Expert reveals the scientifically backed ways students can do better in exams - from sniffing lemons to massaging their ears

23 May 2019, 10:48 | Updated: 23 May 2019, 11:19

Tips and tricks to help students do well in exams revealed

Exam season is upon us, and students across the country are revising hard for their GCSEs and A-Levels.

As well as (obviously) studying, experts have claimed there are other ways that students can maximise their potential for success - ranging from ear massages to sniffing lemons.

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Teachers at Queen Anne's School, which is near Reading, have been working with neuroscientists to create a BrainCanDo revision guide, which aims to help parents and students a guide on how to maximise potential using scientifically backed evidence.

Ben Stephenson, director of sixth form at the school, claims that it isn't the amount of revision you do that maximises success, but the way that you do it.

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"There is no correlation between the amount of time you revise and the results you get," Ben said, according to the Daily Mail. "What we've found is it's actually the type of revision you are doing."

He recommends revising different subjects in 'chunks', rather than just one topic on one day. "Students tend to spend a whole day on one topic but "spaced" learning is better," he said. "That means maybe doing biology in the morning, followed by English annotations, then testing yourself on biology modules after lunch."

Ben also advises to take care of yourself the morning of an exam, sleeping late and eating a good wholesome breakfast if the exam is in the afternoon.

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Parents are advised to not overwhelm their kids with questions on the mornings of exams, as this can often stress them out.

Ben advises: "Wish them luck, tell them how proud you are of them, let them know you are proud of their best efforts."

Another trick he recommends is sniffing a lemon while doing a favourite activity a few weeks prior to the exam, which will associate the smell with feeling positive, and then sniffing a lemon just before going into the exam to invoke that emotion.

Something as small as massaging your ears can also have a similar effect of sparking positive emotion - and Ben also recommends visualising the exam room.