The Higher School Certification (HSC) in New South Wales, Australia, is a credential given to secondary school students who complete Years 11 and 12. Unfortunately, with the global pandemic that has affected Australia and many other countries around the world, students are now restricted to their homes with limited access to needed resources.

During this dire period, students should use their time at home wisely to study, especially for those preparing for their HSC. Doing your hard work now will help you be prepared for future assessments, and you will experience less pressure when assessment dates get closer. Should the HSC exam block be cancelled, NESA may rely on teacher estimations based on students’ most recent assessments per Year 11 grades to determine final subject marks.

If you are studying from home, here are five tips to effectively study for your HSC exams:

1. Have clear goals

Whenever you do not set your mind on achieving a goal, your motivation easily dwindles. If you want to ace your HSC exams, you need to set that as a goal. Setting clear objectives will help stay motivated, and it will also help you prevent procrastination because you have something to work towards. It’s a good idea to have a physical list as you go as ticking items off your list will be highly satisfying.

2. Turn off your mobile phone when studying

Your mobile phone is the primary source of distraction when studying. For this reason, it’s best to have it turned off during your study period. Even if you miss a few notifications from your friends, it’s only for a few hours. Plus, staying away from your phone helps you stay focused and productive while you’re studying.

3. Practise independent learning

Since you’re just home and you don’t have your teacher to guide you through the HSC syllabus, it is time for you to practise independent learning. You can do this by checking your syllabus or contacting your teacher to ask how much work from the syllabus should you complete for the week. When you have this information, you’ll be able to come up with a solid study schedule that you can follow easily.

4. Do practice papers

Doing practice papers will help you learn about the content of the exam and how to write in various styles that the invigilators will appreciate. Most of the time, questions from past papers are used again in HSC exams, so make the most out of it while you’re at home.

5. Practise time management

HSC exams will be time-constrained, which means that you have to finish the exam within a time limit. The perfect opportunity for you to practise writing under such pressure is while you’re answering the practice papers. In doing so, you’ll be able to come up with efficient strategies that will allow you to maximise your time.

Conclusion

Don’t let yourself get lost in the world of social media during this health crisis. Instead, keep yourself busy and productive by taking the time to study for your upcoming HSC exams. If you are looking for more study tips and resources to help you prepare, get in touch with us today to see how we can help! We’re happy to help.