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Cover Story: How to get good grades
Exam times are here!
There it comes again. A dismal time for one and all. The fated exams are here to rock our leaky shaky boats with their turbulent storms. Was that stretching it? I think not. After a whole year spent frolicking by in careless abandonment this period brings an understandable sickening feeling. Fear not, for contained herein is something infinitely more practical than a magic lamp to get good grades, so read on.
The best grades don’t always go to the most brilliant of us. In fact, that is seldom the case. Mostly the slow steady turtles beat the careless hares amongst us, to it. Hard work is unavoidable in these matters. But then hard work isn’t the whole and all of it. It’s intelligent hard work. Hence it is not the time allotted for studying that counts, but it’s how that time is spent. Indeed many a person can out pass a much hardworking person with less time spent on his books just by working intelligently.
A mentionable aspect of education is that school/colleges are not all about getting grades. True that grades are important but we should be weary of the total and complete consideration grades alone are given in our society. Realistically grades are a criterion to evaluate the level of education one has acquired.
Our first priority by far shouldn’t be cramming for grades but to get educated. But then, in sync with the world we live in, where the only means of evaluation for the most part constitutes of a short quick look at our grade sheets, what is practical is opting for both; grades as well as education.
When does education get boring?
“Education isn’t boring, cramming for grades, is!” — Mannal, 15.
Emphasizing again on the importance of taking education as education and not only as grades, when we take it as a lot of course books waiting to be crammed that is when education gets boring, tiring, intimidating, stressful, rigid and something we start subconsciously disliking and consciously avoiding.
Yet ironically, curiosity, that is the most fulfilling, elevating and motivating aspect of a person’s life, finds its channels elsewhere. From one student who feels ill at the sight of his course books yet stays awake all night reading an informative magazine, to another who “wastes” hours tinkering with a gadget yet needs to be threatened and coerced to be brought near his books. What are these students who are supposedly wasting their time doing? They are educating themselves. Furthermore, they love what they are doing!
Pretty confusing psychology we humans have. At one point we detest “studying”, at another nothing gives us more pleasure than doing exactly that — studying. If it weren’t for the rigidness of the matter, the education we get in schools/colleges is as interesting, as exciting and fulfilling as the education one can get from watching a programme or reading a book. Even if programmes are those serial sitcoms and the books fictional, we are learning about behaviours, cultures and societies and probing our feelings through them so again that’s also education.
Take any subject say physics, chemistry, computer science, geography, history, biology, even mathematics! All these books actually are pure knowledge that we will be applying later in life. There are many people I personally know who normally love reading books but don’t go near their course books (God forbid, they bite!) These same people just by changing the way they take their course books; from dull rigid duties to curiosity inducing — gainful knowledge, can hold interest, if not of the same level, but enough to warrant fun while learning.
Grades
Grades have gained their fair share of importance in our society to serve as a criterion of evaluation. Though we should never resort to cramming our way through school years just in order to get them, we being as well aware of their importance as we are, should definitely have them in our list of top priorities.
So our education should not only be a basic understanding of what we are being taught, but also an education that one is able to present on paper beautifully, an education that can be conveyed to another person; orally or verbally, an education that gives results.
There are many students, who while they may be most apt at the subject matter being taught, fail to get grades that may serve as a proof of their aptitude. Listed here are the many things one must consider to get these elusive grades.
Learning
First and foremost, you have to learn what needs to be presented. “If you pay attention to lectures in class that’s already half the battle won,” says Rana Mahsam, a student who got 87 per cent in his F.Sc examination. Paying attention in class ensures that you are aware of the subject matter being taught. Avoid distractions during lectures and try to sit up in front where the scrutiny of the teacher will make you want to pay attention.
Another aspect to learning involves asking questions that may arise in your mind, no matter how insignificant you feel they are. Questions are like keys to the doors of knowledge, but many students fail to use them. Worst off are those who hold a question in their mind but feel it is an inadequate one to be asked and hence never ask. Remember that your question is a step you need to climb, to go higher. Being a student no one expects you to know about the subject matter already. You go to schools to learn. It is vital that you clear those doubts in your mind right now while at a learning stage and once you start asking questions you will lose the initial shyness.
Reviewing each day’s work at home is the simplest and most foolproof way to stay abreast with the knowledge being imparted in class. It is easier to learn and retain information that is still fresh in your mind than learning it during the pre-examination period. It is a good idea to make a time table that is best suited to your activities, yet assign some time each day to revise whatever you were taught at school.
Arrangement
Arrangement and presentation of knowledge counts a lot when it comes to getting grades. An intelligent representation of the known facts in a way that is attractive as well as explanatory goes a long way in getting excellent grades. The fundamental keys are knowing how to arrange all the knowledge in your head in such a way that it is:
Well proportioned: Try writing down the required answers with an introduction holding an intriguing start. The body or main text should carry a flow of related paragraphs. A conclusive finish will always give a much better and well-rounded feel to your answer than an abrupt one.
Easily understood: The answers should be concise, phrased in simple yet complete sentences.
Answers what is asked: Many students lose their marks when they fail to understand the question and give the wrong answer or an off the mark one. Always read the questions carefully to avoid such blunders. Also, don’t beat about the bush and expect the examiner to fall for it!
Time management
The most basic of skills a student can hold is his ability in managing all his knowledge on paper in the short and in most cases, insufficient amount of time. Before actually sitting in the exam, it is a good idea to get a sample paper, evaluate the paper pattern and assign minutes that should be spent on each specific section or type of question.
The security of knowing exactly how much time is left and how much needs to be written in that time, keeps the student focused and better able to brush upon all the relevant and required parts.
Not prioritizing time has been one of the top blunders many students make which results in missing out on questions. Even the low scoring questions can gain a student the needed one mark that can boost his grade from a B to an A grade.
Neat and tidy papers
Spic-and-span papers get far higher consideration and ‘gradation’ than slapdash, messy ones. A student giving a tidy, readable paper is already on his way to securing a good grade for himself. To quote a teacher: “It is like being served a cheese burger. No matter how good the burger is, you don’t feel like eating it or believe it would taste good if it is presented on a messy plate.” Now, we can understand the logic of that! So improving your handwriting if it isn’t already legible, or writing as neatly as you can will be a good investment on your part to get good grades.
Writing speed
In the insufficient amount of time given during exams, a quick writing speed becomes essential. The more writing speed a student has the more he/she will be able to put on paper for evaluation and the more quality material that is put on paper, the more marks a student gains. While a fast writing comes naturally to many, it is a skill that can be acquired gradually and then built up by conscious diligent practice. So day-by-day, time yourself on your writing and try to gain speed.
Practice
Nothing is better than some hands on experience when it comes to giving papers. There are model papers available in most institutes that clue in a student about the type of questions that may be asked. By making good use of that aid and solving at least one of such papers, the student gains an advantage of familiarity with the paper. A student who has practiced phrasing the answers he might be asked in the papers is always much better off than a student trying to make up one on the spot. The class tests taken regularly are another means for good practice. The corrected copies of the tests, tell a student about the mistakes he has made and can avoid in actual examination.
These were a few pointers that if kept in mind, can ensure a better overall grade. One flaw that our educational institutes incorporate in us is the passiveness concerning studies. One might be made to think throughout their school/college life that it’s the teachers, the classes, the assignments and the whatnots which are responsible for educating them, while they remain a dispassionate side observer, doing all that is required of them and not more. This attitude needs to be changed. Education requires inner motivation. In the end, all a student will ever get, is how much he himself takes charge of the education and chooses to take. It is time that all us passive watchers of our lives get active about it.
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