Secret to Zimsec Exams (Part 2)
Who the Exam favors?
Jungle favors the brave and the tireless, so they say. Mathematics is a unique discipline that has its own approach and learning style. Break the rules, you will pay for it. Religiously follow them and it will handsomely reward you.
The only reason why the same schools continue to dominate Zimsec Rankings is their approaches to the subjects and how they prepare their students for the exam. Their organisational/school culture is cultivated and nurtured in a way that the system will never depend on teachers but on the school and students.
On My first day at school where I did my A Level, I was surprised to know that 90% of our Math class had 'A's in Maths and majority were former students at the same school. Their first class had 33 students and scored 32 As. The school was under-staffed and they had gone for a full term without a Math Teacher. I learnt that it's only organisational culture backed by study strategies that guaranteed success for the pupils.
Some of the strategies that were employed by students included:
1. Through revision of past papers.
There is need to revise as many past exam papers as can be accessible. The questions may not be similar but principles, nature and approach to the questions remain the same
2. Memorize what you have practiced
One day after a Math exam, I overheard a conversation by some of our students saying "No. 4 is exactly No. 7 of paper 1, 1992". If you throughly practice past papers, it likely that you will come across similar questions in the exam.
3. Organize Past Papers' Questions in Topics
Those who study A level Maths know how effective a revision book by "Teo" is. It's only past exam questions organized topically. By concentrating on bulk of questions for a particular topic, you will improve your memory, skills and creativity for the exam. You will easily answer any question for any given topic.
4. Use Red Spots of 1990s
Green_book can be effective in exam preparations but not more than the Cambridge Red Spot. We now know Zimsec derives its questions from Old Cambridge past papers. It's important you familiarize yourself with old Cambridge questions. Using both Greenbook and Redspot is advisable.f.b
5. Groupwork is vital
Different people comes with different strengths and weaknesses. By working in groups we compliment our skills, approaches and resources. Even if you are always busy, find a way to interact with other candidates. Given the wide use of social networks, it's now more easy to share questions, solutions, ebooks, past papers or solution methods.
6. Work with authentic answers and Exam Reports
Study along verified answers. Questions without solutions can be a snare. Ask your colleagues or teachers if answers are not yet available. Exam reports provide answers and common mistakes noticed.
These are some of the approaches that can best prepare you for the Exam. In the next part we will discuss about the secrets to arrangements of questions and how they can fail you.
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