Designed By: The Writing Centre The British University in Egypt (BUE)

Adapted from BUE study skills Guidance for success (2006-2007)

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You can make more control of the exam process with effective planning and thorough revision

Revision and Exam Skills

This skill offers some essential tips for effective revision and exam strategies. These tips range from your revision to your exam questions.

Part One: Revision Key Revision Tips:

Do not leave your revision until too late.

Draw up a revision timetable. Start off with a smaller number of hours and increase these week by week.

Key Revision Tips (continued) Plan Not to work longer than three hours a

time. For every hour you work take ten minutes off.

Work with other students in group revision sessions to discuss topics and share information.

Key Revision Tips (continued)Summarise your notes which you took in your

lectures or from books (See the following chart).

Key Revision Tips (continued) Practice answering questions from past

exam papers under timed conditions.

Do not focus on certain questions coming up in the exam. Instead, prioritise topics.

Eat well, practice exercise and do not go straight to bed after revision. RELAX

Part Two: Exam Skills

The most common mistake in any exam is to misunderstand a question or set of instructions. Thus, to avoid this common mistake you have to be aware of certain good techniques to deal with exam questions.

Tips to follow BEFORE the Exam Ask yourself these WH questions: When is the exam?

Where is the exam?

What time does it start?

What will you need to take into the exam hall?

What are you allowed to take into the exam hall?

Tips to follow DURING the Exam:

Listen to the instructions given

Read the instructions on the paper carefully

Read through the paper carefully

Tips to follow DURING the Exam (continued): Make sure you have answers to these

questions: How many questions are there?

How many questions are required to answer?

How long do I have to answer the questions?

How much time do I need for each question?

Tips to follow DURING the Exam(continued):What type of questions are there? - Short answers - Multiple choice - Structured questions - Essays

Are some questions compulsory?

Tips to follow DURING the Exam(continued): Decide the order of answering the questions

Look carefully at the mark allocation for each question to help you to set your time correctly

Start with the questions you feel most confident about

Tips to follow DURING the Exam(continued): Read the question carefully 2 or 3 times

Highlight the key words to help you to be focused.

Brainstorm the question (in the margin of your answer sheet)

Be Selective from the information you know when answering the questions

Tips to follow DURING the Exam(continued): Plan and structure your answer

(Introduction, Body and Conclusion)

Check that the information you wrote is relevant to the question

Allow some time at the end to revise your answer

Write clearly and legibly.

Tips to follow AFTER the Exam It is a good chance to review your exam

strategies. You should ask yourself the following yes/no questions:

Have I revised efficiently? Did I succeed in identifying the key phrases

or words? Did I fulfill all of the exam’s requirements?

What Does the Question Mean? Interpreting and analysing the question is the

most important factor in helping you to gain more marks. This process requires you to ask yourself what am I being asked to do? In order to answer this question, you will need to highlight and interpret common key words in the question.

Common Key Words Account for Explains the cause of Analyse Separates down into its component parts and

show how they interrelate with each other Annotate Puts notes on (usually a diagram) Assess/ Evaluate Estimates the value of, looking at both the

positive and negative attributes Comment To make critical or explanatory

notes/observations Compare Pints out the differences and the similarities.

This question needs to be carefully organised to produce a logical answer

Contrast Points out the differences only   Review To make a survey of, examining the subject

critically   Suggest This question may not have a fixed answer.

Give arrange of responses

Describe Writes down the information in the right

order    Discuss Presents arguments for and against the topic

in question. In discussion questions you may also give your opinion

Distinguish Identifies the difference between Explain The word ‘explain’ means that you have to

give reasons. You have to explain why rather than just define

Justify Here you will need to present a valid

argument about why a specific theory or conclusion should be accepted

Outline Gives the main features or general principles

of a subject, omitting minor details and stressing structure  

Relate Either to show ideas or events is linked into

a sequence OR to compare or contrast  

Revision and Exam Skills For more information on test taking and

avoiding test anxiety, visit the following websites:

- http://www.testtakingtips.com/test/index.htm - http://www.studygs.net/tsttak1.htm - http://www.ulc.psu.edu/studyskills/

test_taking.html - http://frank.mtsu.edu/~studskl/teststrat.html - http://www.mta.ca/counselling/study.pdf