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We asked a random selection of our tutors one simple question: “What’s your best QCE advice?” We wanted just one simple piece of advice each – just to get to the good stuff. This is part one of what they said!
QCE MegaGuide | Tutor #1
Make sure everything is done a night before it needs to be done.
“I think my best advice would have to be to stay organised. Make sure everything is done a night before it needs to be done. I have never studied the night before a test. I would always make sure I was ready two nights before any test so I could just de-stress. I have friends that did very poorly in school and you can chalk it up to them not being organised. They would leave all their work to the last minute and stay up till 3am studying for a test the next day. So your best friend in QCE should be organisational skills.”
QCE MegaGuide | Tutor #2
Overall, routines can be a powerful aid to time management.
“I would highly recommend establishing a strong routine. Studying consistently throughout the year – and not just in excess at the beginning – is critical if you want to achieve high grades in all of your subjects. Especially at the beginning of term one, it’s easy to feel motivated about the oncoming year and to be confident that THIS is the year where you turn things around. After the first wave of assessments comes rolling through however, maintaining that motivation suddenly becomes much more challenging. You do not want your study habits to follow the fluctuating up-and-down patterns of your motivation levels; you want to instead be disciplined and study consistently throughout the year – regardless of how motivated you’re feeling. A realistic and balanced routine is the first step to establishing this consistency.
Moreover, if you are someone who is privy to procrastination then the importance of a routine is doubly important. The last thing you want is for procrastination to impair your performance at school – especially when it comes to internal assessments and your final end-of-year exam. Even in terms of stress, sticking to a routine can help to curb any feelings of being overwhelmed: knowing that you have time for everything you need to do, both in terms of school (homework, studying, reading) AND outside commitments (work, sport, socialising) can really help to alleviate stress and keep you on top of things. Overall, routines can be a powerful aid to time management. And for a year packed end to end with pressure, stress, and change, I think they are an absolutely essential tool for coming out of it with flying colours.”
QCE MegaGuide | Tutor #3
No one should study non-stop because they’re going to inevitably burn out.
“Easy – take breaks. Rest is so overlooked among students, but is probably the most important aspect. No one should study non-stop because they’re going to inevitably burn out. There are roughly 40 weeks from the start of the year until exams and no one can study, study, study for 40 straight weeks. In fact, Year 12 does not need to be as hard as people tell you it is.
Personally, one of the things that kept me going, and helped me maintain motivation throughout the year was regular exercise. Whether it’s gymming, going for a run or just a walk every morning, exercise is vital to de-stressing and reducing any overwhelming feelings – feelings that inhibit you from studying to your best ability. Although sleep and exercise may seem like a waste of time – time you could have dedicated to studying instead – finding that balance between study and personal time is, in my opinion, the secret to doing well.”
QCE MegaGuide | Tutor #4
You’ve got to put in the hard yards and get that brain to work.
“Two words: work hard. Sadly, there’s no secret formula to success, so work hard and you’ll earn success. Study hard, revise hard, write bucketloads of essays, do truckloads of practice questions, learn from the mistakes you make and work hard to improve them. As Babe Ruth said, “It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.” Be passionate about your studies, pace yourself, work smart, all that, but you’ve got to put in the hard yards and get that brain to work.”
