issue 14 // volume 44 life & style // no. 17

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Don't stress

over finals

> How I became a confident exam taker

Jillian McMullen
Staff Writer

 

y first year of post-secondary
involved a lot of school-related

anxiety. I, like most new students,
was struggling to get my bearings in
university. It felt as though everything
high school had supposedly prepared me
for was irrelevant to my new educational
environment and its conventions—I had
never even encountered a citation format
until my first semester. While a visit to
the library quickly helped me learn my
MLA basics, it did not help me to deal
with the stress of taking exams that were
sometimes worth a third of my grade. I
remember spending the first hour of my
first major exam frozen in fear and the
next furiously writing in an attempt to
finish on time; I cried on my roommate’s
shoulder when I got home, terrified that
I had jeopardized my grade-dependent
funding. Five years into my now-ending
undergrad, I’ve developed a way to
approach similar breakdowns, so, in the
spirit of the upcoming exam season, here’s
how I became a non-nervous test-taker.

First, you have to be willing to
do the leg work. You're given an exam
schedule at the beginning of the
semester—set yourself up for success
and give yourself enough time to do
a good job studying. There's just no
way to confidently take a test if you
don’t know the material—period.

Second, know how to effectively
study. Different subjects each require
a different sets of skills, so they all

require a different approach. Sociology,
anthropology, biology and other subjects
that similarly test memorization all
benefit from flash card studying; math
demands that students know how and
when to use different operations, and
English requires students to link course
themes to each text covered, so anticipate
possible essay questions and prepare
outlines for them, or at least be aware of
correlative themes. This last rule is what
really contributed to my confident test-
taking: I don’t study material on the day of
the exam. This will sound negative, but, by
exam day, there’s no amount of studying
you can do to change the outcome of your
exam—it’s too late; you either know the
material or you don't. Use the time you
would have otherwise wasted trying to
cram as much information into your brain
as possible to, instead, focus on getting
yourself in the right head space. If you
go into an exam with a calm mind, you'll
be able to focus on your work rather than
the clock ticking away on the wall. I like
to find a quiet place outside to focus on
some controlled breathing (I find the
cool air really clears my head). When it
comes to setting your intentions, don’t
expect too much of yourself. Expect that
you'll complete the test to the best of your
ability, because that’s all you can ever do.
Going from a nervous test-taker
to a confident one only requires a
change in perspective. You've put in
the work, now prove it. Remember:
Your degree will be a series of different
tests, both academic and personal, and
will ultimately not be determined by
any one exam for any one course.

Otherplaylist

Brittney MacDonald
Life and Style Editor

As we roll our way into December, we have much to look forward
to: bad weather, crowded malls, loud family get-togethers, and
questionable vegetarian turkey substitutes. However, one thing we can
count on to cheer us all up are the seasonal songs that are bound to
be flooding the radio. Whether they be in celebration of this holiday
season, or just winter in general, here's a list of our picks for favourite
timely tunes. You can listen in on Spotify at https://open.spotify.
com/user/lullabyedespise/playlist/oe68z06A2]l7aZWPenproX7
“My Favourite Things” by Kelly Clarkson (Mercedes)
“Stamp” by the Rural Alberta Advantage (Chandler)

“A Christmas Duel” by the Hives and Cyndi Lauper (Jacey)

Let it Snow by Sarah McLachlan (Jerrison)

“The Little Drummer Boy” by Christopher Lee (Caroline)

“I Wish It Could be Christmas Every Day” by Wizzard (Ed)

“Cool Yule” by Louis Armstrong and the Commanders (Brittney)

 

oh priscillaomulo =

 

VAY WN

priscillaomulo #holidayfun at the annual
‘douglascollege #aboriginal dinner!
@ #happyholidays