Grade Transformation Blog

Grade Transformation Blog

No.1 in Transforming Students’ Grades

This is a ‘Gold Mine’ for your teen!

QUOTE: ‘All results of official exams and assessments must be consistent, dependable and replicable.’

This basically means that ANY trained, official marker should come out with the same result for a given written answer, as every other trained marker.

There’s something that makes this happen, it’s available for all to see, and your teen can use it to their (huge!) advantage!

Alright-y! This is part 3 of what has kinda evolved into a 3 part mini series of blogs where I’m sharing the nitty-gritty of how exams, coursework and assessments are actually put together.

As QLD aligns with other states and joins the ATAR ranking system, I’m taking full advantage of the opportunity to get in on the training that the QCAA is making available to all registered teachers 🙂

I want to make sure that I’m across as much of Australia’s national assessment system as possible – so that not only can I be at the top of MY game when coaching students and updating and improving my programs and training, but also so that I can pass on all the up to date info to YOU; so that parents and students across the whole of Australia really understand what goes on behind the scenes of exams and coursework assessments.

#knowledgeispower in this case!

Before we dig in, let’s have a quick recap.

On the last 2 videos we covered the fact that there are three attributes of any formal assessment task.

Those three attributes are: VALIDITY, ACCESSIBILITY and RELIABILITY.
And by formal assessment we’re talking about any external or internal exam or coursework task that counts towards students’ final grades with the exam board.

If you missed the previous videos, you can go back to Part 1 (Validity) HERE,

and Part 2 (Accessibility) HERE 🙂

 

OK, let’s dig into ‘Reliability’…

This means that the results of an assessment must be consistent, dependable and replicable. Which means that the mark schemes and rubrics for assessments are rigorous and rigid. Which means that ANY official marker trained in a marking guide, would come out with the same result for a particular exam answer or completed assignment task as every other trained marker.

And that, my friend, is why I repeatedly talk about the importance of your teen getting to grips with mark schemes!

So that they understand how mark schemes are structured,

how marks are allocated and

how their work is judged.

These mark schemes often also have ‘Model Responses’ which are an absolute gold mine in terms of insight and building QWC skills!
(BTW: QWC…that’s quality of written communication – one of the 6 elements of exam technique).  

Because when students can see what a full-mark or A-grade answer really looks like, they can get clear on where, how and why their response did or didn’t get an A.

PLUS – extra little bonus tip here 😉
– these Mark Schemes are often accompanied by the Chief Examiner’s Retrospective; a report all about where students have done well, or less well in previous exam papers.

Again a huuuuuggge treasure trove of info and basically a massive opportunity for learning from other students’ mistakes!

What’s not to love about that?!

 

Again, these are all things that I go into detail on, with heaps of real life examples in my annual Exam Mastery Workshop (EMW for short!).

Giving students skills like:

  • dissecting and even predicting mark schemes (no mind-reader magic needed!)
  • analysing A grade answers and matching every criteria up to the mark scheme
  • and figuring out how to structure extended response and essay answers.

So go check out the EMW if your son or daughter isn’t already enrolled 🙂

 

So, to wrap up this little mini series:

We’ve covered the three attributes of any official assessment or external exam; the nitty-gritty insider info of assessments and exams, with my specific advice and actions for ways your teen can use this info to ensure they’re giving markers what they need to see and can achieve their best possible results (and do it all with a lot less stress and masses more confidence!).

Let me know your thoughts or questions in the comments below, and until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!

 

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Crucial Clues in Exam Qs and Assignments

Last week we covered the fact that there are three attributes of any formal assessment task:– VALIDITY, ACCESSIBILITY and RELIABILITY and how your teen can use this knowledge of each attribute to their benefit.

So, let’s get into Attribute Number Two … Accessibility AND how your teen can turn this into pro-active action to power-up their performance and results in all formal assessment.

Hey and welcome to Part Two of what has kinda turned into a 3-part mini series of blogs on the nitty-gritty of how exams, coursework and assessments are actually written by teachers and examiners.

Now a super brief recap of things:

  • There are three attributes – VALIDITY, ACCESSIBILITY and RELIABILITY of any formal assessment task.
  • By ‘formal assessment’ we’re talking about any exam set and marked by the state  exam board, or any type of coursework assessment or in-school formal assessment that counts towards your teen’s final grade.

(If you didn’t see Part One (where I discussed VALIDITY), it would be a good idea to go check that out first) 🙂

 

And, what does this have to do with your teen?

Well, if they know exactly what exam boards and curriculum authorities are assessing against or measuring up to, then students can make sure they are giving the markers everything they need to see, to be able to award marks and tick off the success criteria in the mark scheme!

 

So, let’s get into Attribute Number TWO – Accessibility

Accessibility  means that the exam or assessment must be clear and user-friendly for every and any student.

It ensures that no student or group of students is disadvantaged in being able to access an assessment either in understanding the instructions or in being able to provide the required outcome.

 

 

What pro-active actions can students take based on this info?

