Exam Fever

As the number of dengue fever cases drop, another form of fever is on the rise - the end-of-year exam fever. Since the beginning of the forth term, 'kiasu' students have been hard at work, preparing for this 'do or die' exam. Thus, it isn't surprised to find groups of students working under pressure at all the available study areas, be it at the libraries, fastfood outlets, void decks and even at the airport. But does sitting for an exam need to be so stressful? Can't exam be prepared in a more relax and stress free manner?

Well, for those who have been paying attention in class and revising their work on a daily basis, revision need not be such a stressful experience. But for those who work only at the eleventh hour or those who didn't fare too well for the previous exams, it would indeed be quite pressurising, at least for those who care about their results. Imagine trying to learn the whole year work in a matter of months, if not weeks, what other task can be more suffocating than that. Yet, many students seem to have ask for such torture when they mismanage their time and got themselves into the very situation that they have hoped to avoid.

From my years of teaching, I have noticed that most students would spent hours upon hours trying hard to memorise everything from their texts, handouts and whatever materials that they can lay their hands on, only to end up feeling more confused than ever and eventually not able to perform well. They have all made one major fault and it seemed that many students shared the same misconception - the more time you spend on your books, the better you get. I can understand the students' desire to cover as much as possible and to spend as much time as possible on their revision during this period of time but the amount of time spent does not always equal to the amount of knowledge gained. In fact, most of the time, the more time you spent learning, the less is being learnt. Sound contradicting? Well, learning is very much like eating (both are something that I have always enjoyed doing). To enjoy your food, you must first chew it before swallowing it and allowing it time to digest. By forcing food into your mouth and swallowing it whole, you will not only not taste the food but might even throw out whatever you have eaten earlier. Similarly, in one's attempt to learn as much as poosible in the shortest possible time, one tends to stuff the poor brain with so much information that it doesn't have the time to process and retain the contents. Thus, after spending the whole day through tons of materials, one realised that not much have actually been accompanished. Not only was precious time being wasted, one would also become both mentally and physically exhausted. Just as we need to allow time for the food that we have eaten to digest so that our body can get the nutrients it needs, we need to give our brain sufficient time to digest whatever we have fed it so that the 'nutrients' could be retained by it.

To achieve maximum result, one should not spend more than 2 hours on each learning session so as to allow for digestion to take place and also to replenish one's mental strength. Take a short break of an hour or two, doing something different; something that will take your mind off what you are learning. Then have another 2-hour session before calling it a day. Ok, some of you might think that I must be joking or even crazy to suggest taking that break, especially when you are already so short of time. But I assure you that you will gain much more by taking that break than to study for 5 or 6 hours at a stretch. Though the amount of time spent in both methods is the about same, the outcome will definitely differ. Still not convinced? Have it ever occurred to you why do people bother to spend time taking 3 or more meals a day rather than just one gigantic meal? Would you prefer to eat at regular intervals or have all your meals at one go? Which method of feeding will allow for digestion and which will cause indigestion?

Another advantage of the suggested method of revision is that it keeps the mind fresh and alert as compared to one who has spent long hours revising and didn't have much rest. Not only would the latter suffer a headache but also from mental exhaustion which is definitely not a condition conducive for taking the all important exam. Imagine the frustration and dejection one would face when after all the long hours of hard work, one still didn't do as well as another who seemed to have spent less time at the study desk.

Nowadays, it's not enough just being hard working, one must also work smart. Are you working smart or are you ploughing through long hours of hard work and feeling miserable about yourself, about the whole exam and about life? If you are, then it's high time that you make some adjustments to relax and make your learning a more enjoyable process. For any learning to be successful it should always be a fun experience and not something that you dread doing. Remember how fast and easily you learn to ride a bicycle when you were so eager to get on it? And why you never seemed to swim well when you were apprehensive of being seen in your swim wear? Learn to relax appropriately and work smart and you shall get the results that you deserve.