Tips for Answering an Exam Paper

* Find out well in advance if you need to answer the paper in black or blue, with a ballpoint pen or a fountain pen, etc.

* Always leave two lines at the end of an answer. One line should separate that answer from the next; the second line is just in case you want to add something at the last minute.

* Always keep a ruler with you, even when it is not a Maths paper. At the very end of the paper, when you have finished answering, you can neatly draw a line between answers or underline, say, the heading of a diagram.

* Make sure to write your Roll Number on every page, so that even if a sheet comes loose and slips off the examiner's desk, it can be re-attached to your own answer sheets.

* Read the question carefully.
Example 1: A history question may tell you to state the how and why of a given event. If you write only the how or only the why, you cold lose valuable marks. Even 2 marks can make a lot of difference to your final percentage!
Example 2: If an essay topic is ‘Jungle Safari', you should be writing about a trip on an elephant or in a jeep with a guide; you should not be writing on some kind of trek that involves a lot of walking – nor should it be written as though it is a picnic.

* Write as neatly as possible. Not everybody has a superb handwriting, but you can at least avoid constant cancellations, tiny words and illegible words. Write clearly and precisely.

* It makes a good impression when you write in a points-format. Of course, this applies only to certain types of questions. Example: What were the reasons of World War II. So you can write like this - The reasons for World War II: (1), (2), (3) ,etc. or you can write like this – Firstly, the reason for the War was …..; Secondly …..; and so on.

* When drawing diagrams, such as a flower for your biology paper, draw neat arrows with a ruler pointing to the various parts of the flower and write the relevant information against each arrow.

* Never write on your answer sheet ‘Sir, please give me extra marks' or something stupid like that. Begging an examiner to give you grace marks will just annoy the examiner and you could quite possibly get negative marks.

ALL THE BEST!