We understand that waiting to find out your exam results can be an extremely nerve-wracking experience. It is important to know that feeling some kind of stress is a completely natural reaction. But, if it becomes persistent, if it never gives you a moment’s peace, it is important to take action to stop those nerves from affecting your health and well-being.
Dr Hayley van Zwanenberg, a consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist at Priory Group has looked at ways you can reduce your stress to prevent it from affecting your physical and mental health. Some of her suggestions are as below.
It’s Good to Talk
There will always be someone you can talk to when you feel worried about your exam results or your future. Whether it is a parent, carer or friend, you should discuss your thoughts and emotions with them when you feel troubled. A parent might be able to help you challenge your worries by providing you with evidence that your thoughts are not a balanced view. For example, they will be able to reassure you about how much revision you did and how well you have performed in past exams.
You may want someone to lend an ear or distract you with a quick chat or offer of advice. By taking the time to access this emotional support, you have the opportunity to let off steam and is so doing prevent your feelings from boiling over. There are also supportive charities like Child Line and the Samaritans who can be contacted anonymously over the phone or through web chat.
Breathe Deeply
When you get anxious, your “fight or flight” response kicks in, where your body releases adrenaline and increases your heart rate. Breathing deeply can help your body to settle down to a more natural state. Imagine, then, blowing into a balloon: As you take a deep breath in, notice your stomach rising as you allow your lungs to take in the maximum amount of air. Then slowly breathe out imagining you are filling the balloon with air. Try and do this three times.
Keep Yourself Busy
Try and ensure you have structure and activities each day. For example, give yourself a project to complete over the summer, look at voluntary or part-time work, organise social activities with your friends and help out at home. If you keep yourself busy, you have less time to sit and dwell on your thoughts. You will also feel better about yourself as you have been able to achieve something.
Getting Good Quality Sleep
We understand that getting a good night’s sleep may seem impossible because of your nerves, but it is important to try your hardest to get into a good routine. Go to bed and wake up at similar times every day, and make your bedroom a relaxing space, with any screens turned off at least an hour before bedtime. Avoid caffeinated drinks in the hours before bedtime and try to fit in at least twenty minutes of exercise each day – but again, not too close to bedtime.
Form a Plan for Results Day
Think about all the possible outcomes on results day, and jot them down. Then, write a potential plan for each one. For example, if you were to get your expected grades, what happens; If you get lower than expected, what would your next steps be?
This can help you to recognise that there are options and a future for you, regardless of what happens. It can stop yourself from worrying about the unknown, because it means you have a plan for every scenario.
Tackle Your Negative Thoughts
It is easy to gravitate towards the worst case scenario when you’re feeling anxious. Do you believe you failed your exam spectacularly? Do you think you’re going to get terrible grades across the board? There are steps you can take to question and alter these thoughts:
Then, write down a healthier way of thinking about the situation. For example, instead of thinking that you’ve failed an exam, you may want to think, “I know it was tough, but I worked so hard that I know I tried it my best. I’m proud of the work I put in.”
Completing this activity at the end of every day will stop you from focusing on potential negative outcomes during this stressful time.
Getting Support
If your stress levels don’t seem to be getting any better, you should visit your GP. They will be able to provide you with the right support you may need at this time.
Getting-and staying-organised is certainly easier said than done. Many struggle to stick to their deadlines and maintain a structure to daily life, be it at work and studies or in general tasks. As a student, it’s a real hassle to have to attend school, study, and find an organisation system that works for you. Most students have no idea where to start from when it comes to keeping everything in order. There are, however, a few general tips to help you get started:
You should pay particular attention to the second part of this point: prioritise. Making a to-do list is the easiest thing when trying to be organised. You will most likely include both trivial and important tasks on it. The most important ones may also be the most time-consuming. Make sure that you tackle the significant tasks first as it is when you start with your list that you have more energy to pursue what is on it. If you deal with the minor items on your list first, in the hope of crossing them out and feeling good about yourself, I would suggest that you think long-term; the most important tasks will be there haunting you.
