As the year flies by, it’s prime time to dive into some study sessions.
But let’s face it, that last-minute rush before exams? We’ve all been there, wondering why we didn’t crack open a book until now!
Meanwhile, those high-achieving students aiming for that impressive 99+ ATAR? They put in a solid 90 minutes of study grind every day.
Sounds like a chunk of time, huh? But that daily hour and a half? It could just be the difference between an average ATAR and one that knocks it out of the park!
Here’s the good news:
We’re going to tell you HOW you should be studying to boost your QCE marks and ATAR!
Step 1: Schedule Your Study
Step 2: Decide When You’re Going to Study
Step 3: Figure Out What You Need To Study
Step 4: Study Using the Rule of 3
How to Use the Rule of 3
Step 1: Schedule Your Study!
When I did my senior year, I only studied for 90 minutes a day, 6 days a week, and I did a maximum of 25 minutes of revision a day for each subject.
In other words:
- I had one whole day off study each and every week
- I only had to do 25 minutes per subject
- I spent a MAXIMUM of 9 hours studying per week
When visualised, my days looked a lot like this:
I used the Pomodoro Time Technique. This method involves breaking tasks up into 25 minute blocks with 5 minutes breaks in between. This makes it much easier to break down your study time.
Why 25 minutes? Because it’s the most efficient amount of time to complete a set task.
You’ll notice that for my more ‘content intensive’ subjects (Literature, English, Ancient History and Modern History), I study 3 times. This gives me a total of 90 minutes of study per week.
My more ‘technical’ subjects (Methods, Legal and Latin), I only studied twice a week, for a total of 1 hour per week.
Depending on your subjects, you may study more or less. For me, it was a case of how much content there was – the more stuff I had to remember, the more revision I’d do.
To help you get started, we’ve made you a Pomodoro Study Template just for you!
But how do I figure out how much time to allocate to each subject?
Step 2: Decide When You’re Going to Study
After a day full of activities, hitting the books isn’t my go-to choice. I’m usually exhausted and opt for winding down with writing, a good book, or a video game.
That’s why I stick to mornings for my 90 minutes of study.
Why choose mornings for study time?
- It leaves room for other activities: After your study session, you’re free to schedule outings or other engagements.
- Enhanced focus: Even if mornings aren’t your peak, you’ll likely feel more alert compared to the fatigue of a full day’s activities.
- Reduced procrastination: Like many, I’m no fan of studying. Starting the day with it means it’s out of the way, leaving the rest of the day far more stress-free.
Remember, find your study sweet spot! Night owls might prefer afternoons or evenings, while early risers might opt for mornings. It’s all about what works best for you.
It doesn’t matter what time you decide is best for you — just make sure you pick a time and stick to it!
Step 3: Figure Out What You Need to Study!
Now, you should all be writing and revising your study notes throughout the term… but if you haven’t started yet, check out our awesome 4 Step Guide to Get Started Writing Kickass Study Notes!
Rate Your Knowledge
The first thing you should do is to go through each topic for each of your subjects and give yourself a ranking based on your knowledge! (hint: this is like what we did before, but more comprehensive!)
Doing this will allow you to identify what you are super confident with and what you need to allocate more time on!
Here’s how to do it:
Go through each dot point and on a scale of 0 to 5, give yourself a rating based on your perceived knowledge of the area.
- 0 = Like Jon Snow, I know nothing.
- 5 = Like Sheldon, I know everything.
For History and Humanities, it would look something like this:
Check out how to take effective study notes for QCE Humanities and Social Science subjects!!
For Maths and Sciences, it would look something like this:
Step 4: Study Using the Rule of 3!
Rereading or rewriting your notes a thousand times isn’t really going to help you when you get to the exam.
Over 7+ years of research with 99+ ATAR students, we’ve found that the most effective way to study to use the Rule of 3.
What is the Rule of 3?
The Rule of 3 means doing practice exam questions in three different ways: open book, semi-open book, then closed book.
Ultimately, your QCE marks are in some cases 50% decided by an end of year exam! So to get yourself prepared for the externals, you will want to:
- Be familiar with the types of questions they could throw at you – so you want to get good at pattern recognition;
- Be able to respond to these questions quickly and adapt all your knowledge, and model essays, paragraphs and notes to the specific question; and
- Have all your content, evidence/working out and/or formulae memorised.
How to use the Rule of 3 during your study sessions
Step 1: Practice your questions open book
Using your kickass study notes, write a skeleton for your answer, and/or the relevant evidence/source/formulae/legislation/case study you will be referencing for your answers.
It should look something like this:
Step 2: Semi-Open Book Practice
Take on a different question within the same topic. Here’s a three-step guide to decide whether to reference your textbooks:
- Identify the syllabus area linked to the question.
- Assess if you’re struggling with technical details (formulas, legislation) or expressing ideas concisely.
- Question if you’d recall the information in 5 minutes.
If all three points draw a blank, refer to your textbooks. Otherwise, attempt to answer to the best of your ability.
Mark your notes to indicate where you referred to your book. This aids in revisiting similar questions.
Step 3: Closed Book Challenge
During your study sessions, simulate exam conditions by transitioning to a closed book scenario at some point. This means no access to notes. It’s crucial to try and do this at least twice before your real exam!
Set a time limit similar to what you’d have in the actual exam. Even if it exceeds the usual 25 minutes, aiming for a 90-minute essay or extended response is crucial for effective revision.
For math questions, solve challenging problems without relying on practice sheets outside of the formula sheet!
And that’s all your study sessions totally done!
Once again, here are all the steps for amazing revision:
- Step 1: Schedule your study
- Step 2: Decide when you’re going to study
- Step 3: Figure out what you need to study
- Step 4: Use the Rule of 3!
Remember, this method should give you a fair bit of free time away from study, so make sure you take some time to look after yourself and relax!
Read also: the best QCE English practice questions for the external exam!
And as always, good luck with your study!
Starting Year 12 soon? Check our out full resource guide for Term 1 of Year 12 for the QCE!
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