“How should I prepare for exams? What if I fail to get good grades? What questions are likely to be asked in the exam? What’ll my parent and friends think of me if I get poor grades? Will I be able to crack the house tests?”
This is how exam fear haunts the students, especially those who haven’t prepared well or are of average learning ability. Sometime, the fear of failure is so dominating that your mind can go blank as you enter the exam hall. You can suddenly forget every last thing you read. This is why exams are also known as fear factor or nightmare among the students. In addition to revising complicated chapters and exam preparation, expectations and pressure built up by parents and teachers add to the exam stress.
If you are facing the above mentioned, here are 5 ways to help you deal with exam stress.
1) Start Revising Early
Do you brush dust off your study materials just the days before the examinations?
Instead, start revising your chapters early so that you can manage to prepare without stress or exam anxiety. In simple words, the sooner you start the better. A practice on time will make a better understanding and recollection. In this way, you can avoid the hassle of revising everything at the last moment.
2) Take A Break
If you think that taking break while studying can divert the attention, you need to think again. Instead, it can improve your focus and learning ability. Without taking study breaks, fatigue can’t let you concentrate on your study.
The point of a study break is to get your weary mind refreshed so that you refocus on the study when it’s time to get back to work.
You can utilize the break by playing outside, hanging out with the friends or just taking a simple stroll. So, set a time aside for break and stick to it.
3) Minimize Distractions
You can’t concentrate well on your study as long as there are ringing phones, loud music, TV and constant movement of people. Therefore, make sure your study room is calm and away from such types of distractions. However, some students can focus on their study while listening to their favourite music. If you are one of them, there is nothing wrong to bring your iPod or music player with you.
4) Sleep Well
Taking rest during the afternoons is good to give rest to your brain and eyes. You wake up feeling fresh and motivated. Otherwise, sleep deprivation can lead to adverse effects on your mind and body. You are recommended to take minimum 6-7 hours of sleep during night.
5) Perform Breathing Exercises and Meditation
Calm down your racy heartbeats, stress and anxiety by performing mediation and several breathing exercises. Consider meditating for 10 minutes a day to lower your stress. Perform breathing exercises like Sama Vritti, Abdominal breathing, Althernate nostril breathing to achieve instant relaxation when you feel overly stressed.
So these are some simple and tested tips to deal with exam stress. Besides practicing these steps, stay positive about the exams to see the positive results. All the best!
This article is contributed by Lim Chu Wei.
Lim Chuwei is the Director at ChampionTutor Tuition Agency Malaysia and has been in the industry for last 15 years. If you are looking for part time tutor jobs in Malaysia then ChampionTutor is leading stop for this need. ChampionTutor is leading stop for all education needs with more than 10 years of experience in home tutor service & recently launched the Online tutoring services as ChampionTutor Online Malaysia.