Have a study schedule. As a student, this should be your priority. A study schedule can help you prioritise and keep up with your homework and assignments. Make sure to include an estimate of the time each subject will take as well as its deadline. If you are unsure or simply want a second opinions, you can always consult your teacher.
Speaking of a study schedule, there is nothing more counterproductive than missing out on deadlines. Doing so may result in you not being able to keep up with the old and new material. Additionally, this will probably affect your grade and the whole point of a deadline is to prevent that from happening. So, make sure that you have all the deadlines for your assignments and try to prepare beforehand. Try not to leave anything for last minute.
This will greatly help you when you are considering how you want to divide your time. Beginning when you get the assignment leaves you room for more meticulous research and, once again, you won’t have to deal with stress or struggle with the idea that you could have done a better job.
Here comes the fun part! Spend some time creating a playlist that gets you motivated. Music is a great influence, so try to find the one that gets you psyched. Beware though, you should not spend more time creating a playlist than you would on your actual assignments.
Telling someone about your plans, your assignments, and how you are thinking of staying organised can help keep you accountable. Try telling that to a person who you know will be checking on you and is interested in your process.
What screams ‘job well done’ for you? Do that! Once you are done with all the items on your list, reward yourself with something that relaxes you and makes you happy. It could be an hour of video games, going out with your friends, or simply listening to your favourite music. Whatever it is, do not abuse it. Try to reward yourself only when you feel that you are truly done with your list. If, for example, you cross out one insignificant item and reward yourself, you will probably not fully enjoy it as there will be something weighing heavily on you. Make sure that you deserve that reward and work really hard for it.
How do you stay organised? Do you have any tips? If so, please share them with us!
Many of you who are doing exams this year will be revising or starting to think about revising. As a tutor, I am often asked, “What should I revise?” The answer is, unfortunately, everything that you have covered in the course. No one except the exam writers know what is going to be in the exams in any single year, so always make sure that you cover everything.
Barnaby Lenon, an ex-headmaster at Harrow, has recently written in a blog that GCSE students should revise their course at least three times. The same applies for A level students, but officially there is no magic number given as to how many times you should do so. Usually, however, it will be more than once. Some lucky people, the exceptions, can read something once and it will “go in”, but more will have to go through the course over and over again for it to sink it. We are all different, and this is the main point with revising – what works for one person will not work for another.
With all this in mind, there are some tips below. Remember, some will work for you, some won’t.
• Find a good place to work. Some of you will like quiet, others will like some noise. We all work best in certain places. Some students may like to work in a library, others in their room, others in a coffee shop. Find a place that works well for you and stick to it.
• What time works best for you? Some people work better early in the morning, others in the afternoon, others late at night. Again, stick to what works for you. If you are a night owl, it’s pointless to try and force yourself to get up early and study – it just won’t work as well. Use your strengths and find the best time to suit you.
• Avoid distractions. There are so many distractions today: mobile phones, television, emails and so on. It can make it hard to study. If you are reading this now but also looking at your social media feed on your phone, for example, it’s doubtful all you are reading will go in. So avoid such distractions if you can. Turn off your phone. Turn off your emails. If you find it hard to do this, give yourself a time limit, “I will revise for one hour, then spend five minutes looking at my phone.”
• With the above point also in mind, some students find it hard to sit down and study for long periods. Others prefer it. Again, you should do what suits you best. If you do find it hard to sit for long periods, give yourself a reward. One student I worked with played volleyball at national level. He found it very hard to sit down for long periods and study. Consequently he was doing hardly any revision. We came up with a plan. He would revise for 50 minutes, then go outside and play with a ball or go for a jog for ten minutes. Then he would revise for 50 minutes again and so on. This worked well for him. You may find a similar reward works for you, looking at your phone, going for a walk, making a cup of tea, watching TV, phoning a friend and so on. Decide on your time limit and give yourself a reward.
