Breathing lessons | Education

Another day crossed off your calendar. Weeks whiz by and there's less than a month left before the School Leaving Certificate exams begin. Are you panicking? Is your method of study going to help? How much should you study everyday?

Anxiety could lead to better performance but too much concern could affect your grades. Urmila Khulal, 2005's SLC topper, believes that practicing tough subjects like mathematics during the night and reading subjects like science in the morning is a good way to prepare for the exams. "If you practice from Old Is Gold or question banks, it will help. I did that," says Khulal, "I never panicked, rather I studied regularly. My teachers guided and helped me." Khulal is now studying science at St Xavier's College.

IG Shrestha, senior teacher at Budhanilkantha School agrees with Khulal. "It's a good idea to study regularly instead of trying to mug up everything at the last minute," he says. Unlike most other schools, students at Budhanilkantha aren't barred from appearing for SLC if they fail their send-up tests. "Instead, we divide them into two groups: promising students and students who need extra guidance," says Shrestha, who has worked as guidance counsellor.

Some students say that though they've prepared well when they sit for their exams, they go blank. Ruchira Koirala, psychologist, says the reason behind such cases is actually not learning. "Normally, four to six hours of studying on average should suffice with two to three minutes' breaks after every 25-30 minutes of studying," she adds. However, she says that the breaks should be spent on unrelated activities such as watching TV, listening to music, or just taking a walk. In case you haven't looked at your books throughout the year, Koirala says, you need to work harder, put in around 10 hours a day. But our memory cannot absorb much during such intense study. So here's a tip that Koirala gives: "Don't tax your memory too much at the risk of forgetting easily. That's why last-minute cramming doesn't work." Get it? On the day of your exam, put your books away, relax, focus and before you know it, it'll be over. The Iron Gate is not so tough when you know the game.