Credit: Tallis Photography
The purpose of this blog post is to give you a sense of the skills you’ll need to work on to achieve high grades in the new GCSE. I’ve kept the steps as concise as possible so you can quickly give this a scan whenever you’re in need of some direction during your own GCSE preparation. I know I would have found something like this useful back in the day!
Within, I lay out the key changes between the old and the new GCSEs. I then provide 10 areas where the difference between a low grade and a high grade will be decided. This is based on 5 years of working with GCSE level students across the UK. Year-in year-out the students who effectively manage to do the things I list below end up achieving the highest grades. Whatever your level, or what you’re predicted, this guide is designed to help you get some momentum going with your GCSE revision.
Let’s get into it! 👍
What’s the difference between the old and new GCSE?
Here’s the Government Fact Sheet on the new GCSE reform made in 2015. It’s a bit wordy. So I’ve summarised the three key take aways below:
They’ve become harder
They’re almost entirely exam focussed
There’s less opportunity to resit
Nice! 😉
I know this might seem a little daunting at first. But let’s take a look at what steps you can take to wrestle this new GCSE format under control.
Become awesome at taking exams
The new GCSE is almost entirely exam based. That’s a fact. Therefore, the first and most important step to GCSE success is believing that going through the process of taking exams will be useful to you in the future.
Here are three things I have come to know about exams:
They’re a learned skill - check out this video showing my experience transitioning from a distracted, mischievous, underperforming student to one who figured out how to prepare for and perform well in exams. Anyone can improve, no matter where you start from.
The ability to successfully pass exams is needed in later life. I’m in my mid twenties and I’ve had many different types of jobs ranging from a litter picker to an account executive at a global advertising agency. I have friends who work in industries such as Finance, Law, Health, Commerce, Construction and Governance. Many of these industries require you to acquire further exam qualifications after you’ve left University. I had no clue about this! Exams aren’t just something you need for formal education, they’re something you need in life. It’s worth learning a system to pass them now and reaping the benefits in the future.
They build transferable skills for any workplace. Even if you don’t want to choose any of the careers listed above. If you want to become anything ranging from an artist to a weightlifting champion! Exams help you develop basic skills which come in handy for many areas of life. They help you to develop strong routines, manage your time, organise your thoughts and stay calm in pressurised situations.
Plan effectively for the year
There are some really important things you need to do depending on what stage you’re at in the GCSE process:
Figure out your strengths and weaknesses subject by subject
Know when you are prioritising the following activities:
Paying attention in class, taking great notes, understanding everything and gathering all the information you need to revise
Revising the key topics and fundamentals of each subject syllabus
Revising the specific details which will push you into the top grand bands (8 and 9)
Want to watch a video which will help you through this exercise? Check out this IGTV video called: When To Start Revising For GCSE?
Pay Attention in Class
If you watched the video above about my experience of school you can see that I wasn’t the most focussed student in class. The teachers even called me out on it!
So, why you need to pay attention in class?
These GCSE exams are more difficult and complex than previously. Paying attention in class and understanding all the information as you go through year 10 and 11 is more important than ever before. You can’t coast. Instead, consistency is the key to success.
Make sure you understand what the teacher is teaching and ask the right questions in class. Consistency is tough to achieve. But if you can work on paying proper attention every day, you’ll thank yourself on results day.
Create a winning environment
In the previous step the importance of consistency was mentioned. In order to generate this consistency you need to make sure the environment around you allows you to be consistent. For example, a constantly messy workspace doesn’t provide a platform on which you can consistently get work done. There are few things you need to do in order to create a winning environment:
An organised room. Know where your stuff is for school. If you forget your equipment you’ll needlessly set yourself further behind on your studies.
Your desk should be totally clear with nothing on it. When you revise bring what you need to your desk.
Make your bed. This is a saying I’ve enjoyed from this graduation speech video. It’s the first task of the day successfully done and, even if the day doesn’t go to plan, you can come home and get a good nights sleep to be ready to make an improvement on the next one.
Use Effective Revision Technique
It’s not going to be the students who revise the longest or make the prettiest notes for Instagram who will achieve the top GCSE grades. The highest performers will use effective and efficient revision technique.
The of the best revision techniques I recommend you use are:
Active recall
Spaced Repetition
Jump to 2 mins 28 secs in this video for a more detailed explanation of what they are and how they can be applied.
