From the Leader of Learning
Preparation for Year 11 Examinations and Years 9 and 10 Exam Block
In a few weeks, Year 11 will commence their Preliminary Examination Block, and Years 9 and 10 will have a small exam block in Weeks 4 and 5 of Term 4. Year 11 have been preparing for their examinations each week on Thursday afternoons. It is now time for Year 9 and 10 students to look forward and begin preparing.
Ideally, being organised should have been an ongoing process throughout the year so that when exam time arrives, you are ready to start studying immediately. But it is not too late!
To get organised for the exams:
GATHER ALL MATERIALS ON THE SUBJECT: For each subject, gather all the material you need to study.
CHECK NOTHING MISSING: Check that you do not have anything missing.
SORT NOTES: Sort through your notes from each subject’s topic into ‘things to learn,’ i.e. content and ‘things to practise,’ i.e. revision sheets, past tests, and question sheets that you could do as revision.
START STUDY NOTES: Check if you have already done any study notes for your subjects.
BRAINSTORM HOW YOU WILL STUDY: Brainstorm everything you can do to study for the exam for each subject. Questions to consider include:
• Are there chapter reviews you should re-do?
• Are there past tests or essays you could re-do and resubmit?
• Can you get a list of sample essay topics for which you can draft essay plans?
• Do your textbooks have sample examination papers?
• Are there particular topics you need to focus on?
• What is the most worthwhile revision you could do for this subject?
DECIDE HOW TO ALLOCATE TIME:
Decide if you are going to allocate equal time to each subject.
• Do some subjects need more preparation time than others?
• Do you need to spend more time on your weaker subjects?
• Are all exams for all subjects worth the same amount towards your overall marks?
As the adage says, preparation prevents poor performance!
More information about exam preparation and study techniques can be found via the ELES Study Skills Handbook, accessed via the Favourites (star) icon on COMPASS.
