But if you prepare enough for it, you can always come out with flying colors.

So, how can you prepare for an upcoming exam? Keep reading to find out — and more.

10 Ways to prepare for an upcoming exam

1.    Make time to study

If you plan on acing your exam then you need to make time to study. Some students would say that they do very well at studying at the last minute before an exam. As confident as that sounds, you could fail the exam if you have a huge book to cover.

We strongly advise you not to leave studying until the last minute. Studying at the last minute will not give you time to fully grasp what you read. Instead, you will only find yourself cramming words and passages rather than fully understanding the topic.

To make time to study, you need to draw a timetable for yourself. On the timetable, list out how many subjects you have to study, allocate reading time and break time, and finally, stick to it.

2.    Have an organized space

Creating and keeping an organized space is one way to prepare for an exam. Arrange your reading table or any space you study, and line up your books according to how you would want to read them or take breaks from them.

Set your reading lamp and get your rough papers to practice answering some questions. Make sure your table is not too high and your chair makes you comfortable. If you are going to be studying at night, charge your lamp beforehand and avoid reading with a dim light.

You should strive to be comfortable when you study. If playing calming music in the background or shutting off even the slightest sound will get you to study effectively, then you should organize your space accordingly.

3.    Use visual aids

Not everyone can study and understand words. Not that they are incapacitated but it happens to not stick to them till the exam day. If you are in that shoe, using visual aids can help you remember more often.

Using diagrams and flow charts to summarize studies can help students remember during exams. I guess this is where the saying goes, A picture is worth a thousand words. A picture has a way of conveying complex words and ideologies about a thing. You can add them to your study armor.

To make your flow charts and other helpful diagrams, summarize what you have read, write it out on a piece of paper and think of what image best describes your summary. It must not be a perfect image, it could be a simple funny sketch of an animal, an object, or a flowchart.

The most important thing is that when you draw an image on a piece of paper during an exam, you will be able to remember what you have studied.

4.    Practice with past question papers

One good way to prepare for an upcoming exam is to practice with past questions. Most exam boards always tend to repeat their questions or slightly change their pattern. But it is still going to look similar.

Practicing past questions will help you know what you might be facing during your exams. It can give you a clue of what to expect; if the questions will be tough or a lot easier than you expected. Also, past questions can be a reading guide to what topics you must read. But it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t cover all the topics if you have the chance.

You can get past questions from blogs focused on the education niche, bookstores, or cybercafés. You can borrow past exam question sheets from senior students who have written the exam, or buy them — it is worth the money. If you are faced with a computer-based exam, check on the internet for the exam simulation or visit a cybercafé that offers a test exam.

5.    Have someone you can explain your answer to

After studying for long hours, to be sure you have fully grasped what the topic is all about, you can have someone to whom you explain your answers. You can have your sibling, friend, or parent ask you some questions on the topic and you try your best to tell them the correct answer.

It would be a plus to have someone knowledgeable about the topic of discussion. This way, they can help you explain your answer more simply and realistically rather than with a stiffened and unnatural tone.

It is not necessary that the person need to be physically present with you. You can set up an oral interview over a voice chat or video chat on social or use messaging apps to exchange texts. The important thing is that you have some who you can explain your answers to.

6.    Join or organize a study group

Study groups can motivate and challenge you to study more. If the members of the study group are studying different subjects, it can be distracting and less motivating since members are not on the same page.

To have motivated members in a study group, members have to be studying the same subject at the same time. Members also have to take turns in asking and answering questions and setting up quizzes to challenge each other and make studying fun instead of hard work.

If you can’t find a study group to join or see anyone that interests you, you can start up yours. Reach out to students you think might be serious about studying and are a good influence. Go on to set your study dates and time, draw a timetable, and schedule your study program.

7.    Take breaks

The saying, All work, and no play make Jack a dull boy, has been always been used to describe the fact that all time work will never give you a balanced life. In simple words, the reason why you need to take breaks when studying is that you need to give your brain some breathing space to assimilate what you have stored in it.

Remember that we are human beings and can get tired at some point. Overtasking the brain could make things worse; you could read for super long hours and be able to understand or remember only a few lines.

It is healthy to take breaks. So, when studying, plan how many hours you are going to study and how many minutes you would take for your break. During your break, you could take a stroll, watch a short episode of a movie, play a game, have a fun discussion, etc. In all, try not to put your brain under the stress by subjecting it to logical reasoning, arithmetic, or reading during your break time.

8.    Eat healthy foods when reading

Your brain takes a toll on your body’s energy when it is performing tasks. You can think of it as a computer processor demanding power from the other parts of the computer system when running heavy software packages like games, graphic studios, and programming applications.

If your brain is not getting enough resources that it requires, it might get exhausted quickly, or fail to remember stuff you have read. To help your brain perform optimally, it is ideal you reach for foods that will supply you with important nutrients that you need at that moment.

Some people like chewing on something crunchy like cookies and baked peanuts when reading. As yummy as that could look, it just happen to not be the best consumables at that moment. You should reach for fruits like berries, citruses, bananas, apples, and bananas are recommendable brain foods. If you would like something crunchy, then you can try nuts. And don’t forget water.

9.    Reward yourself

Not everyone can focus on reading for even ten minutes without giving in to distractions. If you are that person, it is time to try a different approach. Rewarding yourself after achieving reading a topic can be an effective way to motivate yourself to read more.

You can try sticking candies or cookies inbetween your books so that when you have read up to that page, you can reward yourself for your efforts. If you are on a diet, you can reward yourself with something else that seems pleasurable.

Well, it’s one thing to say and it’s another to do. To get this trick up and running, you need to stick to it. Try not to take a break or take your reward when you did not plan to. Be disciplined and give it time, you will adjust.

10.Plan for your upcoming exam

After studying, you need to plan for your upcoming exam. Write down the materials you will be needing for the exam. If you will be writing exams on a sheet of paper, you might want to go along with more than one pen, pencil, eraser, and an extra sheet of paper for your rough work (if the regulators allow it).

If the exam is a computer-based test, you don’t need to go along with any materials except you are given a tag, gate pass, or ID card to show that you are for the exam. Among all, you have to show up on time to make it to the exam before it starts.

Planning for your upcoming exam can also imply you ironing your clothes, polishing your shoes, and styling your hair modestly. You are going to be writing an exam and not appear tattered and unorganized.

Conclusion

Preparing for an upcoming exam is necessary if you want to make good scores. Studying at the last minute will not do you any favors. Planning and studying early will help you cover a lot of topics and give you time to fully understand the topic.

Reference

• https://greatist.com/eat/brain-food-for-studying
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5256450/
• https://speedyprep.com/7-benefits-of-study-groups/
• https://www.bookwidgets.com/blog/2017/01/using-reward-systems-to-motivate-students
• https://www.ucl.ac.uk/students/news/2020/feb/5-benefits-taking-breaks

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