The exams a student takes in high school will have a huge impact on their future academic endeavours and often on the careers they eventually take up, so it's vital they learn to perform well through those tests. One of the best ways to help them get the grades they deserve is by setting mock examinations. You can find these available online as past papers, so they're easy to provide for a child whether you're a teacher or a parent.
Here are just four ways mock examinations can help students succeed.
1. Provides Active Learning
Standard revision is all well and good. However, students will also benefit from applying their skills and knowledge instead of just trying to memorize formulas, quotes and famous dates. Performing these more active learning exercises can help them come to grips with tricky subjects and can also make it easier to remember key points. It's also important to practice applying what you know as well as simply learning it since this is exactly what exams require.
2. Develops Strong Time Management
One thing a student must learn before taking their exams is how to properly manage their time. After all, it doesn't matter how much you know or how well you can perform if you spend so much time on one answer that you can't get to the last ones. Alternatively, they may rush through without giving things enough thought and end sooner than necessary. Students need to be able to plan out their answers and divide up their time to ensure they don't end up missing parts of the paper. Taking mock exams under the same time conditions they'll face during the real thing can be a great way to develop those skills.
3. Avoids Costly Mistakes
Sometimes the smallest of mistakes can have a big impact. For example, a student might answer one essay question when they actually had to answer two, or they might not fill in answers as they should. The consequences of these small mistakes can be avoided simply by going through a practice test to ensure students know exactly how the question and answer papers are going to be set out.
4. Prepares A Confident Mindset
Even the most academically gifted of students can sometimes perform poorly in exams simply due to stress. After all, most exams will have a strong impact on a student's life and probably be one of the most important things they've done so far, so it's easy for them to become overwhelmed. Mock exams help boost confidence and avoid stress because they let students experience exactly what it's going to be like on the day and get used to how that feels.