• Aim to study for no more than two and a half hours without taking a break. You are probably not revising as well as you would if you carry on revising after that time.
• Making and reading notes and using flashcards can all work well for some students. Others can make recordings of their notes and listen back to them when they are going for a walk or even when they are sleeping at night – Mind maps and memory palaces can also be useful when revising. Again, find a method that works well for you and stick to it.
• If you are reading something and it isn’t sinking in or you don’t understand it. Try a few of the following techniques…
o Read it out loud. When you do this, sometimes it seems to make more sense.
o Try and explain it to someone else – You may find that you know far more than you think you do when you explain it to another person.
o Read it in another way. There are a lot of resources online today, so if you don’t understand your notes or textbook, look online and find another explanation.
• Making a revision timetable for when you intend to revise your subject is also useful. You may be revising for more than one subject, so work out when you are going to study and make a plan for each subject.
• Practice exam papers and old TMAs under “exam conditions.”
• Try to take off a day a week. You decide which day. Take some time off from all that studying.
• Try to start revising as soon as you can. The earlier you start to revise, the more revision you will do.
Remember, you have revised before. You know what has worked well for you and what didn’t. So if you have a good way of revising, stick to it. But if your way hasn’t worked so well, why not try another option from those listed above? There is also of course a lot of advice out there online and in books. The best way to revise is the way that works for YOU! So find your best method and stick to it.
Finally, though success in them is all about your hard work and revision, I am still going to wish you this – Good luck with your exams!
Essay writing is, for many people, a difficult skill to master. For some of us, in fact, the problems begin almost before we’ve even started. With this in mind, I would like to offer my own top five tips to get you past that first line.
1. Do some reading around your topic in advance of starting
It is better to use few texts well than lots of texts badly. Make notes if it helps you but what matters most is that you digest the information, so that you can build on it in your essay. To write a good essay you need to feel confident enough about your topic to write out a paragraph without stopping to look something up. An essay will always read better if it has been written in a linear manner.
2. Begin by thinking about the end point
By this I mean think carefully about what your conclusion is going to be. What is your overall viewpoint? An essay is a chance to put forward a balanced argument for a view you have on a certain topic. Your essay will be more enjoyable to write if you are arguing for a view that you truly believe in.
3. Plan your introduction
What are the key concepts that the reader will need to know about to understand your essay? The introduction is your chance to capture your reader’s attention, so keep it snappy and to the point. Any topic can be interesting if it is well written about. If you just want to scribble down some key words and come back to it later that is fine.
4. Plan the sections in the main body of the essay
Sit down somewhere cosy and quiet and get the main body planned in one sitting. Libraries are free to use and can provide an ideal workspace away from distractions. You know the key concepts you would like to include and you know your concluding viewpoint. Move on from one point to the next, thinking about how they interact with each other. Each paragraph and sentence should connect to the one before and after.
5. Get someone who has little to no prior knowledge of the topic to read through your plan
Your essay should make sense to whomever wanted to read it, not just your teacher who already knows lots about the topic. Ask them a few questions about the topic or the view you’re discussing in your essay to see if it’s coming across in the way that you want it to.
BONUS TIP: Do your bibliography as you go along! The feeling of relief when you finish an essay can be ruined when you realise you need to write out a whole bibliography. It will take a lot less time to do if you constantly add in texts as you use them, because you won’t spend so much time trying to find lost details! Make sure you have a guide you find easy to use when writing out the references. There is an abundance of these to be found online, so you have plenty of choice!
August in the UK doesn’t just mean a month of school holidays for many school and college pupils; for those who have sat their GCSE, A level, Standards, Highers, BTEC and equivalent exams, it brings to an end a long wait to see if those exams have been passed, and if so, how well.
