Positive thinking

Now that the exam window has opened in earnest and more and more Year 11 students (and soon some Year 9s too) are getting their first taste of the real thing, I thought I would share a few tips for parents and carers on how to best support the students. This isn’t about how to revise, more about what I have learned over the years of supporting students and families navigate this stressful time. I’m at pains to say that this is advice we share with staff too – as adults we can all say the wrong thing where teenagers are concerned!

1. Approach every exam in a positive frame of mind. Ideally we want all students walking into that exam room confident that they can give it a good try, even if as an adult you think they haven’t done enough prep work. Try to keep that to yourself and instead build them up before the exams.
2. Remind students that the exam boards train their markers to be generous with the marks. They are not trying to penalise or catch people out, and so everyone has a chance as long as they give the exam a go.
3. Building on that, the only way to guarantee zero marks is to not write anything. Here’s a secret…across the country LOADS of students leave questions totally blank. Therefore even the shortest of answers can give a student a boost compared to those who write nothing, even just one line for an long answer in English.
4. This is especially important given that tens of thousands of students miss out on the next grade up by 1 mark, sometimes out of 300 marks in total. One mark! Not leaving questions blank but also going back and checking answers is a great habit to get into. That one mark gained could tip the scales.
5. Sleep and food. Teenagers don’t generally function at their best in the morning, but the mean adults in charge have decided that many exams start before 9am. Gentle encouragement to get a decent nights sleep and eat a proper breakfast can work wonders.
6. If there is a disaster in the morning and a student will be late, try not to worry and just get in touch with the school. There are some things that can be done to support the student, all is not lost. Equally if a student is genuinely too ill to attend the exam then make sure you let us know asap and we can talk you through the process. Exams cannot be rearranged, but special consideration can be requested. Please keep any medical evidence that you may have in case we need to see it.
7. If nothing else, avoid the after exam debrief. This is the hardest of all my tips, and something that I constantly remind my colleagues about. It is natural after an exam for students to want to compare answers and see how everyone else did. This is a terrible idea and almost always leaves people feeling bad. There is always something that they discover they got wrong, leading to negativity. As hard as is it, try to avoid the ‘how did it go’ question until ALL the exams are over, and instead focus on what is next and what support they need from you to be ready for it.

Finally, don’t panic. The exams are stressful but students adapt remarkably well. They will quickly get into the swing of it, find their rhythm and take it in their stride. If you feel that there is something more seriously the matter then of course let us know, but in general please be confident that your young people will do the right things. Many students come into their own during the exam window, and it is a privilege to support them as they do so.

Best wishes and good luck all,

Joe Barker

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