Matric study tips
Kwatsaduza - Dale Taylor, Head of Programme for the Social Sciences Faculty at The Independent Institute of Education, shares these tips for the matric class of 2017.
She says that the learners need to play the long game to ace their finals.
“The Grade 12s who are serious about giving their final exams the best shot now have the most valuable weapon, time.
“They should use it to their advantage.”
Read: Principles for effective exam prep
She says that there is a big difference between studying, which consists mostly of cramming facts into one’s head, and preparing properly, which takes time and strategy.
“Many people are not aware of the difference between the two.
“True preparation for an examination requires you to understand concepts in such a way that you are able to engage with them at higher levels.
“You should be able to apply them, analyse them, evaluate them, and create by using them.”
She adds that the bottom line is that you need to practise hard.
“This means putting pen to paper, which allows you to reflect on your knowledge and engrain your learning into your long-term memory.
“You need to make sure that you have not just committed the ideas and facts to memory, but that you understand how they are linked to other concepts and ideas,” says Taylor.
Read: 5 tips to beat the exam craze
She says that one needs to create a Power Point presentation of the work.
“Note down the key words associated with the idea.
“After reading through and summarising the content, go through the presentation and talk yourself through it. True learning takes place not only at the stage of summarising the information, but also when delivering the presentation,“ she says.
She says that one needs to create visual maps.
“They will allow you to record the structure of the knowledge, whether it is in a cycle, flow chart, hierarchical tree diagram, or Venn diagram.”
Taylor says that being able to understand conceptually is what sets the distinctive student apart from the average one.
“By endeavouring to understand conceptually, instead of like a parrot, you will stand yourself in good stead when it comes to those tougher questions on the examination paper,” she says.
