Getting a higher mark in your exams

Exams are one of the most stressful things in life.
However with just a little planning, it is possible to maximise your grades and improve your chances of attaining your objectives:

Revising
Never swot for an exam unless you really have no choice. The pressure of being in an examination hall can wipe your memory as effectively as a computer virus on a hard drive. By the time you remember you will be confused, chaotic and you will panic.

Start preparing a month or so in advance. Read or recite little bits before you go to bed, on the bus or train, anywhere you have a spare moment. Don’t try to memorise whole chunks of text. You only need key ideas and concepts. Write around these using your own vocabulary, just as if you were telling a friend something you had heard.

Try this. Pick up a pen and write a sentence. Which fingers does your pen rub against? Tape these fingers with plaster or a bandage, but not so much that you can’t hold your pen. This will help you to avoid painful friction, and reduce the amount of time you have to stop in order to flex your fingers.
If you have been given time to read the questions, do so .
Always check by turning the test paper that you haven’t missed another question or part of the test overleaf. The more questions you read, the better chance you have of coming up with a good answer. You may not be aware of it but with each question you read your brain is quietly sorting out ideas for you.
Before you start writing, try this trick: as you look at each question, jot down a list of words that come into your head. Don’t try to make whole sentences - use a quote,  phrase or a word. The more words that you can write for each question, the stronger your chances are of being able to answer that question .
Using Quotes
Most examiners like to see quotes that are used correctly to back up the point you are making. A good way to remember the quote and source is to sing it to the tune of your favourite song. If this doesn’t work it is better to write the bit you know rather than quote the whole thing.
For example:
Armstrong suggests that Disney’s corporate marketing has created the concept of “cradle consumerism”.
Do not spend time looking at other people who are obviously struggling and have given up. This will waste your precious time that could be used for gaining more marks.
Try not to be distracted by the clock ticking, the invigilators walking around or people asking for more paper. Keep your eyes on the question and on what you are writing . Remember your brain is like a muscle that is being overextended, and may seem as if you cannot produce a single word but as you go on it will relax and the sentences will flow.
If things seem desperate and you cannot produce anything, take a scrap of paper and simply write out the questions that you would like to focus on. Your brain will kick in for you.
Fillng up the page
Remember your list - if you have studied and planned properly you can get a paragraph out of every word you have written. Don''t write as one student did: "I know nothing about the irony of Jane Austen but here is a list of the Kings and Queens of England".
Make your writing clear
If you have small writing you should practice writing slightly larger than your usual style.
Use double spacing and paragraphs. This has a double benefit: it helps to fill up the page thereby giving you the confidence that you are able to answer the question, and it makes the examiners'' work so much easier. This can gain subconscious extra points.
What if my brain freezes while I''m writing?

Even with the best preparation, there may be times when your brain just shuts down. Don’t panic. Close your eyes and take deep slow breaths. This will take up less time than you think. Now open your eyes and skim over the last paragraph. Don’t read every word. You will find that you remember things which you wanted to put in.
Finally, do not be distracted by those who appear to have finished and are sittling around playing with their pens, stretching, yawning or simply looking smug. Most exams are designed to give you the time you need and just a little bit more. You don''t get to sit around picking your nose for another half an hour, and if this is what you or someone else is doing, it is very likely that you have missed something. Either that or you are already at genius level and probably have no need of exams.
Last but definitely not least, do not stop writing until you are told to. There is always a little more time for that last gem of information to find its way from your memory to your pen.
Good luck!