People often mistake their valuation from exams as the borderline to their limits; the conclusion to how their future may turn to. But that's purely a misunderstanding, quite often misleading students because of the way it's presented, the pressure with which its putforth, the stress laid on its instructions, and finally because of the serious atmosphere that takes over right before it. The regularisation of these have ended up with hypnotising the mindset of the students, having them weigh their entire future on ‘just an exam’.
Yes; just an exam. This phrase is so rarely used nowadays that one may suppose that someone stating it treats exams too lightly. But it really is “just an exam”; just a consideration of what one have understood throughout their particular course in a particular period of time, a check on their capability to pursue a certain career, a test to ensure that a student is good enough to go through the upcoming hard levels, eventually its simply a training; letting a person to learn how to give it your all at the crucial moment and to improve an individual in the aspects of time management, memorisation, vocabulary and such. One of exam’s main but neglected features is to let the one writing it realise their mistakes; where and how they went wrong, thereby allowing them to work on it to bring out the best and the maximised performance in the following critical circumstances of life.
Unfortunately, nowadays most of the students and even some parents and teachers have somehow ended up assuming exam evaluations as the final decisions that determine a student's upcoming future. But exams are not a full stop but a semicolon. It’s not a fact but a evidence to prove the fact that’s yet to be formed; a pretty strong point in a proof that accounts for a student’s pattern of improvements that still is incomplete and requires to be filled. It’s results would not remain definite over time and hence cannot form a base to define anything either. Its not the final race to decide on the winner but the trial before it to find out the errors so as to prepare oneself for the real race that's yet to happen.
Exams are not a conclusion but simply a consideration; exams don’t and could never conclude on what a person is capable of and how successful he /she would be in the future. Exams don’t calculate a student’s calibre but merely points out where one specialises and where one falls short as of the conducted period. Therefore, a fail in an exam would never mean one is a failure and likewise, being an ace in exams does not ensure a person to excel in everything. Exams just ascertain the understanding of a particular subject so far, as to proceed with it further. It’s results are constantly changing and would keep on changing.
Ever wondered why do I have to learn these whole lot of chapters, each with prolonged portions just for hardly 12 to 18 questions that's required to be answered during exams or why did I even go through all that suffocating and frustrating days just for these two hours of exam. Well, I have and that's how I found out the real purpose of exams. Exams are not conducted to crush the blooming dreams and prevailing hopes of the wild souls nor to stress the hell out of confused minds. Rather to stimulate students, push a little focus in to them so as to not let them lag behind and lose interest in things they have completed learning. One thing we all fail to see most of the time is; exams are not about the question paper, answer sheet and the final score on it but the sample papers, schedules, notes and pomodoros we involve in inorder to crack it. Its the process that's important. Its emphasis is not on how you would end up but on "how you should begin." That's why the very important thing about exams is how we tackle both the process and results. That's what the real challenge is!
As for me, I do boost my efforts during the exam period but I make sure I don’t go that far as to exhaust myself. Most of the time I try to provoke my own curiosity so as too keep on going with studies without losing interest; I open up any random page of a chapter and read through it so that I could get myself to be curious to know whats before and after it. I try to enjoy the process by either pretending to teach someone or by setting a time limit for myself within which I should complete a certain portion or a question, or by reading a portion once and trying to remember it, these, kinds of help to make studying a little less boring and tiring for me. I often shift from one chapter to another so as to grasp a bit of everything I am going to be attending and to make sure if by chance I come across a question from a portion I have not yet covered, in the least, I should be able to answer it with what I read about it. And last but not the least, I never fail to entertain myself in-between; be it for good food or for something that accounts for a good mood, i allow myself to decompress every now and then.
All this aside, no matter how much confused I am or how much portions I have left out, I always keep up my confidence.That's the fundamental essence! I always ensure myself that I could do it. I do get depressed but when it comes to it ; I give it my all to keep my energy stabilised and maintain a healthy mindset. Also, I never let myself to get tensed before exams, I just free my mind from all the stress and repeat to myself that; somehow I will manage it, somehow I will survive it. I don’t bother to overthink what I might have missed to learn and would I be able to answer all sorts of questions just before exams. I simply trust myself and go for it straight away. Anywise, what is to come is uncertain,so I always choose to go with the positive side. If I start to doubt then I have quite a lot to worry about and all that for something thats going to be over within two or three hours. I don’t let myself get overworked because I kind of find it worsen things, even harder. Also, I completely forget about the exam once I have finished it, I don’t compare my answers after it nor check for my marks until it’s announced. I don’t want something that’s over to disturb my peace of mind to confront the upcoming exam.
But this is all with me. This may be really easy for me to proceed with because thats how I approach it and I am able to do so too, from my stand. It may not be the same for others; it differs with people, their point of view, their scenarios, and situations. It may not be as simple as this for someone else. And to someone who approaches it the other way, comforting words such as ‘take it easy’, ‘don’t stress over it’,’you can do better next time’ may not be that easy to take in, because it may not make sense in their condition which all but they know about. Though its just an exam, the very exam might be so important to that person because of the position they are in or because of the hopes their loved ones have in them. In most of the cases, little reasons like these are what that makes an exam so important not the exam itself. So, the way to manage stress differs with people; a method that works for one may not necessarily work the same for others.
As far as I could think, the best way in which one can manage their stress over exams is to begin with trusting themselves. That eventually makes everything else smooth. And trusting that she/he can do it seems the most favourable way to support someone who is gonna attend an exam.
Now, a shout out to all those people out there who can't feel your souls because of the endless hours of studying and stress, I am not gonna go with "take it easy", but let me ask you all to go easy on yourselves ; 'cause that's something you deserve the most for all those rough and tough hours you have been through. Irrespective of the result, you are in all sense worthy of a token of appreciation, not from anyone else but from you to yourselves. So make sure to serve yourselves with something that entertains and excites your almost dead soul .
And to the souls dampened and dissapointed because of the results you have got, just know that you have a whole lot of fire inside you to burn this all and go for the glow of your style!
Hang in there all. The best is always yet to come!