Retrospect: exam writing advice

Tutoring any subject, you might be asked about exam writing. The tutor mentions some advice.

Back in first-year university (way back in the day), I had an English prof who was very sensitive about exams and exam anxiety. He devoted the better part of a class, near the end, to discussing the final. One topic he brought up was “What if your mind goes blank?”

Something clear to me now, but I wouldn’t have guessed then, is that at university, even in a first-year class, there are very often students who already have their degree. The prof knew this, of course, so he asked the class, “Who here already has a degree?” Two people raised their hands.

The prof addressed those two: “Well, what do you do when your mind goes blank during an exam?”

One of them answered: “I sit back and take a few minutes’ break. Then I come back and try to write an outline.”

That’s some of the best advice I’ve heard.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.