As many students are now sitting down
to begin a course that will take them off to exam success in June next
year, it is worth thinking about what it is that they need in order to achieve
that success.
The answer to that question will obviously differ depending on the students, their previous learning experience, what they do in their free time and what their strengths and weaknesses are in English. However, the one thing that each and ever one of them will need or benefit from is exam practice. Often what holds students back from performing to the best of their ability is the fear of failure or the memory of a time they didn’t do well. Some students become so nervous that they don't give a true account of their knowledge. Other students have a worrying tendency to rely on last-minute cramming instead of studying systematically throughout the course. We can help break this cycle by giving them opportunities to succeed academically. It takes a combination of skills such as prioritization, motivation and autonomy.
The answer to that question will obviously differ depending on the students, their previous learning experience, what they do in their free time and what their strengths and weaknesses are in English. However, the one thing that each and ever one of them will need or benefit from is exam practice. Often what holds students back from performing to the best of their ability is the fear of failure or the memory of a time they didn’t do well. Some students become so nervous that they don't give a true account of their knowledge. Other students have a worrying tendency to rely on last-minute cramming instead of studying systematically throughout the course. We can help break this cycle by giving them opportunities to succeed academically. It takes a combination of skills such as prioritization, motivation and autonomy.
First Things First
The past paper as a diagnostic test is a
useful tool for a number of reasons. It gives the learners their first
full experience of the target exam. It gives a very clear idea of which areas of the exam
individual students need to work on and allows the teacher the opportunity to
collate areas of concern. Nevertheless, when the focus becomes too
much about the exam, the real reason why students are learning English can be
forgotten, producing negative backwash. Being able to underline key words in
multiple choice questions and write the perfect letter are really useful exam
skills, but they don’t help learners to communicate in the real
world. This corresponds with my own experience teaching exam class
students: the students who go into an exam with sufficient grammar and
vocabulary to cope with the content, are the ones who will be successful and no
amount of practice is going to make up the shortfall if they do
not. What will help students is to focus on sub-skills that they
need to both function in the real world and pass an exam. This means creating
lesson objectives that aim to help our students to understand and use the
target language in meaningful context. When reading is the focus, we can help
students identify how texts are structured, find specific information or infer
information implied in a text. In speaking lessons, we can help students
interact when discussing opinions, develop fluency and pronounce sentences with
effective intonation. Finally, in writing lessons, we can focus on how to
structure different genres of text, write with an audience in mind and link
ideas. By focusing on skills in a holistic way and not only exam
strategies, we can create a balanced syllabus that helps all of our students to
improve their language skills, as well as prepare for an exam.
Motivation
In general, the driving motivation for any
exam student is to match entry requirements and get into the university of
their choice. Stress is also a factor in motivation and over time students can
become burnt out from the pressure of the exam and the repetitive nature of
exam practice. Acting supportively and building into the course opportunity to
discuss coping with pressure can help students who feel under stress.
Learner Autonomy
While learner autonomy is beneficial in all
learning situations, the sheer volume of work necessary for an exam course
means that students who embrace autonomy are often better prepared. Teach your
students how to find resources for their own learning. Most importantly, encourage and insist that your students complete and
correct time consuming exam practice outside class. This grants you, as the
teacher, more time in class to focus on improving language skills and exam
techniques.
Dos and Don’ts for Learners
Do
|
Don’t
|
1. Take
it seriously.
2. Take exam practice occasionally in your free time. 3. Learn techniques and internalise target language for the different exam tasks. 4. Always find a link to the exam with whatever language point you are learning. 5. Take feedback on board - be ready shake up the way you are preparing for the exam. |
1. Spend
too long on video materials if you can’t see the connection to the
exam.
2. Get lazy and lose motivation. 3. Expect your teacher to do everything. |
Written & Edited by E.Kerr
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