Many students often ignore the significance of pre-board exams and tend to forget that it serves as a precursor for them to experience the intricacies of the board-level exam setup. It also helps students review their weak areas, analyse their study methods and work on strategies. Such shortcomings may cover various aspects including individual preparation, writing speed and basic approach strategy.
The result helps you decide the kind of performance you will be giving in the final board exam. This helps students assess their ongoing performance and to make desired changes in their respective exam approach accordingly.
What to expect from pre-boards:
Instead of treating the pre-boards as another reason to pressurise yourself and accentuate stress levels, the idea behind its preparation should be to plan effectively.
It is also reported that some students tend to take these exams casually as the pre-board exams cause no direct effect on the final results.
This type of approach must be avoided by students as although it doesn’t affect board results directly, such methodology could restrict students from deriving their practical benefits. These exams will eventually help you build your confidence to attempt the final board examination paper. The aftermath of adopting such a casual attitude will lead students to face difficulty in preparing for the finals.
How to plan:
You can talk to teachers, peers and your seniors about what study plan they follow in the last days after full syllabus completion. It is critical for students to maintain their ongoing preparations, while simultaneously making necessary alterations in their approach strategy according to their respective pre-board results.
Exam strategy:
Students should realistically take up each subject and go through all the topics and chapters in it. Getting your hands on the NCERT textbooks will guide you towards clearing your concepts and sharpening your skills on a topic as chances of questions appearing beyond the prescribed text book are very little.
The strategy you make should be a perfect blend of learning and revising the syllabus. Do not skip studying diagrams, tables or graphs in the textbook.
Practising v/s studying:
Solving the past ten year question papers is a very good idea to familiarise yourself with the exam patterns and popular questions because having studied well and being exam ready are two different things.
Practising a ready question bank and mock tests will further help you prepare the right questions beforehand.
Small measures which will help a lot:
Students should also not ignore important formulae, notes and dates which are important for almost all subjects. The smart thing to do is to write down these points, formulae, theorems, and definitions on flash cards that you can carry along in your pocket or wallet for a quick revision at the last minute. (Do not, however, under any circumstances, carry these inside the examination hall). Before initiating any practice, mastering the subject is more important.
During the exam, it is advisable to write long, descriptive answers in points and give pictorial or graphical illustrations wherever possible. This enhances visibility.
What pre-boards aim to do:
Pre-boards are preliminary tests which help you understand your weak areas. Working on your weaknesses also builds your confidence level. You should chalk out a proper time-table that encompasses everything – from your sleep schedule to your study pattern – and stick to it.
Remember:
Believe in yourself; there is still time to improve your performance and score better marks. Do not panic; push yourself harder and make sure that you are poised to face the final board examination. Given below are a few methods that can be incorporated in your study schedule to tackle those difficult areas prior to your board exams.
Create a proper timeline:
Now, as you know your weak areas, your agenda should be to give extra time to tackle those difficult lessons and transform them to strong ones. A timetable helps you to prioritise and take care of the important and weaker sections first.
It helps you procrastinate less and gives you the freedom to plan your schedule the way you want. While you have allotted additional time to master those tricky subjects, do not ignore the other lessons.
Preparing your notes will go a long way:
Revising the whole syllabus from scratch may seem impossible in the limited time available. Therefore, prepare short notes and list out the main points or draw diagrams that can help you recall all the answers quickly.
The act of writing notes or drawing flow charts consolidates your memory and is more effective than only reading or mugging up your lessons. In this way, you will be able to grasp the points better and remember everything you need to know during the exam.
One last thing to remember that pre- board exams in top schools are very important especially if they follow their board exams pattern.