With both Senior and Junior examinations on the horizon, it is important for us to remember the importance of finishing the year off in a way that reflects your ability. Studying for the upcoming examinations is a crucial aspect of your academic journey. It's not just about remembering facts or passing tests; it's about preparing yourself for success in the future. Your dedication to your studies today will shape your tomorrow. The knowledge you gain and the skills you develop during this period will open doors to endless opportunities, enabling you to pursue your dreams and ambitions. I spoke with Head Boy, Massimo Pezzuto and Prefect, Alex MacDonald, who provided some tips for what has worked for them in the past. Here are their top tips for Junior and Senior students:

Juniors

Massimo’s top five tips are:

1. Prioritise a balanced lifestyle – take plenty of breaks and make sure to complement this with physical activity
   
2. Minimise distractions – put your phone on silent or do not disturb
   
3. Overcome procrastination – make a plan, get stuck in straight away
   
4. Maintain healthy habits – sleeping, eating and exercise
   
5. Individualise your study method – not every study method will suit you, try what your teachers suggest and stick with what works best for you
   

Seniors

Alex writes:

First of all start early. Get on top of the work and make sure you're prepared to get through all your revision. Now. It can be hard to think of what to do and what I find works for me is to write out all of the key topics in your subjects. This in itself helps act as a sort of revision and if you don't know all of the topics off by heart you can go through your notes and figure out what there is to revise. Where to start? Well it is always best to start with the topic/concepts which you feel the weakest at and shy away from. This is because you will likely be least prepared for these and so you should change that and practise your weaknesses. Eventually you will be able to work through all of these difficult topics until they become boring and repetitive. At this point you will know that you have learnt it well.

Sometimes you may feel stressed or scared of the amount of study that you may need to do for all of your topics. The best way that I have found to get around this is to just make a start and then you will work into the flow of things. And if this doesn't work. Try setting yourself a five minute goal rather than an hour goal. This changes your view on your study and can make it easier to start as you only have to do five minutes. And after you've done five minutes you can do another five and another. And before you know it you'll have completed the study that you may have been initially scared to do.

Lastly, and this one is quite nice with NCEA due to the availability of past papers, is to get some timed exams under your belt. You will have time pressure in the exam and you will have already completed a mock exam but it is always nice to do one closer to the time of the exam to monitor your progress and put yourself under a bit of pressure without help from your notes. Once you have completed this it can always be a nice addition to work through questions you may have not got or struggled on and use your notes or the marking schedule to help answer them to further develop your understanding. Then when you next see a similar sort of problem or question you'll have a more developed knowledge bank to draw from.

So, remember that each hour you invest in studying brings you one step closer to achieving your goals. Stay focussed, stay motivated, and give it your best because your hard work today will pave the way for a brighter and more promising future. Your efforts will be the foundation of your success, so make every moment count.

By Mr Fielding, Alex MacDonald and Massimo Pezzuto.