You as a student may feel lost when revising for your math examinations. In most schools in Singapore, the preliminary examinations before the real O-Levels and A-Levels are usually disproportionately more difficult than the actual paper. Sometimes this is done to scare students into studying harder as their final push (when they do badly in the prelims). This article aims to shed light on a few good practices for students who may be burning the midnight oil.
Know which Math topics you are weak in
Firstly, it is good to find out what you as a student do not know. If you wait until just before the math exam, it will be impossible for you to revise everything due to time constraints. You should target math topics which you are most unsure of. Or you can start with maths questions where you lack a fundamental understanding and attempt these questions step-by-step. If you can do the questions even without an understanding of the topic as a whole, then you’ll be making steady progress for the exam revision.
Create Mind Maps of each Math Topic
Secondly, it is good idea to make cheatsheets and summarised mindmaps for the exam. A good practice is to try to reproduce these mindmaps from scratch from time to time. The mindmap should be divided into sub-topics which are covered in the math exam and contain important details, formulas, or examples which the teacher has covered.
Try teaching your friends!
Lastly, students should seek to understand math topics in simple terms and try explaining them as if you were teaching them about it for the first time. Being able to explain things in simple terms is beneficial for you as they will be stronger in their foundational knowledge. Students should not memorise things in the convoluted language of the textbook or the notes, but instead think about what the topic is really all about in the most basic sense, and in the simplest terms.
To conclude, although revising for math examinations may seem like a daunting task which requires consistent time over the entire school term, students should know that they can make the best out of their own circumstances. Everyone has the same 24hrs a day, even the top student in the school. So plan your revision well, and focus more on the least confident topics first. And you will be in good shape for the coming exams!
