Monday, January 18, 2010
With the board exams a month away, what are the last minute preparation tips that you would like to share with students appearing for the exam?
 

Most students generally finish the portion by now. For those who have more than possible left to do, my advice is to not panic as well-planned revision can rescue the situation. Concentrate on subjects you are weak in or those that involve a lot of memorising like history.
I benefited immensely by solving sample papers and would suggest students to either enrol for a test series or try solving at least one paper a day.

Maintaining a time-table helps you to know when and how to get through your portion. A plan telling you which chapters you are going to do every day through the month would ensure you cover all the subjects systematically. Remember to be practical and expect the plans to changes as you go along.

Can you offer any subject-specific tips?
For all subjects, ascertain you use the best textbooks. Even with the few weeks left to go, it isn’t too late yet to change the source. Ultimately, use the combination that works for you.

ENGLISH:  Concentrate on the textbooks over other guides and notes as the paper pattern is largely text book based. Understand the poems and chapters rather than memorising them

HINDI/SECOND LANGUAGES: Reading chapters repeatedly gets you familiar with content. Judiciously use options that can help you eliminate long and unnecessary chapters.

MATH:  Practise solving papers with speed and accuracy. Try completing the entire paper and all the sub-options within the given time.

PHYSICS: Understand all the concepts thoroughly. Concentrate on chapters that you are weak in.

CHEMISTRY: Try to memorise all points as they can help you gain precious marks. It will be easier if you understood the subject matter.

BIOLOGY: Get your hands on a few good books. Consulting more than one book helped me understand the subject better.

GEOGRAPHY: With geography you have the choice of eliminating certain chapters as there are options in the paper. Practising the map will help you score good marks.

COMPUTER APPLICATIONS: Studying from the textbook will help better than notes. You could practise writing programmes as a break.
 
How important is time management for students appearing for their boards?
If you are tired, it will get difficult to concentrate on studying. Take a short break, not too long to get distracted. It also helps to temporarily switch to an easier subject when you get tired of a tougher one.

Students have to face immense peer as well as parental pressure to perform at the board exam. Can you suggest ways to cope with this pressure?

Turn around the pressure and use it to motivate yourself. There will always be people who appear to be better prepared than you are but that should not de motivate you. Entertain yourself at intervals to keep the stress levels down. Don’t give in to any superstitious beliefs. The boards, at the end of the day, are just another exam. Be determined to do well and approach the board exams as a challenge.
 
With the board exams a month away, what are the last minute preparation tips that you would like to share with students appearing for the exam?

Once students have completed the prescribed syllabus, they should take mock tests that are offered by various institutes. This will enable students to identify their strengths and weaknesses, thus, giving them a chance to improve upon specific areas. Besides, the practise tests help students to get familiar with a wide variety of problems. Students should also make an effort to comprehend what they are studying instead of simply memorising the text. Finally, one should consider maintaining a notebook of points that they find difficult to remember. This way, when the time comes, it is easier to revise.

Can you offer any subject-specific tips?
Science and Mathematics: Both are application-oriented subjects. Hence, students should try and focus on problem-solving. Apart from the prescribed texts, they should try and consult reference books too.

English: Many students make a mistake of spending less time on subjects such as English and other language subjects. One must remember that English is counted as one of the main subjects while considering the overall percentage. If you scoreless in English, it could impact your overall percentage.

How important is time management for students appearing for their boards?
Time management does not mean that you prepare a timetable that exclusively includes study hours. It also means that you achieve a balance between time allotted for studies and time allotted for extra-curricular activities. Let me assure you that I played as much as I studied. I didn’t have a fixed routine before the board exams. I made it a point to study for a few hours every day throughout the year. However, closer to the exams, I did put in more hours, but I didn’t study four hours at a stretch. I avoided spending an unreasonable amount of time with my books.
 

How important is it to take breaks while studying?
It is not the hours that matter. It is the quality of your preparation in those hours that makes a difference. After studying for two to three hours at a stretch, it is always refreshing to take short breaks.

Sources: Education times
www.eductiontimes.com