Students are prepping for their exams which start next week; swatting, nerves and panic. How to prepare - music, snacks and the best study environment according to students.
Taking “brain breaks” during exam season has been important for one Rotorua student who is about to sit his NCEA exams on Monday.
About 145,000 students across the country will be sitting exams, starting this week and finishing on November 30.
Foods such as “pasta, potato, wholegrain crackers, oats, wholegrain bread and rice” are best, she says.
The perfect exam breakfast, in her view, includes whole-grain cereals, toast with eggs and “good dairy foods” such as yoghurt, cheese or milk.
O’Mara says omega sixes, such as nuts, seeds and avocado are needed for good brain health, offering “longer-lasting release of energy, fueling the body, but also giving that satiety and preventing hunger cravings.”
Fleming enjoyed listening to music while studying but “not anything too distracting”.
Rotorua Lakes High students prepare for NCEA exams. Freya Kedian (left) and Caitlin Fleming. Photo / Andrew Warner
“There’s always going to be a little bit of nerves. But I think if you find ways to combat those nerves, like taking a walk or listening to some relaxing music, then I think you’ll get better results,” Fleming said.
Year 11 student Freya Kedian of Rotorua Lakes High said: “I’m feeling a bit nervous because it’s my first year of NCEA. But I know that I’ve done my prep and I’ve done my revision and I know my stuff so I think it’ll go right.
“I do most of [my study] myself at home and sometimes meet up with friends to study together and bounce ideas off each other”.
Te Puke High School Year 12 students have been prepping for NCEA exams.
Te Puke High School acting assistant principal Kamal Nair said exams were “moving to a digital world” which had “pros and cons”.
“Students and the way we prepare is changing and that is really, really exciting,” Nair said.
He said students and teachers had been “working really hard in [lunchtime] tutorials” practising past exam papers and asking for help.
“The students are prepared and it’s up to them to go and deliver exam results.”
He said the school had received great exam results previously and was “expecting the same” in 2023.
Qualifications Authority (NZQA) deputy chief executive, assessment, Jann Marshall said: “Work out when, where and how you study most effectively.
“Plan a schedule. Set study periods of 30 to 50 minutes followed by a 15-minute break”.
Setting up an organised area to study, switching mobile phones to flight mode and building in time for relaxation and fun, fresh air and physical activity were other pointers from Marshall.
