Mock exams are one of the best ways to engage in practice. Students need to sit in an environment that simulates examination in order to get used to that atmosphere. Once students are more familiar with the exam environment and develop the stamina to sit for several hours in a row to finish a paper, the actual examination becomes much easier to handle.
Mock papers are an excellent way to tackle exam-anxiety and this is why there are free test papers available for secondary schools and primary schools through various tutoring agencies in Singapore. Tuition teachers strongly advocate students to get used to the routine of practicing and learning from mistakes made, as this will what will help them improve over time.
Here are the key benefits of doing mock exams!
NO.1: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE
Practice is an essential part of the journey of mastering a skill set or performing well in a test. It conditions the brain to absorb information internalise, analyse, evaluate and derive a solution even in a stressful and time-sensitive setting such as during an examination.
Students need to have a positive mindset and the discipline to sit for the specific number of hours that the examination would take to finish the paper just like how they would do in an actual exam setting.
By practicing more and more papers, the questions that initially seemed difficult would start to seem much easier. Moreover, students would be able to identify their knowledge gaps and patch them up with the help of their tuition teachers before the actual examination arrives.
NO.2: EXAM ENVIRONMENT
The exam environment is something that has a lot of tension and stress filled up in the atmosphere as students would feel apprehensive about the examination. Stress is good to a certain extent as it gives an “adrenaline rush” that stimulates critical thinking and active recall of concepts. This enables students to perform with excellence in exam.
However, when stress exceeds the optimal level, students would end up performing poorly and the easiest of questions may seem challenging. If students get used to practicing using mock papers, they would be able to get used to a typical exam environment which reduces their exam-anxiety on the actual day. Candidates would be much calmer and they would have the stability to think critically during the examination.
NO.3: TACKLING EXAM-ANXIETY
Majority of students in Singapore admit that they are struggling from exam-anxiety. This is solely based on the mental pressure to perform well as students do not want to disappoint their parents, or they want to get into a good subject combination, and various other reasons.
Mock exams establish a familiarity in students’ minds and it keeps them grounded during the actual examination. This enables them to perform to the best of their ability, which will eventually yield good results.
No.4: TIME MANAGEMENT
Time is the biggest enemy for students during an examination. If students have poor time management skills, they might lose out on marks that they could have potentially gained, had they used their time effectively and efficiently.
If students practice using mock papers, they would be able to identify which kind of questions are more time-consuming and they would be able assess their own efficiency in answering questions. With every practice, students can see themselves improve gradually and on the actual exam day, students would be able to finish the paper as far as possible and spare enough time to do an entire check for careless mistakes.
Time management is a skill, and it requires time and effort to develop it.
BUILDING MOMENTUM
Similar to how an athlete would train continuously to perform well in his final competition, students need to train their minds for the actual examination. One needs to build the mental stamina gradually as it doesn’t come immediately on the day of examination.
Building the momentum slowly would be the best way to make improvement. When students try to force themselves to sit through examinations without previous practice, they would lack endurance and burn out. This leads to poor outcomes and it is certainly not what we want!
BOTTOM LINE
There are plenty of benefits associated with practicing using mock papers. Students need to have the discipline to stick with a plan and seek the guidance of their home tutors through this process in order to improve and succeed!