Students MUST read every piece of information on a task sheet or exam paper.

Often students skim over  a source or some introductory info, or the STEM of a question…(if your teen isn’t sure what we mean by STEM, then the parts and structure of exam Qs is something that I explain in detail in the 10 Week Grade Transformation Program AND in the Exam Mastery Workshop 🙂 )

…But the STEM is important – because often there will be info in there that’s designed to make the question or task accessible.

For example, this could be:

  • where a rule or formula is actually provided for students to use.
  • It could be a definition of an unusual word that is used. Or
  • a background to a method that needs to be used,
  • or some descriptive detail that accompanies a source or text extract.

 

EVERY word on EVERY page of an exam paper or assignment task sheet is there for a reason and has VERY carefully been considered and scrutinised (certainly by at least three exam board representatives for external exams).

If you think your son or daughter could benefit from attending my online Exam Mastery Workshop, then you can check it out HERE. 

And look out for next week’s blog where I’ll share Attribute Number 3 along with advice and actions on how to make this info useful and actionable for your teen in their next exam or assessment.

So until then, let’s make this week a fantastic week!

Katie

 

 

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Pulling Back the Curtain on how Exams are Written

Okay, now this week’s blog is slightly more nerdy than most ?

I’m going to be getting into the nitty-gritty of official assessment tasks and exams and take you behind-the-scenes of creating them.

So if you’ve ever wondered how exams, coursework and assessments are actually put together, then this week’s blog is for you 🙂

 

I’ve recently been through the Curriculum Authority Training course for Assessments and it was-  well – pretty full on!

More detailed and more rigorous than I was expecting – which is definitely a GOOD thing, and meant it was suuuuuper-interesting … (to me at least, as someone who totally geeks out on all things exams and assessment!).

So I thought I’d share some of the key points with you.

(Don’t worry, I really will just keep it to the key points that are actually useful to know for you and your teen! No ‘point 5, subsection a-part-ii’ type of stuff, I promise!!) 😉

 

Now, I started off planning to go over this in just one video, but as I started to go through things, even with plenty of summarising and simplifying, it started to get stupidly long and maybe a bit tough to digest. So I’m breaking it down over 3 weeks as blogs, so look out for parts 2 and 3 to come!

 

Soooo… after many hours of study and discussion with other teachers, examiners and curriculum representatives, here’s what forms the foundation for EVERY formal assessment –in EVERY state in Australia – whether this is internal (e.g. an assignment or task set in school that counts towards the teacher assessment component), or external (e.g. the final exams set and marked by the exam board).

 

The foundation is the 3 attributes:

  • Validity,
  • Accessibility and
  • Reliability

 

These are what teachers, the writers of exam papers for exam boards and the assessment moderators and verifiers are all working to.

And this week I’ll explain the concept of VALIDITY.

 

A VALID task or exam Q means that it accurately measures what it is intended to measure or test in terms of subject content and the syllabus dot points.

So this is where subject knowledge and an excellent understanding of the concepts and case studies is required.

If you’ve heard me use the formula:

Knowledge + Application = Success

then you’ll see that this Validity attribute fits into the knowledge part.

(And if you haven’t heard me explain this formula before, then you definitely need to come along to a future webinar when I next run one!).

Therefore, here’s what I advise all students to do when studying and in particular, revising.

  • Don’t just go through the lesson notes.

Instead go to the official syllabus (if your teen is a member of the Grade Transformation Zone then they’ll have direct links in there to the syllabus documents for their particular state and exam board – yay!) and plan their notes and revision around *those* key content lists and dot points.

Because teachers or examiners can test students on ANYTHING from within the syllabus. And different schools and teachers may put different emphasis or spend different amounts of time on different aspects, depending on the structure of the lessons or time available to cover everything in the term.

For example, I remember years ago, on a GCSE Geography paper in the UK, there was a 3 mark Q early in the paper that really expanded on something that we’d teach as a simple introductory 2 minute kinda fact. Eek… Yep, it caught quite a few students out unfortunately 🙁

 

So, quick recap:

Validity is one of the 3 essential attributes of any formal internal or external assessment.

This means that it is clearly tied to the syllabus content and accurately measures that skills or knowledge.

Therefore my advice is for all students to use the official syllabus dot points not just their notes or a term handout planner for their study notes and revision.

Look out for part 2 of these attributes and what they mean for your teen’s exams and assessments next week, and until then, let’s make this a fantastic week!

 

Katie

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4 most common Maths exam MISTAKES

Maths questions are sometimes super-straightforward, like ‘Solve this equation’.

But, they can also can be a lot more complex and tricky, with layers of info and worded requirements.

And it’s often these worded parts of maths exams that trip students up or catch them out. It’s also where there are usually some simple yet often overlooked extra steps or hints on getting full marks.

So, this week, as part of my 5 Exam Tips in 5 Days email series, I’m sharing the 4 most common ways students lose out on easy marks in Maths exams – and of course how to make sure your teen DOESN’T (lose easy marks in their next maths exam, that is) 🙂

 

By easy marks, I mean that they’ve done the hard work, they know the concept or method they need to use and have applied it correctly.

