Whole brain super learning ability

Chapter 30: Tips for Coping with Exams (1)
If the exam is compared to "crossing the river", then the method can be compared to "bridge" or "boat".Without solving the problem of bridges or boats, crossing the river is empty talk.

Take your exam with ease
You may have realized that exams may be a part of your life from now on.Testing has been an important part of education for years, but today it has moved beyond the classroom and into business, industry, government and the military.Exams are used to test your eligibility for college, trade school, or vocational training, and for advancement in business, industry, and the military.These tests examine people's abilities, critical thinking, and knowledge of a specific profession.There is no doubt that the results of these tests are very important.

Examinations are important events in life for students, especially the college entrance examination and high school entrance examination, which seem to be a watershed in life and affect students' future development and prospects.These will undoubtedly cause stress response and anticipation anxiety to human body functions, which are the two major causes of test anxiety.In fact, anxiety itself is a defense mechanism of normal people's psychology. When the body faces existing or potential danger, it will automatically adjust this mechanism.It is manifested as: muscle tension, rapid breathing and heartbeat, cold sweat, etc. Its function is to mobilize the body's strength to cope with possible crises.Mild anxiety has a positive effect. It can boost the spirit, improve concentration, make people's thinking concentrated and directional, and responsive.However, excessive anxiety can inhibit brain excitement and even cause the brain to go blank.So, how to deal with test anxiety correctly?We might as well refer to the following points to try: 1. Correct positioning, the expectation of the test results should be appropriate, and positioning yourself in a more objective position. If the subjective desire and the objective reality are too far apart, it will lead to excessive disappointment and even disgust. learn emotions.

2. Pay attention to the review of basic knowledge, adapt to all changes without change, and do not engage in tactics of sea of ​​questions, because this will only cause excessive fatigue, increase pressure and undermine confidence. 3. Separate the process from the result, that is, require candidates to focus on the struggle process and downplay the test results.Only by letting go of the burden of thinking and going into battle lightly can we win by surprise. 4. Learn to apply the principle of reciprocal inhibition.Psychologists believe that normal reactions and adverse reactions are incompatible with each other, just as joy and sorrow cannot appear in the same person at the same time.The generation and reinforcement of normal responses weakens the link between a particular stimulus and an adverse response.So when you are troubled by test anxiety, you can use another way, such as eating a good meal, listening to music, etc., to reward yourself and cut off the connection between test and anxiety. 5. Use your brain reasonably and master your own brain rules.If you are an "owl" type, arrange the review time at night and sleep well in the morning; if you are a "lark" type, you must go to bed early and get up early to make full use of the morning time.When reviewing, you should go from simple to complex, from easy to difficult.When you are not concentrating, you can read some fascinating magazines that you are interested in first, and then read the textbook after concentrating. This is also called the "run-up effect".Because diverting attention is easier than concentrating, if you use your brain reasonably, you will get twice the result with half the effort and be full of confidence.

6. Ensure adequate sleep and not be affected by dreams.Dreaming is the result of a disordered state of brain integration, and both expectations and fears can be expressed in the form of dreams during integration.For example, dreaming that I forgot to write my name, I was late when I got a bad car ride, and I couldn’t find the exam room, etc. These are all normal physiological reactions, so don’t be disturbed by some superstitions. 7. Diet.If you are emotionally anxious, avoid drinking coffee, strong tea, cola and other drinks that can easily cause mental excitement; don't be misled by advertisements and blindly drink so-called "brain-replenishing drugs". 8. Candidates who have had severe test anxiety in the past can go to the hospital and take some medicines under the guidance of the doctor.Note that you must take the medicine in advance to understand the sensitivity and side effects of the medicine. 9. Using perfume can make you feel happy and refreshed, and it is a simple way to reduce anxiety. 10. If severe anxiety occurs during the exam, you can use methods such as oppressing the eyeballs and stimulating the pharynx to cause nausea. In doing so, you can reduce anxiety by suppressing the overexcitement of the sympathetic nerve through reflection. 11. In addition, you must be familiar with the environment of the examination room in advance, you can walk with students of the opposite sex when entering and leaving the examination room, and you can wear confident clothes, etc., which can reduce test anxiety. 12. Do not look at the watch frequently during the test; it is not advisable to check the answers with others after the test.

