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98% Average Past papers - 60% In the real thing.

I'm terrible with exam nerves, with my Mathematics AS Core 2 exam I was achieving 100% in past papers persistantly, with the odd 2/3 marks off of max marks from silly mistakes. In the real exam I just froze, everything went wrong that could and I ended up just scraping a C. I've got Core 1, Core 2, Core 3, Mechanics 1 in January and I am currently able to get As in them all in past papers. ANY tips on exam technique in Maths would be appreciated so much, you could really make a difference for me.

Thanks.

Reply 1

soup

If you're sitting down and really nervous take a really deep breath, drink some water and relax.

Reply 2

Nymthae

You can't do a lot to simulate exam pressure, sadly. Try isolate yourself best you can though somewhere quiet and time yourself to the minute. If you can, convince yourself something rides on it - though that might be hard :p:

If you're confident you have good time though, you know then you can afford to take a minute in the exam and just try to relax yourself. Close your eyes, take a deep breath and go for it!

I had this a bit with D1, just all went wrong on the day.

Are you like this with all subjects or just Maths?

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 3

Henryyyyy

Original post by Nymthae

I had this a bit with D1, just all went wrong on the day.

Are you like this with all subjects or just Maths?

Thanks for the responses. I get like this with pretty much all my exams, it's terrible as my knowledge of my subjects is at an A grade standard, whilst my exam technique always pulls me down.

Reply 4

Matt5422

I was in the exact same position as yourself , although the nerves I had were particularly bad in Maths . I found that taking something like "Rescue Remedy" before the exam can help calm your nerves , while taking a bottle of water into the exam can really help .

Like other people have said take a deep breath before starting the paper and don't rush through the questions . I always used to panic when I heard people turning the test quickly but you just have to try and zone into the work that you are doing . Something else is that I had a tendency to second guess what the question was asking since I had completed so many past papers . Always take time to read the question since I found if I started a question on the wrong foot that really affected me .

Hopefully this will help you :smile:

(edited 13 years ago)

Reply 5

zxh800

Ideally you want to get to the source of the problem and find out what's making you nervous. I knew quite a few people who always smashed past papers but crumbled after the real thing. If it's the weight of expectation, then i can sympathise with you. High expectations from teachers and relatives can make you nervous. What you need to do is find your "zone". When i get into "my zone" i'm a juggernaut. You just need to find a way into getting into your "zone". For me, a gung-ho attitude gets me into "the zone" and fires me up. So channel those nerves and go gettem tiger!

Reply 6

Kasc

Ask to take your exam by yourself, someone in my year also had a similar problem. He said that by being alone whilst doing the exam helped a lot.

I've had the odd exam in the past where I've been the only one doing one at that time and they stuck me in an office somewhere, I felt so much more relaxed.

If you are genuinely having a problem, the school will help.

Reply 7

Henryyyyy

Ohh, I may ask about taking the exam in a seperate room!

Reply 8

Casshern1456

I would take a drink to the exam(water) ofcourse. Try and concentrate and foncus on each individual question and read the question properly you'd be amazed how many marks people drop on by not doing that.
Best thing to finish the exam with 20 minutes to spare and quickly run through each question and check, check, check.

Reply 9

Henryyyyy

I have emailed our exam officers and on friday we'll sort out me going into a seperate room! Thanks for the advice!

Reply 10

TheGrandmaster

Practice some relaxation techniques?

Reply 11

kpwxx

It depends what the cause is but there are lots of things you could try.

¬You could try something calming like rescue remedy or lavender. Try normal calming techniques like breathing exercises, counting to ten, drinking some water.
¬Do practice exams in more exammy conditions (For example ask your teacher to put on a mock rather than just running through them yourself).
¬Speak to your school; if being in a separate room to other people would help (can make it feel less like an exam, often helps people who feel sick in exams) then they will almost certainly make an effort to provide this- your teacher can back you up on the fact that your grades are lower than they should be. The exams office should definitely be informed of the problem anyway.
¬Talk to your GP, they may be able to offer some help.

Good luck
xxx