Academic Insights – 7 top tips for… exams

My name is Laurence Knell.

I’m a distance education tutor.

Exams have a very important purpose.

They are a great opportunity

for the university

to understand

the student’s progression,

understand their learning,

and how well – or otherwise

– they may be learning.

For a student, they also

play a very important role,

in helping them

consolidate their knowledge,

gain greater insight and understanding

into what they’ve been learning,

but also to demonstrate

that knowledge. So actually,

for a student,

I would say that

they have a very positive

purpose as well.

For distance learners,

typically exam centres are set up

in central locations. So, whether

they’re, for example,

in the UK

but in different parts of the UK,

or maybe in mainland Europe.

So, for students who are

unable to reach an exam centre,

my university will work with

them and their organisation,

to ensure that a responsible person

within the organisation

is able to monitor the exam

and create exam-like conditions for them.

I’ve even heard of students

who were sailing round the world

on ships sitting exams.

Yes, there can

be additional challenges.

And that’s where practice,

repetition and rehearsal

really play an important role.

Focus on answering the question,

making sure that their response

is clear, it’s simple and concise,

and that their grammar

is as simple as possible.

Ideally, yes.

It is an exam

in an academic context.

However, it is

understood that nobody

writes the same in an exam

as they do in a formal assignment

or other piece of written work.

A good student exam paper,

simply put, is legible.

It has to be readable.

It needs to

be concise.

It needs to be to the point

and, most importantly,

it needs to answer the question,

using relevant evidence and examples

from the course and elsewhere.

My advice to students

who are really nervous in exams

is to see it as an opportunity:

an opportunity for them to

demonstrate to their tutor

– to the markers –

that they actually

do know the material,

they have engaged with the course,

and to see it in a positive light.

Go the distance.