After the A level results were released in England and Wales this year it was widely reported that, for the first time in many years, boys had fractionally higher grade marks than girls. A number of reasons have been put forward for what seems to be perceived as a sea-change, including the structure of this year’s exams. However, this may not necessarily be true. For instance, The Guardian also quotes a research group called Education Datalab which comments: “Their [boys] performance has improved relative to girls’ this year, but this might have been as much to do with the academic ability of the boys and girls who chose these subjects this year as it is to the changes to A level structure.”
In other words, the differences between boys and girls grades can depend on so many different factors that stating that boys are cleverer than girls this year, or vice versa, is a bold statement. There are so many variables to take into consideration; geographical differences, the subjects chosen (if more boys than girls do chemistry, then they are bound to have the higher percentage of good grades).
It is understandable that newspapers and the media in general feel duty-bound to report on the annual exam results. After all, those pupils are the very people who will steer our country through the next eighty or ninety years. There is a tendency however, when there is no real news to report about the annual results, to focus in on tiny differences in gender achievements or a tiny rise or fall in the overall grades received overall. More or less A grades than average can make a good newspaper headline- and good headlines sell papers.
In reality, despite what reporters say on the television, radio, in the newspapers or on social media platforms, the students that achieve the best exam results are the ones who have worked the hardest. It is those pupils who will go on to get the university places, apprenticeships, and the careers they hoped for- whether they are boys or girls.
Section B – Comparison of two Anthology poems
The question in Section B will ask you to compare two poems from the fifteen which you have studied. The examination paper will choose one poem; you must choose the other.
Preparation is key! It is absolutely vital that you are comfortable and familiar with all the poems. This is no mean feat, so do take it seriously. This is a tricky examination and students (and teachers!) are understandably a little nervous about this. Read through the poems until you are sure of each one. Can you confidently explain the structure, form, imagery and themes in each one? Have you learnt some key quotations for each and every poem?
Love and Relationships
(1) Which of the poems are about marriage?
(2) Which of the poems are about love between parents and children?
Power and Conflict
(1) Which of the poems consider the power of nature?
(2) Which of these poems are written after the conflict?
If you can, ask a friend or relative to help you revise. Give them a list of the poems you have studied and ask them to read it to you. Give a brief synopsis of each poem.
Love and Relationships
‘Compare how poets present the idea of romantic love in ‘Love’s Philosophy’ and in one other poem from your cluster’.
Or
Power and Conflict
‘Compare how poets present the idea of power in ‘Ozymandias’ and in one other poem from your cluster’.
Look carefully at the question and consider what is being asked. You will have the text of the poem in front of you. So what ideas of romantic love are presented in ‘Love’s Philosophy’? You will need to look at the language, structure and form. Consider also the wider context of the poem, e.g. Shelley as a romantic poet. Annotate your poem quickly. Remember to focus on the question being asked. You are not being asked merely to analyse the poem, but to prepare a considered, conceptualised response.
Once you have annotated the first poem (spend about five minutes on that), turn your attention to choosing a second poem. You will not have the full poems in front of you, but you will have a list of them you can read through. Look for comparisons and similarities. Which of the other Relationships poems focus on romantic love? Which of the Conflict poems discuss power? Give yourself a couple of minutes to decide this (and then stop thinking about it and move on!). From memory, jot down key features (language, structure, form and context) of the second poem. How does the poet present ideas about romantic love/power in the poems?
You now have your two poems and notes about each of them. Spend an additional five minutes drawing together a plan. You should aim for about three or four good paragraphs. It is important to not just list the features of the poem; you must explain why they are there and the impact they have. Skilled answers will move beyond a basic comparison and begin to create a conceptualised narrative considering the question of, for example, romantic love/power.
And Finally… Start Writing! A question like this will probably require 10-15 minutes serious planning. A good plan on your exam paper shows the examiner that you understand the question, have considered your answer and you know where you’re going. If you start to edge towards the 15-minute mark, however, it is time to move on. You have revised for this, you have learnt all your quotations and you have prepared a solid plan. Now you need to start writing!
A final blog, on approaching Section C, the Unseen question, will be published on this site next Thursday.
