Prof Javed Mughal

The Board examinations are about to start very shortly. Once again the students’ community is feeling scared and startled. Most of the students are uneasy and quite uncomfortable and are supposed to be overcome by a particular fear commonly known as ‘Examination Fever’. This fear is common since with the performance in examination is connected the very prestige of the students’ parents and the students themselves also. The worst sufferers are those who have been programmed and motivated by their parents in a fashion of fetching good marks and outshining their counterparts by all intents and matters. This parental programming in fact leaves a sense of accountability combined with pressure on the minds of the students. I, being a teacher, have practically seen some of the students actually complaining of fever when the exams are at hand. Tiredness, difficulty in sleeping, loss of appetite, severe headache, being unable to remember anything despite all efforts, uncontrolled anxiety and irritability – if they have two or more of these symptoms then they must be awake to something which can harm them in the worst possible way and can bring a severe downfall in their results too. Their health starts reducing, they are sometimes really complaining of fever and even dysentery too. Running to the invigilators for special favour, tearing the books into pieces to use them as unfair means and hiring the ministerial staff for importing unfair material from outside, are all the symbols of frustration overcoming the students during the dreadful season of examinations. All these negative developments during examinations badly tell upon the health and career of our students. But it happens mostly to those who are not allowed to open up their minds and study freely and are groomed into a compact and closet world where the marks, printed on slice of paper, not the broad based and purpose-oriented understanding of the subject, matter much. We forget that the marks earned on the strength of many fair and foul means ultimately push our generation into the abyss of disappointment in the long run. Instead, we must try to motivate our students not only to attach preference to the marks and positions only but the knowledge and understanding also which can be of practical significance to the society and also bring cordial satisfaction to our youths. Someone has rightly said “when the mind is full of thoughts, you can not think rightly; when the heart is full of desires, you can not feel rightly and when the eyes are full of dreams, you can not see rightly…the thoughts, the desires and the dreams divide you and disturb you. So the students must fix up their goal and then chalk out a well defined programme to get upon it. Examination fever or fear does not have even an iota of benefit anywhere. On the contrary, it shatters the prospects of a student. Yes, a little tension, with the tinge of cordial realization and self- accountability without any external fear and fret, is okay and can be allowed also but the Indian style of examination fever is off-course very detrimental. Now-a-days it is seen that the students go through the same level of anxiety and stress whether they are appearing for their boards, or their entrance exams, or their graduation or post graduation exams. And only one question hovers in their mind -“Yarrr!! Ye exams hote hi kyun hain…?” Yes, the examinations should not be there since they are not the proper yardstick to measure one’s capability. They have rather dwindled into a tool for most of the teachers to exploit the students but the point is that our society is, yet, not so fully developed as to go without this necessary evil. The examination is the only medium left available with us to decide the next step, the whole professional career, and above all a capability for a particular field or a particular level.
Exam TIPS
Attitude, Leadership, Money and Hard-work: these are certain supporting factors which can help the students a great deal in getting upon the destination. Proper leadership, monitory assistance, hard-work, knowledge and most important a Positive Attitude are the basic requirements for success in life. Attitude is a quality which ultimately decides your success or failure. Let me tell my students, mathematically, the importance of this quality i.e. Attitude.
Time-devotion:  if a student dedicates at least two hours daily to his studies for the whole session with total honesty and sincerity, I assure him of great success not only in exams but in general career too. Time- tabulation and its properly planned disposal is a key to success in whole life.
Self Reliance & time Scheme: whenever one jumps into any field, self reliance is of great importance. One must believe in one self. Mostly students get psychologically deterred and forget everything in examination Hall. Hence diffidence should be replaced with self-confidence.
Proper Choice of Material: In most of the cases, our students memorize out-dated material and have to repent later on. Better books with the detailed consultation of the teachers must be chosen for exams. This effort with bring good position as well as better understanding to the students.
Fore-ordained target: The target or ambition must be fore-ordained and then the hard work to achieve it. The students with compromising stance can hardly excel in life. They always remain stuck to mediocrity. If something better is to be done, the planning has to be done long before.
Understanding better than Memorization: We should never run after bare grades, distinctions, positions and other categories. We must not bother for mere percentage of marks. Sometimes the first divisioners are outstripped by the second-liners just because the second liners know the subject better the first. The students should nurture a love for the original knowledge and understanding that is going to be with us forever.
Group Formation & Rapport with Teachers: It is strongly advisable for the students to remain in frequent touch with the concerned teachers and keep on consulting them on difficult areas of studies. Groups should be formed of the like-minded and responsible classmates to discuss topics of immediate importance in a friendly way. It will step up the level of knowledge and self-confidence.
Timely Food habits: On-time-breakfast, lunch and dinner-all should be well-timed with proper dietary chart because the sound food habits leave sound impact on our minds also. Junk foods and large number of cups of teas and coffees and so many other snacks must be avoided must be avoided. Normally our students don’t listen to their mothers’ advice that is not a healthy habit. They must act upon their mom’s advice of taking fresh fruits and vegetables, curd and lemon-water and so on. Empty stomach does not allow us to study comfortably.
Physical and Mental Refreshment: It is also not advisable to stretch one’s self beyond limits. Short breaks can be observed whenever one starts feeling a bit bored or when the mind is at its saturation point.
Avoid TV and Internet: During leisure time, we must not sit before television or on net. It is primarily because a small interesting but futile episode of any TV serial is enough to de-track the main focus. Frequent TV watching can harm the eyesight and create some disease also.
Don’t be jealous of others: Everyone has his own competence, his own ways of learning and revising the things. So thinking about others should be discouraged and the method which suits us and our metal caliber must be opted for. When the examination is over, Things like “oh shit! I forgot to write this word in question 4” will only accentuate our worries and lower down our confidence level. We cannot change what we have already written in answer sheet. It’s time to focus on next exam. Let it be understood that over-stress, mere tension, frustration, jealousy, wrong-means, fear and fever etc are going to give us nothing worthwhile at all.