Sri Sathya Sai Guidelines for Success in Examinations

Practice Writing at Home

In spite of reading well, when students go to the examination hall, they don’t perform satisfactorily, they don’t do well. What’s the reason? This is because they only read, they don’t practice writing. While preparing for exams, you only read. But during the examination, you have to write there in the examination hall. Hence, it’s necessary that you should practice writing even at home. What you do in the examination hall must be practiced at home. You read at home and then you write in the examination hall. There is no relationship between the two. While reading you may not understand certain aspects but while writing you will certainly understand them. So you should practice writing often. The more you write and practice at home, it will help you in the examination hall. Even if they are known things and you think you are wasting paper by practicing writing, it doesn’t matter. You should practice. The lack of writing practice is the only reason why students don’t succeed in examinations.

Answer the Easy Questions First

The second thing is – you go to the examination hall. Some students are frightened by merely looking at the question paper. There is a very easy path that you should adopt. The first question may be very difficult. By seeing the first question which is very difficult, the student becomes nervous. If the first question is difficult, leave it. First go through the question paper and select all the easy questions and put down their number. Supposing fourth question is very easy. Put down the fourth number and write the answer. Therefore, you should first answer those questions which are very easy. Later you can think about those questions which are difficult. When the first question itself is very difficult you waste all your time trying to attempt it. Later, you will not be able to answer even easy questions. The reason is you don’t have time.

Develop Good Handwriting

Not only this, while writing the examinations, students’ handwriting should be good. The reason is that the examiners will be encouraged to value your answers if the handwriting is quite legible. They will evaluate your answer sheets happily and shower marks. If the handwriting is illegible the examiners will be annoyed. Because they are displeased, they may strike out the rest of the answers. Because of the harm you have done because of the illegible handwriting the rest of the students will also lose their marks. The displeasure of the examiner over your paper will be passed on to the next student. To make the examiner satisfied, your handwriting should be good. Along with the handwriting you should start answering easy questions. If you follow this, you will be certainly successful.

Aim High – Low Aim is a Crime

Some students get satisfied merely by getting 35 to 40 %. This is a big mistake. Low aim is a crime. You should aim high-98%. Then, at least you will get 60 or 70% that way. If you get satisfied by 35 or 40%, you will get 15 or 18%. So you should never have low aim. You should aim high. Then you will get 60 or 70%. Not only this, getting low marks also speaks very poorly of your future. How? 100 questions are given and awarded 100 marks. If you get 40%, it means you committed 60 mistakes. If you commit 60 mistakes out of 100, how do you call yourself a student? This is a grave mistake. This is a black spot in life. You should answer all 100 questions correctly. One or two may go wrong. In the future, when 100 tasks or works are given to you, if you commit mistakes in 60, how do you progress? So you should not do that. There may be 6 mistakes, but you should be correct in the rest of the 94. That quality is not present in today’s students. They think it is enough if they get 45 or 50%. While attempting the paper, if you write well in the first question, you should also think of the other part of the question paper. First, you should put down the numbers of the easy questions and start writing. Then, you will be more encouraged to write that way. As you are enthusiastic while answering the easy questions, you will be successful in the other part of the paper as well. So, we should answer easy questions in the first instance. This is what is called, “Success begets success”. When you answer easy questions first, even tough questions you can answer well later. If you start answering difficult questions first, you may develop depression while answering easy questions. This depression leads to confusion. Due to confusion you lose memory. Though you know the answer, you will not be able to answer correctly. So to have the right kind of enthusiasm, you should answer easy questions first.

Write the Correct Question Number

You should never forget putting the question number. If you put the first question number and the answer you write is for the fifth question, it will be marked wrong. When you answer the fifth question you should put the number five. Not only this, there will be a set of two marks questions also. These two marks questions are sometimes very difficult. In some there will be certain questions like fill in the blanks. In some they ask questions, “Is it right or wrong statements?” There may be a statement and you have to select whether the statement is right or wrong. If you just answer in a hap hazardous manner, then you will be put to further trouble in the future. Some put tick mark for both. Seeing this, the examiner will get very angry. It doesn’t matter if you do wrong. But you should never tick both. This indicates that the student has no quality. He doesn’t know anything.

In the examination hall before receiving the question paper, first you should pray. After prayer you should receive the question paper. Start reading the questions one after another. If first question is easy, answer it. If the second question is difficult, leave it. Then proceed to the third question. If the third question is also tough, leave it. Then go to fourth question. You should put a tick mark to that question which you have answered. If you put a tick mark like that, you will know the questions yet to be answered. But when you go on just reading it, time gets exhausted. You should take care of time. If the time is over, the bell will ring. They will ask you to give your paper and take away the answer scripts from you. So you should think of the time factor. You should not waste your time in unnecessary thinking. By merely thinking you will not only waste your time, but there will also be depression in the mind too. The memory power is gone immediately. Not that memory power is really going. But it leads to confusion. During confusion, you lose the fuse altogether! So don’t give any scope for confusion in the examination hall. You be happy.

Be Ready for Out-Of-The-Syllabus Questions

‘This morning I have Mathematics examination. What type of questions would I get?’ You should not have that fear at all. Proceed courageously. Never proceed with doubt. Start without any doubts. Take the questions. You read the questions completely. You may get some questions which are not part of the syllabus also. Such questions will test your common sense. Some students will be angry looking at those questions. They will be very angry with the paper setter because some of the questions are not included in the syllabus. This is a big mistake on the part of the students. Teachers give such questions purposefully to test your general knowledge and common sense. There is no law that only such questions should be given. It is only in modern age that such things have come. But you should also read those questions which are out of syllabus. Why is it that all magazines are brought here? Why are newspapers brought? These magazines and newspapers will help you to develop the general knowledge. Everything should be answered correctly.

Source: Success in Examinations, Discourse 1, My Dear Students – Volume 3