We have already talked about how to deal with test anxiety, and now we will talk about effective review methods, which can help you successfully cope with the test.

1. Learn to identify the key points of learning.

General principles, formulas and theorems, experimental conclusions, vocabulary and rules, historical order and cause and effect of historical events, literary genres, theories and facts, etc., are all the key points of the course that need to be reviewed.Be sure to distinguish opinion from fact.Pay special attention to things that are emphasized: words in bold, questions, words with emphasis, or repetition in the concluding paragraph.

2. In the first two weeks of the exam, you must listen carefully, and you must not miss any questions that the teacher mentioned in class.

Even if the teacher continues to cover new material, there will be indications of certain review points.Pay attention to things like this from your teacher: "We gave an example in October, it's not that different from this example, remember why that example is important", "This is the 8th basic principle learned this semester, These principles are very important for understanding this course." Most teachers will prompt all the test content in various ways, so pay attention to discovering these problems.

Also, pay attention.There was a teacher who filled the blackboard with English and French sentences, vocabulary and grammar rules, etc. a week before the exam.However, it did not explain why these things were written on the blackboard. It happened that no one asked. Later, when the students saw the test questions, everything became clear.The content of the exam was actually written on the blackboard for a whole week.Two students were very happy and finished the paper easily because they had seen the questions on the blackboard; while the others were blind to what was on the blackboard, so they only got normal estimated marks.

3. Use the problem to predict the problem.

When you come across a key point, ask a question about it, or think about how to turn it into a question.This ability to ask questions requires some practice, as many students are accustomed to asking simple questions that they are confident they can answer.It's a pity that you can't just ask simple questions in the exam.So be honest with yourself, be accountable to yourself, and dare to ask the hard questions and come up with the answers.Good students can sometimes guess about 85% of the test content.

Of course, this kind of guessing is the result of serious study and research, not a guessing game. Simply guess what the teacher thinks and review the questions.Therefore, the two should not be confused.

4. Reorganize course materials.

If possible, the review content should be divided into several easy-to-remember parts.Mathematics can be divided into definitions, word problems, theorems, formulas and general concepts.History can be divided and organized by biographies, chronicles, reform movements (radical), reform movements (conservative), civil wars, foreign wars, economic issues, urban issues, and religious issues, which is the most effective of all review processes of.It seems that this is not conducive to the unification of a subject, but in fact it is the opposite. This division can connect the various parts of a subject into a whole that is easier to understand, learn, and remember.

5. Change the attitude of learning.

If you usually study a course just by rote memorization, in order to get a credit.Then the review should hold the purpose of application and understanding.The first attitude is an obstacle to learning success, while the second attitude is a great psychological motivation to promote learning.Without active psychological preparation, any review will be difficult to succeed.

Don't just be an observer, be an insider.For example, when reviewing history, you should regard yourself as an object in history and play a role, not an emperor, a general or a hero, but a slave, an ordinary soldier or an ordinary person on the street.Through this role, you can develop an immediate, real feeling for the subject of your research.If you are reviewing a foreign language, you can create a sense of urgency by assuming that you will have to use the language in 6 weeks.Reviewing for exams by changing your attitude or perspective is a fun game.Give full play to your imagination and explore new ways and means of learning various subjects.

6. When reviewing, you should also pay attention to the terms that often appear in the exam questions, and practice how to "review the questions".

Although some words appear repeatedly in the test questions, these words may mean different things to different teachers.If terms such as "explain, evaluate, illustrate, narrate, illustrate, list, describe, illustrate, define, illustrate, compare, contrast and contrast" appear in the question, you must know what the teacher's intention is.Practice reading the thinking questions at the end of the chapters to figure out the exact meaning of the questions.Pay attention to the different characteristics of the questions in different subjects. Some subjects are very specific and others are very general.Review exercises are an important part of review.

Test Prep Strategies
Listed below are some common test prep strategies that have been proven to be effective.Additionally, students may wish to seek out other helpful resources, or develop their own strategies.A strategy should only be chosen if it is appropriate, and should be carefully monitored to determine whether it is working.With this in mind, we'll discuss helpful strategies below.

