Exams! Study time! Remember everything! The insalubrious time of year that brings final exams gives way to chaos and tumultuous behaviors. How can one expect to do well on tests when inundated with trepidation? The mere thought of it all brings memories of all day cram sessions in which I took cognizance of all the material I needed to know for exams. If this method is one you choose to aid in exam preparation, here is my suggestion: DO NOT USE IT. More times than not, this technique–this modus operandi–only helps people forget what they need to remember and remember what they need to forget. Should you, as the reader, choose to use this straightforward and sensible guide provided, you will transcend echelons of education and learning with an effort most likely describable as child’s play.

Before one even begins to commence in final review, he or she must think of previous study hours put into a particular subject. There should have already been plethoric amounts of study time employed throughout the semester. Even if one hasn’t put in enough time, there is still hope for a successful pass at a final test (though it may not be as successful as desired). To begin final review, one should pull out all previous notes pertinent to the particular subject being studied. These notes should then be “condensed” into a form of terse and simple stature. The material should become concise – paragraphs should become sentences, mnemonic devices should become handy, and key ideas should become main points. It would be wise to put this information on flashcards. Flashcards aid in quick review, and frequent bouts of quick review makes information become ingrained in your brain.

After flashcards are made, it is recommended to form a study group. Studies have shown individuals have a deeper understanding of material after successful collaboration amongst individuals. When selecting people for a study group, one often considers picking people with whom he or she is amicable. Make sure you choose wisely and not pick someone to whom you have odious opinions, lest the group should disband. Amicability is not the only thing to consider when forming groups. Though is sounds somewhat awful, intelligence is to be considered as well. If one was in a group with dumb(er) people (morons, dimwits – you get the idea), the people of lower intellect would have been helped, but the people who were of higher intellect would have been dragged down. It may be cheeky and narcissistic to imagine, but one will do what one needs to succeed without the anxiety and chaos brought by exams.

The only thing to do from that point until the “bitter end” is to keep calm and study on (Ha!, that could be a on a poster). The calmness will keep a person from stressing his or her mind and heart, and the frequent study will (obviously) help an individual become a short-term master of the subject. Individuals who are diligent in study often times find a lack of anxiety in their personal atmospheres.

The key component of this plan is a five-to-eight hour mechanism called sleep. This can be the easiest or hardest part of the entire process. Individuals will sometimes spend an over-excessive amount of time working or studying and forget to rest. Your body and mind need sleep/rest to function properly for future study and testing. The day before the final, there should be little to no studying, and an individual should spend most of the day being calm and resting for the testing. You can not get much more out of a few hours of cramming, so what you have in your mind at that point will be what you carry into the testing area–any other effort is futile. These steps can prepare virtually anyone for important future tests and, more importantly, college. (If you are already in college, what the heck are you doing reading this paper? This should be common knowledge/practice for a college student like you.)

Test on your own recognizance.