Geography, History, Philosophy, Politics, RE & Sociology
July 12th, 2024
In this article, Micky, an experienced teacher and examiner examines five top reasons to incorporate past papers into your revision.
No matter which exams you are sitting, whether they are GCSE, A level or IB (or any other exam) you will find that there are a lot of benefits to incorporating past papers into your examinations. Here are the top 5 reasons to do so.
1. Familiarisation with the layout and format
They can often make us panic and feel overwhelmed. However, if we practise past papers as part of our revision then it can help to alleviate a lot of the pressure we feel in the exam hall. Find a quiet space at home, set a timer and practise a past paper under timed conditions. Then send it to your tutor to mark and receive feedback. Then the real thing won’t feel as scary!
2. Time management
How many of us struggle with time management in the real exam? We run out of time just as we reach the final question and lose those vital marks! Leaving a question out can make the difference between a grade. The benefits of completing past papers as part of a revision strategy can help to manage your time better during the real exam. You’ll become quicker at writing and get used to understanding how much time to spend on each question.
3. Understanding the questions
Quite often we feel confused by exam questions. What is this question asking me? Have I learnt this? What do I write? The more practice answering a past paper, the more familiar we become with the different types of questions that could be thrown our way. If you practise past papers as part of your revision, chances are that a very similar question will appear in your real exam!
4. Make the most of your tutors
A lot of tutors are also examiners for AQA, Edexcel, OCR. This means they are well qualified to offer support on the necessary exam skills required to achieve a high grade. Make sure to utilise your tutor’s experience by asking them to mark a past paper for you. The feedback will help you to improve and ensure you are better prepared for the real exam. Owl tutors only recruit experienced, qualified teachers so you’ll be sure to receive high quality written feedback.
5. Identify gaps in knowledge
Sometimes we don’t realise we have gaps in our knowledge until we sit an exam paper. We’ve all had that feeling where a topic we haven’t revised appears in the exam paper! Practising past papers at home will ensure that doesn’t happen by addressing any misconceptions and allowing us to revisit topics we hadn’t thoroughly covered previously. Better to make the mistake in a past paper than the real thing!
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