1. Revise class notes and reading notes - trying to remember everything in class or in books will inevitably lead to failing the exam.Instead, students should use a revision strategy to focus on organizing the most important information.

2. Refined questioning--students carefully organize the answers to possible questions in the exam in a self-questioning way, (such as why is every fact true?) This strategy will help students integrate new learning materials and The original knowledge in the mind is integrated.

3. Visual representations - forming vivid and clear representations of new words and their meanings; this helps to recall these new words or concepts (for example, Pan in Spanish Pan means "pan". By forming the image of bread in a pan, it is possible to relate Pan in Spanish to its meaning "bread").

4. Initial Mnemonic - This strategy calls for memorizing the first letter of a series of key words.For example, the names of the five Great Lakes can be encoded with HOMES (home) Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erieand, Superior (Lake Huron, Lake Ontario, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie, and Lake Superior).Another example is the use of the word FACE (face) to describe the treble marks F, A, C, and E on the staff.

5. Sentence mnemonics - a variant of the previous strategy, students remember a series of things by making up a sentence, in this sentence; the first letter of each word should be exactly the same as the first letter of the thing to remember .For example, "My very eccentric mother just served us nine pizzas. (My very eccentric mother just prepared 9 pizzas for us.)" In this sentence, the first letter of each word (M, V, E , M, J, S, U, N, P) are exactly the same as the initials of the nine planets in the solar system, starting from the closest to the sun: Mercury (Mercury), Venus (Venus), Earth (Earth), Mars ( Mars), Jupiter (Jupiter), Staurn (Saturn), Uranus (Uranus), Neptune (Neptune), Pluto (Pluto).

6. Study partner strategy - this strategy is to find a classmate as a study partner, compare study notes with each other, and test each other, so as to conduct self-evaluation on test preparation.

Review how you have prepared for the test in the past.List the methods you have used and rate their effectiveness.

The best way to prepare depends on the content of the exam.To that end, let's look at three broad categories of content on the test: heavy recall of knowledge; heavy application of knowledge (such as problem solving or essay writing); and heavy practical skills.

Preparation for knowledge-based tests.To prepare for this type of quiz, follow the principles outlined in Chapters 3 and 5.Effective recall of knowledge depends on meaningful learning.

What we're saying is that you don't sit there endlessly reading notes from cover to cover.As you've learned, that's not an effective learned skill.

What you should do is:

First, secure your notes:
1. Make every bit of knowledge meaningful;

2. Highlight key points;

3. Display structure and connection;

4. Emphasize the difference.

Remember: Make Knowledge Meaningful

Second, quiz yourself (or have a friend quiz) to determine what you have mastered well, then set that aside.

Third, pick out the knowledge you don’t have and practice applying it, for example:
1. Solve problems;
2. Answer past exam questions;
3. Assume that the question is answered by yourself;
4. Write the outline of the thesis;

5. Explain to an imaginary audience.

Remember: learn by doing

On an application test, you don't get points for facts you know, only you know how to select and apply those facts.Of course, you need to know these facts before you can apply them.As we have said before, what needs to be repeated here is still application—the selection and application of knowledge.

Correct choices in math and science are crucial because if you choose the wrong formula or method, your answer will be completely irrelevant and you will not be given credit.It is equally important to choose among subjects that require a dissertation.Because if you can't select the relevant facts well, you won't be able to answer the questions in the allotted time.

Therefore, it is very important to practice selection skills.For problem-solving questions, you should:
1. Find books that include a lot of questions (many review books do).

2. Practice reviewing questions and find out the required formulas and methods, without having to solve the questions in detail.

3. When you know whether to use formula A or B, method A or B, careful study of the topic will help you make a decision, and this should be recorded.

4. Do more problem-solving exercises.

In subjects that require a dissertation, practice selection by writing an outline rather than a full essay.

1. Find some books or examination papers that include essay questions, or you can write some questions yourself.

2. For each topic, practice according to steps 6-1 of Chapter 4 "Thesis Writing".

(End of this chapter)