How to study?

Know the syllabus

It is useful to familiarise yourself with what you are expected to know for your examinations. Your class notes may contain extra background information to help you understand topics. Use the syllabus (exam specifications) to refer to the learning outcomes and then extract the relevant points from class notes when you make learning notes (see below) and revision notes. (You should always refer to the syllabus for the specific year you are entering the examination).

For example, the 'Biology System of Requirements' (követelményrendszer) is divided into sections; each section is divided into learning outcomes.

Syllabus sections are not all the same size. When planning your revision, allocate your revision time according to (using the Pomodoro Technique):

■ the volume of learning

■ how difficult each section has been for you.

Learn the wording of any learning outcomes that are definitions of biological terms – these could form the basis of some questions.

However, it is very important not to just the learn the material by rote, but to be able to apply your learning to novel situations, as exam questions can present you with a situation in a new context. You will be able to tackle these questions more confidently if you can identify the relevant learning outcomes that are being assessed. You will then need to apply your knowledge and understanding to answer the question.

Make learning notes

Many students learn by repetition. As you learn, you can reduce your class notes: class notes → learning notes → revision notes

Each time you complete a topic, it’s helpful to go back through your class notes and organise them in a way that suits your style of learning, to make your learning notes. The topic could be part of a learning outcome if you have found something particularly difficult, or as large as a syllabus section if you have found everything quite easy. Learning notes are personal and specific to you. You can benefit from re-writing class notes using strategies that work for you – for example, with colours, flow diagrams, bullet points or concept maps.

To make learning notes:

■ produce a shortened version of your class notes

■ check your class notes against your coursebook

■ leave out background, non-syllabus, information

■ leave out, or reduce to a minimum, points that you know you will never forget; for example you know from earlier courses, such as primary school, the main differences between the structure of plant and animal cells, but a new fact such as ‘the presence of centrosomes in animal cells’ needs to be emphasised

■ avoid long, flowing sentences that contain many points

■ use bullet points or short sentences, each containing one or two points that you think are likely to gain marks in an exam – ‘mark points’

■ use scientific terminology; for example ‘hydrophytes are hyperstomatous/epistomatous’, rather than ‘aquatic plants exhibit stomata on the adaxial/upper surface of the leaf’.

Many learning outcomes are linked to others within a syllabus. Your teacher may have covered topics in a different order to that in the published syllabus. This may also be a logical order for you. Make your learning notes for each topic on separate pieces of paper to put into your folder in your preferred order.

Making learning notes has benefits:

■ repeating and reformatting class notes helps learning

■ it is a first stage in revision for the exams

■ notes are in your preferred style to optimise learning

■ you can assess how well you understand each learning outcome.

Make revision notes

It is likely that you will be trying to cope with other subjects as the exam time approaches, so a stack of learning notes that is as thick as a textbook is not helpful. You can reduce your notes further to make revision notes. class notes → learning notes → revision notes

Revision notes should contain only the detail necessary to get your very best grade. Think about how you will set out these notes and discuss them with your friends. Make your revision productive by making it interesting and fun. Make notes, revision cards or topic maps. Revision should be an active process, i.e. you should be ‘doing things’, not just sitting and reading a book. Revise with a friend so that you can test each other or try explaining a concept, such as dynamic equilibrium, to a friend – as if you were a teacher! Try not to copy directly from the Coursebook or syllabus, but put the ideas in your own words, checking them later. At this stage you should incorporate your experience of past-paper practice questions and their mark schemes.

Know what to expect for each exam

Before you enter the exam room, you should know what to expect in the exam paper you are facing. Exam papers have different types of question, including multiple choice questions, structured questions and extended-answer questions. It is important to know how long the exam lasts and how many questions you need to answer. You can find this information in the syllabus ('a vizsgaleírása' part). Apart from multiple choice questions, it is rare for questions to be worded as straightforward questions with question marks. They generally have ‘command terms’. A list with explanations of the most common command terms that you should understand should be in the syllabus. Make sure you know exactly what is required for each command term. For example, there is no point in writing a long explanation of why something happens if the question merely asks you to state what happens.

Use past papers to help you revise

You will find it helpful to look at or practise past exam papers. You will need to learn and practise the practical skills that are tested in practical examinations (e.g. carrying out a measurement or an experiment) and papers that focus on the skills of planning, analysis and evaluation. Find copies of past papers and mark schemes on oktatas.hu.

Make a schedule

Start your revision early enough. Successful candidates revise throughout the course as well as during the time before an exam using a variety of (printed & digital) resources. Making a revision timetable is a good idea to start with, ensuring you give more time to your weaknesses. Here are some useful tips:

■ revise every lesson’s work on the evening after the lesson

■ revise thoroughly for topic tests during the course

■ begin your exam revision at least 2 months before your exams

■ plan when you will cover each topic in the syllabus and stick to your decision

■ rate yourself on every topic – score 1 if you fully understand, score 2 if you partly understand, score 3 for real areas of weakness

■ in your revision plan give more time on topics you have scored yourself 3

■ as you revise, problems will come up – list your problems and then get extra help on them from your teacher

■ leave sufficient time to do plenty of past paper questions

■ don’t fill all your time with revision – you need some social activities in between to refresh you.

It is more effective to revise in several short sessions with breaks in between than trying to do one long revision session. For example, revising for two 25-minute sessions with a 10-minute break will be better than one 50-minute session (Pomodoro Technique). You will learn best at the start of session and just before your planned break. After a break, quickly recap on what you have revised already. Revisiting this after a day and then after a week has been shown to improve your recall. It will also help to plan to revise two or more different subjects each day to help to maintain interest and effectiveness.