In the quest of the poof

As someone who has sat my fair share of exams, it’s a terrible time!
I hate exams and the very thought of them often sent me looking for something else which simply had to be done as a matter of urgency. Procrastination and I were definitely firm friends.
Now, some years later, I find myself once again in the pursuit of academic excellence but this time at least there will be no exams. Well none of the “sit in a quiet room for three hours trying to remember everything I’d crammed” sort of exams.
But there certainly will be examination by multiple highly educated individuals both here and overseas looking for the slightest sign that I am not worthy to wear the red bonnet (looks more like a beanbag poof to me) that comes with the title, and work of Dr.
It’s been a long path littered with many hours of exams and even more hours trying to prepare for these.
Around every corner, I’ve found, there’s an expert just waiting to tell you how to study. But let’s be honest, there really isn’t one sure-fire way to ensure all that knowledge goes in and stays in, or that once inside your head it will be available at the precise moment you need it.
Coloured pens are great or so I thought until I read a question on a psychology exam and jumped with joy, realizing I knew every aspect of the answer.
This was going to be a piece of cake if only I could remember what all the pretty pink writing said.
The next question was equally easy that was the purple information the answers refused to come.
I could see the colours and the patterns they made on the page but for the life of me the words were unattainable, I simply couldn’t remember what that blue writing which I knew was the correct answer said.
A friend of mine entered a political science exam armed with an assortment of exciting mnemonics.
The answer to the question was definitely Polly’s Pink Birdie Has Blue Feathers And Orange Wings (PPBHBFAOW) the only problem was that Colin couldn’t quite put his finger on exactly what Polly and her Birdie were trying to communicate.
Other study “experts” try to force the spider diagram down your throat or insist that the only methods reliable enough to guarantee success are the use of flashcards or keywords.
The sad truth is that they simply don’t work for me.
Neither are they appropriate for thousands of other poor students who try to navigate the streams of information, while also trying to decide, often through trial and error (or failure) which one works for them, sometimes only to discover that none of the expert methods is of any help.
For me, the best method was simply a positive attitude.
If I believed I could do it, I always did. The power of positive thinking though often laughed at just seemed to give me the extra confidence needed to get all that valuable information into, and out of, my overcrowded brain.
If I believed I would pass, I simply did (with a little help from the good folks who meticulously wrote all the books I was being examined on).
For a friend, reading not studying was her key to success. She simply read and reread everything until the information stuck.
While to others this might seem a lot like studying, to her it was simply reading and the fact that she wasn’t studying took the drudgery out of the task and spurred her on.
Every student needs to find their perfect method so without advice, we at the Addie wish all those treading the exam waters, every bit of luck we can muster on your behalf.
Whatever your preferred method may it bear excellent fruits for your labour.
But I’ll still contend, a positive attitude never did anyone any harm, so go forth with confidence and kick those exams’ butts!