So you have got the results of the exam.  Sometimes this is disappointing and the result is not what you had hoped for, so what do you do now?  This is the time to turn your disappointment into an action plan for the next exam.  Here are some steps to help you develop that plan.

The Review

1. Get the marked script from your teacher.
2. Compare it with the exam paper and look at where you did very well. What note-taking and study strategies served you well in the exam? Make a list of what worked.
3. Now take a look at the areas where you did not do so well. If you simply didn’t know the material, then a plan of revision is what you need.
   1. What method was a waste of time?
   2. Did you depend on rote learning?
   3. Did you bank on certain questions coming up?
   4. What question did you miss on the paper?
   5. Where were you caught off guard?
   6. What type of question were you not prepared for?
   7. What type of material did you miss in your pre exam revision?
4. In areas where you thought you knew the material other things might have gone wrong for you.
   1. Did you answer all parts of the question?
   2. Did you provide labelled diagrams where possible?
   3. Were there timing issues during the exam?
   4. Did you know the structure of the paper before the exam?
   5. How did you deal with short questions?

The Action Plan

Next, lay out, in detail, the rules for the study system that you’ll follow in preparation for the next exam.  Make sure this system includes the tactics you listed in your answer to (2) and excludes the tactics mentioned in your answer to (3). This sounds obvious, but many students get so comfortable with certain study rituals that they have a hard time abandoning them, even after they’ve identified them as not helping.

Most important, think hard about your answer for (4). Then ask yourself what’s the most efficient habit you could add to your study arsenal that would fill in those gaps. Add this to your system.

Don’t try to do all this on your own, get help from the subject teacher or your Guidance Counsellor.  It is always good to get somebody else to look at the marked script too.  Very often they can spot things even you might miss.

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Remember that it is better to prepare and prevent than repair and repent – Indian motto