10 Tips for High School Students
High school seems like a drag most of the time. Going to school, doing work that you don’t like, seeing people you don’t like, and maybe even eating food that you don’t like. However, it is something that we all have to do (unless you’re homeschooled, of course). The main goal in high school is really to pass your exams and graduate alive, but, we’re all dead inside so I should say, graduate mostly alive. Wouldn’t it be great if we were all gifted and smart? However, that’s not how life is; you have to work for everything. As a result, I have put together 10 tips that will help any high school student successfully pass their exams.
1. Exam Calendar
Refusing to acknowledge the proximity of an exam won’t make it go away. In fact, it causes it to approach faster because without a calendar, the exam will be able to sneak up on you. Sneaky exams are exactly what we try to get away from, therefore, CREATE AN EXAM CALENDAR. Sorry, I didn’t mean to shout, but this is something I cannot stress enough, that’s why it’s number one. For CXC students, your timetables are available on the CXC website from maybe in September to the year prior to your exam (eg, if your exam is in 2018, the timetable is available in September 2017) therefore, you have no excuse as to why you didn’t already make a calendar. Ensure that you place your calendar in a spot where you will always see it especially when doing homework or studying. I recommend placing it on the wall above your desk or work space, this way, you always notice it. You don’t need to create any kind of huge, dramatic calendar (unless you want to of course). It can be plain and simple. Just ensure that you have the exam dates and times and what exams are happening on that day.
2. Study timetable
What is something that teachers constantly nag us about? That’s right, a study timetable. Hey! I know that you’re rolling your eyes! Honestly, I used to lowkey roll my eyes and sigh whenever my homeroom teacher even mentioned a study timetable too. However, I am a changed person. Take it from me, someone who hated study timetables. It is your key to passing exams because it ensures that you’re not wasting time procrastinating. What you need to do is look at your exam calendar and plan your timetable around it as to give yourself enough time to study and prepare for each exam. You can create two timetables; one for during the year away from exams, and one for during exams. Once again, put them in places where they will be noticeable to you like on the wall above your desk or work space.
3. Make Notes Ahead of Class
Well, well, well, this point is definitely something that we all know we should be doing, but is it being done? Of course not. Making notes ahead of class seems like torture, doesn’t it? We all want our teachers to open our heads and just shove the information right in. I mean, how cool and efficient would that be, right? Unfortunately, that’s not how it’s done. Making notes ahead of class is actually pretty simple. First, you open the textbook and read a paragraph. Then, you summarize what you just read and write it in a notebook in point form. Difficult? *Inserts ‘nope,didn’t think so’ meme*. I recommend using a notebook that you will dedicate to this subject specifically as to prevent mixing up other subjects with this one. Also, you should use colored pens, pencils, or highlighters for the headings so when you’re looking for something, it’s easy to find. Let me give you some reasons as to why you should make notes AHEAD of class.
· You’ll be prepared in case the teacher starts the class by asking questions about the topic, trust me when I say that it’s embarrassing not knowing anything.
· You can ask any prior questions you had about the topic as the teacher teaches.
· You can go to class with extra information (if you decided to do some research) and create a discussion in class. Teachers love discussions.
· You can add examples and extra notes that the teacher gives.
· Bonus: you can leave the heavy textbook at home and walk with your notebook instead since you already have the notes.
4. Use Technology
As the generation that lives within the age of technological advancement, there is so much resources to assist you online. For example,
YouTube. We’ve all heard of YouTube. I mean c’mon, if you haven’t, do you even live in 2018? Even though YouTube is mostly popular for music, beauty and DIYs, it is also useful for studying. Channels like Crash Course are great for revision or further understanding of topics. Another channel, Mr. Parr, uses the element of music to educate his watchers/listeners. He makes parodies of popular songs using science topics in order to teach.
BBC Bitesize offers a wide range of subjects and topics for a variety of educational levels. They have simple revision breakdowns of each topic, along with examples and revision questions. The website is very easy to use and navigate as it was created with youths in mind. Khan Academy is another great site. Whilst Bitesize focuses on typed explanations, Khan Academy offers video explanations, like YouTube.
