Should we study how to study?

by Bella Audsley

The lead up to exam season can create seismic waves across entire households, resulting in frenzied flashcard making and superfood snack shopping. Whether your children are safely past their entrance exams (phew!) or in the run up to their GCSEs, the sooner that pupils can build confidence with their study skills the greater chance they have of managing exam pressure and confidently performing their best.

The recent changes to the GCSE system are creating a knock-on effect on younger pupils.

Last year the NSPCC’s Childline delivered over a thousand counselling sessions to pupils worried about their exam results. The new GCSEs aim to create more rigorous testing and put greater focus on exams at the end of two years. Younger pupils are therefore required to strengthen their memory and general study skills.

The key to revision is organisation and planning.

Students benefit from keeping to a structure with clearly separated periods of work and leisure. You may want to discuss the best environment for your child to revise or do homework; when are they most productive? Do they prefer to get homework out of the way or take some time out after school to refresh? Creating a good routine will reduce the nerves in those all-important exam years.

While it may be tempting to put off study support until you reach ‘highlighters at dawn’ over Dickens, when children can ingrain these techniques for memorization and study early on they are more likely to study self-sufficiently as they grow up. With their ready-made collection of colourful revision notes happily filed, your child – and your family – will be able to maintain a healthy balance of study and rest.