This is a superb, sobering and provocational talk….
Educators need to reflect upon it…
Parents need to think about…
Students should be consulted….
Whilst accepting that philsophically education is about more than passing exams, the reality is that examinations are part and parcel of the learning journey.
The number of young people who approach their end of school or end of year examinations in a stressed, underprepared way is disproportionate to the amout of effort schools put into giving support and advice.
Sometimes young people are their own worst enemies in this regard. They are given the advice and support but are either not interested at the time it is given OR simply do not take it in in the ‘form’ it is given.
The workbook below is designed as a weekly programme which allows students to focus on what needs to be done with regards exam preparation AND offers practical advice on how to set about ‘revising’.
It is available from
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/alan1152
Everything You Wanted to Know About Revision
Well, almost but not quite.
As promised I’m trying to catch-up with all of the material I did say I would be posting on this blog.
So, for all of those who were interested in the revision materials you can find the following templates on the links below.
If, however, you would like a complete workbook and guide on revision techniques and approaches (from which the templates below are taken) it you can find it at LULU .
The templates below will be of most value and meaning to those who have attended my recent workshops on exam preparation and motivation but they will be useful to all those planning their personal revision timetables.
REVISION needs to be undertaken positively, with intention and a clear idea of what needs to be learned. Ideally revision is something that you do regularly, it is not something that ‘has to be done’ at the end of a course.
REVISION is about REVIEWING what has been learned and IDENTIFYING what need to be learned.
SWOT : A Template for defining your strengths and weakness in a subject as well as defining who/what can help or hinder. Use this tool to define what needs to be learned and how you can best get support in learning it.
ActiveRevision : Active Revision is about using a planned revision session to maximise learning. Avoid the trap of thinking that reading through your notes is ‘revision’. The active revision framework is designed to allow you to identify what needs to be learned clearly; how to set about using revision time in a structured way and how to ensure that you learn what you set out to learn.
PlanningTime : Knowing how you use your time is the first step in managing your time. Whether you like the idea or not preparing for a examination requires you to plan your revision. There are so many ways to sabotage your good intentions when you allow yourself to be sidetracked by time-wasting activities. Planning your time will actually result in you worrying less and having more time to focus on the things you want.
The workbook, Everything you Wanted to Know about Revision – but were afraid to ask, is a concise guide to the techniques covered in the workshops I have been running.
Sections include thoughts on motivation, learning, memory, exam practice and approaches, stress management and revision techniques. It’s written in a no-frills way and contains practical exercises for the student to complete in order to meet their own revision needs.
The original version of this book was used as part of the Aim Higher Initiative in Cornish Schools and since then abstracts and earlier editions of it have been used by schools throughout the UK.
It is now available as a 68 page printed book or e-book from Lulu.
Alan
It’s that time of year again in English schools – exams are approaching.
BUT
Why oh why are some schools actually perpetuating the “NOW is the time for revision” myth?
Approaching the final month or so of any examination course attention should be directed towards celebrating what has been learned rather than what still needs to be crammed into the heads of the learner.
During the last three weeks I have had the pleasure of working with a number of Year 11 GCSE students, teachers and parents in a number of different schools and whilst the focus has been on ‘preparing for the exams’, there is still the idea in the minds of some parents and students that the forthcoming exams require more an more revision to be done. In most cases the word ‘revision’ can be replaced by ‘cramming’.
Revision is not something that is done at the end of a course or programme of study; it is part and parcel of an ongoing ‘review cycle’ that is embedded within the learning system.
Preparing for exams, I feel, has three major components…
1) Preparing intellectually for examinations – putting the forthcoming assessment within the framework/context of longer term, personal goals
2) Preparing emotionally for examinations – exploring stress and emotional management techniques; managing anxiety, building confidence
3) Preparing practically for the examinations – ensuring that exam timetables and requirements are understood; exp0loring examination techniques and approaches; managing time – prioritising, planning.
The ‘revision’ that most students seem to want to engage in is not about cementing or revisiting learning but more about trying to ‘remember things’ and ‘learn more stuff’.
Over the next week or two I will be putting on line some of the review, learning, planning and motivational tools I have been sharing in the latest round of workshops. I hope you will register on this blog for updates so if this series interests you you will be able to keep informed of its publication.
Alan