Is your coursework deadline looming? It’s easy to panic about getting all your studies completed, especially when a percentage of your grade is riding on how good your coursework is. However, it can be a great advantage to have part of your GCSE, A Level or other result safely under your belt when you go into your exams. You’re not under the same intense pressure that you would be in an exam situation, so your work is likely to be of a higher standard. Here’s how to make sure you get it right…
If you have an essay question, for example, write it down before taking it apart. Look at each word of the question and write what it means. If you’re in any doubt about what you’re being asked to do, talk to your tutor or teacher. You should also check how many marks are being allocated for each part of the coursework: the number of marks will dictate how much time and detail should go into each section. If possible, read a few sample answers to get a good idea of what you need to do to get it right.
Whatever the subject of your coursework, you will need to read texts and do research online to arm yourself with everything you need to answer the questions that are being put to you. Make a list of all the sources of information you will be using, and allocate specific amounts of time to spend reading and taking notes for each.
Your coursework plan should include plenty of time to write your essay and answer the questions posed, or to present your findings. Do not leave this until the night before. Despite the fact that lots of students might say this works for them, you will just feel unbearably stressed and pressurised, and your work will not be to the highest standard it could be. Give yourself a few days to complete the bulk of the writing at a relaxed pace with time for breaks, and your coursework will be much more likely to help you get that grade you’re after.
No matter how hard you’ve worked, the first draft of your coursework will not be your best work. Allocate time for drafting well in advance of the deadline so that you can correct mistakes and make improvements. If you find it difficult to read your own work with a critical eye, ask a friend, family member or tutor to offer ideas on how you can make sure that your work is the best it can be.
The key to successfully planning coursework for any subject is allowing plenty of time, and incorporating as much detail as possible into your schedule. This is your chance to make sure you’re going into the exam knowing that you’re part of the way there, so don’t waste it!
To answer the question, let’s start with the basic facts…
Paper 2 of your English Literature examination consists of the following three parts:
You will need to spend approximately 45 minutes on each Section.
For Section B, there is no real choice. Find the page which lists the poems you have studied (i.e. either Love and Relationships or Power and Conflict) and that is the question you must answer. Every candidate must answer both the questions in Section C.
You will have been studying a series of poems in preparation for your examination this summer. You (or more likely, your teacher) will have chosen whether to study of collection of fifteen poems about Love and Relationships, or fifteen poems about Power and Conflict. You must be able to write about any of the fifteen poems from your chosen cluster. A new twist this year is that the exam is closed book. This means that students are not allowed a copy of the Anthology in the exam. This is a change from previous years.
‘Compare how poets present the idea of romantic love in ‘Love’s Philosophy’ and in one other poem from your cluster’.
You will notice that the question is asking you to think about how the poet writes. You will need to focus on the poet’s technique in your answer. What imagery do they use? Is is effective? What is the voice? Do they move you?
An advantage to the closed book is that you will be more focussed in your answer. Preparation is key here and you will need to have learned key themes in advance. If the question asks you to consider romantic love, you need to be able to quickly consider the poems you have studied which address the issue and then decide which would work best in the comparison with the text selected. You will not be able to spend lots of time deciding between which poem to discuss or which quotations to use. Your quotations need to be in your head already! For more advice about answering Section B questions, see a separate blog post, to be published next week (March 2nd).
Lastly, how should you approach the Section C questions? Well, there are two questions in Section C and all candidates must answer both of them. The first question asks you to consider one unseen poem. The second question asks you to compare the first poem with an additional unseen poem. The first question is worth 24 marks, whilst the second is only worth 8 marks so you can see where your priorities need to lie. Again, more help with tackling an unseen poem will be given in another blog post to come (Thursday 9th March).
Writing a good essay under exam conditions can be a daunting task…. But it is a skill which has to be learnt and practised on a regular basis over the course of your studies. Essay questions at A level usually carry 24 marks, a fairly hefty portion of the total marks awarded for the paper. You need to be able to write at least two pages of coherent material under timed conditions.