Build an awesome daily routine
‘The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine’
Building a solid routine for the day-to-day at school and during revision season is crucial. Knowing what you need to do each day to make the day a success is important because it generates a feeling of growth and momentum. As long as we think and feel like we’re moving forward we tend to stay positive and are more likely to achieve our goals. Doing the little things everyday which add up and accumulate to make a big difference.
Your routine should be a balance of maintaining the tools you need to get the work done. These are, your body and your mind. Secondly, it should allocate specific time towards getting the work/revision done.
Three things you should factor into your daily routine:
Physical - at least 20 minutes of intense exercise a day or every other day
Mental - a screen free time (10 minutes to 1 hour in length) when you don’t look at your phone or think about school.
The work/revision - be specific with when sessions for tasks start and end, focus on task completion over ‘time worked for’.
Prepare for exams as if you were a professional athlete
The new GCSE tests your ability to understand and recall information learned over an extended period of time. We’ve come up with some ideas to tackle this truth in the previous sections.
But it’s also about your ability to perform at a consistently high level for shorter periods of time. For example, the period of exam season and the exams themselves. I see exam season just like a sports season. It’s a series of games or matches, some more challenging than others, what matters is how you prepare and perform throughout the whole season to finish as near to the top of the table as possible.
It makes sense that you should take the same approach as professional athletes in controlling all other variables in addition to the training programme you’ve undertaken to make sure you’re in top condition for game day. You should be paying close attention to and prioritising the following factors:
Sleep - if you’re tired in the middle of the day, that’s a sign you need to reconsider the quantity and quality of your sleep. Find an amount that’s right for you.
Diet - at a basic level everyone knows what is and what isn’t good for their body. Stick to the complex carbohydrates, healthy fats and protein rich sources of food. Bolster this with vitamins and minerals and you’ll be fully fit throughout exam season. Cut down on sugar.
Water intake - we’re practically made of water! Make sure you stay hydrated. Science has proven both our physical and mental performance drops off when dehydrated. It’s an easy factor to control when you have running water, control it!
Exercise routine - the combined effect exercise has on stress relief and keeping your body physically healthy is huge. Get outside every day. Take some deep breaths and raise your heart rate a little with some exercise.
Have a pre, during and post exam routine
Just as you should create a daily routine. You need to create an exam routine to ensure a similar trend of consistent progress and high performance.
Exam stress and anxiety exists because, by the very nature of an exam, we’re about to face something unpredictable which we fear might go badly. Furthermore, we can’t control what’s on the exam, we can only control our reaction to it.
Being absolutely clear on what you do before, during and after an exam will help to settle your nerves and get you thinking clearly under pressure. An exam routine should outline specific actions you take to eliminate exam stress and provide a reassuring sense of control.
Have a technique for every exam
There are many different types of exams. From multiple choice to essay-based exams, you must know your approach for each.
How many times do you read the question to ensure you fully understand it?
In what order do you answer the questions?
Where are the most marks to be won?
Where (what topics) do you feel most confident scoring the most marks?
How much time do you leave to check through your answers?
How long do you spend planning your essays?
Knowing how to apply your knowledge within the context of each exam is key. Make sure you decide your approach to each of the subjects you’re going to be examined on.
BONUS TIP: the way you use your smartphone is one of the key factors to exam success
The smartphone can either be a massive help or huge hindrance to the achievement of good GCSE results. With this device, all of the world’s information is in the palm of your hand and at your disposal. This is both a blessing and a curse depending on how you use the device on a daily basis. Yes, it has all the answers to help you on your way, but it also has an eternity of distraction and irrelevant information ready for you.
I’m a huge fan of the smartphone. It has made our lives easier and more convenient than ever before. We just need to make sure we’re using the phone rather than it using us! Be conscious of how you use your own smartphone and how you can turn it into your biggest exam supporter!
Here are 7 ways to become less distracted by your smartphone.
Conclusion
The new GCSE is going to be challenging. But I’d encourage you to see the positives here. You’re going to learn a lot about yourself through this process.
I’d also ask you to put exams into context. They do not determine who you are and what you will become. They are just an opportunity for you to prove you have a type of intelligence which much of society and the job market values. But just because it’s valued doesn’t mean it’s the only thing that’s valued. Here’s a good video on exam stress which I feel puts everything into context nicely.
Think back to the skills you learn from the process of taking exams mentioned in the introduction to this eBook. Focus on building those and you will come away with something valuable to apply to anything you become passionate about in the future.