Video Transcription
Exam stress
Hey, this is Alex from Minus TV. Today we’re in the city to talk about exams.
So, when you were in year 12, how did you find exams?
Um, well, I did the IB, so I don’t know. I found it pretty stressful having them all at the same time, like all the coursework due at the same time, and then exams in the space of like 3 weeks. They were pretty stressful times. I mean, depending on the kind of exam, half of the time you had to sort of show that you knew all this stuff, and I did a lot of cramming. I wasn’t as organized as I could have been.
Where in my day, everything hinged on 3 hours in the exhibition buildings at the end of the year. I think it’s good to spread it out so that a capable person can show their capabilities at other times, not just at the end of the year when they may be having a bad day.
Um, not too bad actually. I didn’t study very hard, but I did all the subjects that I really liked and was really good at. I actually didn’t have that many exams either. I had folio work and a dance, and I actually failed year 12, so I probably should have had exams.
So, do you have any tips for students with upcoming exams?
You should probably study—like actually study—don’t just say you’re studying. Like, sites like Facebook could impose, um, you know, those things where people lock themselves out of sites. I don’t know. I think the whole “lock yourself out of sites” is kind of stupid, because if you really wanted to do it, you could just go on it somewhere else, and it’s not that hard to just not go on them.
Start early. Start early. Get organized. Make good notes beforehand. So like, as you go along, while it’s still manageable, make notes and then put together a study schedule. That always helps. Like, if you can break up this big course load into little chunks, and then, you know, check off the little bit, you’ll feel awesome about yourself and you can get stuff done.
Now, do you have any tips for students on unwinding or relaxing—things they can do to take a break?
Just drink heaps. Um, in the 10 days in between my English exam and my Literature exam, I read every single Dan Brown book that has ever been published. Um, so I guess just do something that relaxes you, and don’t freak out about the fact that you feel like you should be doing study, because if you do study all the time, you’re just going to freak yourself out.
Okay, so any tips for stress?
Don’t spend all day studying because that’ll just stress you out. Make sure you take a break every hour or so. Do something you enjoy, or have a snack. I find playing video games is a bit of a good way to stop stressing, except when they get stressful, and then you can just get back to study.
I would say, even though I never follow this advice myself, don’t leave everything to the last minute. Because once you’re under that amount of pressure and stress, it’s so difficult to learn. Your mind’s just not working. It’s focusing on how screwed you are.
Video by Minus 18