You should get down to work on the course as soon as possible. Provide yourself with a clear study timetable incorporating the number of hours per day/week etc you intend to devote to the course and when you plan to submit assignments for marking. Stick to this timetable throughout the course.
You are going to encounter fairly complex material. It is therefore a good idea to make your own notes from the material supplied in the lessons. I suggest you do the same with model answers provided by OOL. This will help you learn the material and give you practice in summarising argument and opinion. It will also aid revision and the retention of factual material.
Be clear that a rote regurgitation of the facts alone will gain you few marks. You must produce a formal piece of writing that addresses the actual question set on the examination paper. Irrelevant answers are heavily penalised. Writing an analysis and evaluation of the historical situation under review will gain high marks. This includes an outline of the cause and effect of historical events. Try to demonstrate some awareness of different interpretations. Try to include some evaluation which flows from your analysis. This might include how a particular point of view fits the historical facts or how valid a particular authority is. For example, evidence quoted from a primary source – state papers, a diplomatic document or private correspondence of the period is usually preferable to a secondary source.
Spend some time (5-10 mins) planning the broad outline of the essay before you begin writing. Hand in your notes as well as your script to the invigilator. Throughout the essay made explicit reference to the wording of the question and do the same in the conclusion. If the question requires it, come to a judgement or a balanced summary.
You should try to complete all the TMAs. They are usually closely related to past exam questions. Consult the model answers published on the internet particularly in the later stages of your course. Try to complete the course by the beginning of April of the year of the exam, using your own notes for revision.
One final point: A level students are usually advised to read widely. But students working by correspondence course lead busy lives and there are thousands of well written history texts published each year. Up to date material can be found on the internet. I would also recommend the historical programmes presented on TV, giving easy access to re-evaluation of historical events. Try to remember, history is no longer about dates and kings and queens. So enjoy the course.
Are you feeling a little nervous about your exams? The key to success is remaining calm and in control. The best way to take control is by following a dedicated and varied revision schedule. Simply staring at your text books is not the answer – here’s what to do…
1. Break up your time. It’s especially important to break your revision time into small chunks when exams are just around the corner. You want to make sure that every subject is covered in as much detail as possible.
For example, if you have decided that you are going to revise on a Saturday morning, break it down into study periods of 45 minutes each. Write down what you are going to cover in each study period, thinking carefully about how long each task will take.
2. Use a pen and paper. You’ve probably done most of your coursework and revision on your laptop or tablet. However, using a pen and paper has significant advantages when it comes to committing information to memory.
Read through the material you need to know. Then, use your pen to write down the most important points, facts, dates or quotations. The act of writing will help you to absorb the information, and also aids your evaluative skills – which are important in almost all subjects.
3. Create personal audio notes. Having created your paper notes, it’s now time to really consolidate your knowledge and ensure that you don’t forget any important details.
Using your phone or tablet, choose the voice recording feature and read your notes aloud. For the absolutely vital information, add a sound effect or change your voice – both will help it to stand out and instantly become more memorable.
4. Listen up. Listen to your personal audio notes as much as possible, and vary the recordings you choose so that every subject is covered.
Making a cup of coffee in the morning? That’s 5 minutes that could be spent listening to your notes. On the bus? Put in your earphones and listen to your notes as you watch the world go by.
5. Pop quiz. Adding a little fun to your learning can dramatically increase your chances of exam success. Get a friend or family member to help you create a quiz about the course(s) you have been studying. For wrong answers, you pay a penalty. For example, if you have forgotten a quotation, you have to go out into the street and shout it aloud!
It’s not too late to complete this revision plan: all you need is a little determination and the desire to succeed! If everything is getting too much for you, don’t be afraid to take time out to rest, relax and listen to your favourite music. You could even try doing a 5 minute breathing meditation to help give you focus and a sense of calm. Everyone will wonder what your secret is!