If you write a lot of essays, then Grammarly is the site for you. It’s basically a grammar-checker. It checks for things like spelling, subject-verb agreement, capitalization, punctuation and a lot more. Sometimes Microsoft Word doesn’t get every single error because whenever it says that the document is fine and I put it through Grammarly, I get like 20+ new errors that Microsoft Word did not pick up.
5. Create Relationships with Teachers
Woah, woah, woah. I’m not telling you to date your 45-year-old math teacher. Gross. I’m talking about getting to know your teachers and having them know you. Showing interest in a subject really drives a teacher to wanting to helping you. After class, stop and talk to them; ask them about their day, if they’re ill, ask how they feel. Simple things. Always remember that teachers are people too. If you have problems or don’t understand something, ask them. Never be afraid of a teacher even if they seem scary, their best interest is in helping you. One thing that I found that really helped me improve was submitting extra work as practice. After a while of giving up extra work, my teachers realized that I was interested in the subject and paid more attention to me. This really helps you out in the long run when you need recommendations for university or jobs. These teachers will be more than willing to help you out.
6. Ask for Help
Never be afraid to ask for help. Whether it be from a teacher or peer, if you need help, ask for it. Asking for help will not only help you to understand better, but it will also strengthen your bonds with others. Also, your class should create a group chat on social media sites like WhatsApp or Facebook. This will serve as your main communication center. Work can be sent in the chat and questions can be asked and answered. In addition, study groups are great for getting in knowledge if you work better in small groups rather than by yourself. Just get a few of your peers, who you now will study and not mess around, and start studying. It can happen after school in the library or even an empty class.
7. Past Papers.
Okay, I don’t know if past papers are available for exams outside of CXC, therefore I can only give my experience for CXC here. Past papers are available on the CXC website or at any bookstore. However, the best way to obtain past papers, is to have it handed down to you from someone who already did the exam. This way, it’s free! You can also find PDFs online. Past papers are great because they give you an idea of questions that can possibly be part of the exam. Sometimes, the same exact questions in the past paper, is what will be repeated. Therefore, you’re even more prepared because you already did that question. However, let me warn you, don’t memorize answers just to pass. Study to learn the general concept of the topic. This way, you will be able to do any question. Another awesome thing that CXC does is subject reports. These are reports of the answers for the exams each year. Most times, the answers for the questions are presented here and it’s best to study with the past paper and subject report side by side.
8. E-books/PDFs
Let me tell you, especially literature students, eBooks/PDFs will save your wallets. These are mostly available for novels but there will be eBooks for other topics too. Since they are free, you save tons of money. On the other hand, be careful when downloading these books as some may come with viruses or missing information. That is definitely the problem with PDFs, errors. Sometimes they may have spelling or grammatical errors. However, if you have an understanding of what you’re reading, the errors should not be a problem.
Literature students usually have to do things like analyzing information and other pretty difficult things. An easy way to get a general understanding of books is by reading summaries and analyses online. There are sites that offer these services like:
· SparkNotes
· Shmoop
· CliffNotes
· Enotes
9. Interact with People
So, you’re learning a language, what do your teachers preach? Get a pen pal. Well, in this day and age, pen pals aren’t really popular anymore. However, you can still talk to native speakers who want to learn your language. The app Amino is great for this. It’s basically like a little community on your phone. You just have to sign up and choose which Amino community you want to use. You can join as much communities as you’d like. It allows you to join group chats or even private chat with people. You can ask or help, take quizzes, participate in polls, make blog posts and so much more. It’s also a great way to make new friends.
10. Take a Break.
This is definitely what we all love to hear, right? Yes, of course. Taking a break. It’s great to take a break in order to just relax. Overworking yourself won’t do anything besides stress you out. The best things to do when taking a break are:
· Take a walk somewhere. Walk around your house and maybe chat with your family a bit. Don’t study to the point where you completely lock off your family. Go outside and get some fresh air, you may even see something that can inspire you if you have writer’s block.
· Stretch. Sitting in one position for too long can cause your body to become tense and this isn’t good for the muscles. Therefore, maybe do a bit of yoga. Looking up stretches for studying on Pinterest will be beneficial to you.
· Eat. When you’re studying, it’s very easy to forget to do daily activities like eating and even showering. Therefore, I suggest when you take a break, eat some food or fruit, definitely not junk food.