BUT where they could be getting full marks or an A grade for a particular question, they may be missing out and this is for a few simple possible reasons:

 

Common Maths Exam Mistake no. 1

  • Rounding too early.

If students round their answers at each stage of a multi-step calculation, there’s a fair chance that their final result will be too far from the ‘accepted range’ in the mark scheme for top marks or an A-grade in their final answer. So they need to get really good at using either the Memory buttons, ‘Previous Answer’ button or accurately inserting brackets on their calculator to avoid this.

 

Another error that’s often made DURING their calculations is:

 

Common Maths Exam Mistake no. 2

  • Not noticing different units WITHIN a question.

For any calculation of any kind, all figures or data being used must be in the same units. It’s easy to miss small but important details like this in a question when under exam pressure. For example, if a question has measurements of both km’s and metres, one or other needs to be converted so that they are all in metres or all in km’s. Or ideally (extra tip!) in the units required in the final answer. 🙂

And that brings us nicely to …..

 

Common Maths Exam Mistake No. 3

  • Not giving the final answer in the units required.

For example the question might state that students give their answer in cm squared but they’ve given it in mm squared.

Oooorrrrr they’ve given an answer in minutes, when it should be converted to hours.

This usually happens because they are so focused on GETTING the answer, that they then forget that final conversion when they get to that finish line.

 

And last but not least…

Common Maths Exam Mistake No. 4

  • Not giving the answer to the correct degree of precision.

Similar to mistake number three, in that it is also often forgotten in the final stage of the answer…

Unless otherwise stated, students should give an answer to 2 decimal places (or 3 significant figures for super-small numbers). However it’s quite common for the level of precision to be specifically stated, for example to the nearest tenth, or to the nearest thousand.

When students have gotten caught up in the process of working out especially in a multi-step problem, it’s easy to either gloss over or forget about an instruction beyond the calculation itself.

 

Conclusion:

Each of these common mistakes are often responsible for students dropping down a full mark or grade in a question. Over a whole exam that could be a number of marks.

And remember it only takes one mark to drop or climb up a full grade overall.

 

So have your teen check and double check in their next Maths or Numeracy Test:

That they’re keeping all figures in full throughout all steps of a calculation and only rounding at the end.

To be careful of units WITHIN a question and whether any conversions need to take place before the calculation is started.

And then at the very end, taking note of what units the answer should be given in and then being careful to round to the degree of precision required.

 

If you’d love your teen to have lots more simple tips like these as well as get coached in MUCH more detailed and sophisticated strategies and exam techniques in time for their end of year exams, then be sure to check out my Exam Mastery Workshop – especially right now while I have a very special earlybird offer on!

Can’t wait to see your teen at the workshop!

Katie

 

 

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Lean, mean exam MACHINE! ?

Here’s an email I got recently from a mum, after my previous blog video about when it is and isn’t a good idea for your teen to go over and above in their study.

 

“Hi Katie,

Your video about what to spend extra time and effort on – and what not to – was exactly what my son needed. He almost always runs out of time in exams and tests and it’s because he tries to put in so much information into all his answers. He’s always been a hard worker but I worry because he’s getting a bit disheartened with a couple of recent exam results that weren’t so good. He’s in Year 11 so I feel this is a fairly critical time”

 

And I totally understand and agree.

I’ve already replied in detail to Kirsten and I’ve done a lot of other blog videos around exam technique (just click the ‘Exams’ category on the right-hand-side menu on this blog!) so I want to expand a bit more on why there is never any point in going beyond the requirements of a question in a test or exam.

 

Because there are students out there who hear this and still ignore it.

Not in a rebellious sort of way! But just because they don’t quite believe it; they think that their exam is different (it’s not) or they still hold out hope that there are extra marks to be had (there aren’t).

#brutaltruth

Every question is written with a purpose.

That purpose is focused on the skill or knowledge it is testing AND what is required to prove that knowledge or skill.

And that proof is allocated specific marks for each element at the time the question is written.

Then, there will usually be a meeting of senior and chief examiners after an exam has been sat. They’ll take an extensive sample of student scripts (their completed exam papers) and see how their initial mark scheme works out in practice. Any adjustments are then made before full marker training and the official marking operation.

However, EXTRA marks are NEVER invented or added on.

It’s more just a case of making a final decision about scenarios they might not have predicted or foreseen in students’ responses.

 

This is why I never encourage students to go above and beyond in exams. In fact it’s quite the opposite, especially where time pressure is a factor.

There’s often that temptation for students to put in some extra info or knowledge that they’ve so carefully revised, either because they want to showcase their hard work OR because they hope it will make up for a lack of knowledge or a less detailed response in what was *actually* being asked.

Well, I’m here to confirm (or reveal!) that this just isn’t the way exams or tests work.

If your teen does have extra time left, they’ll be better off using it to improve their vocabulary or improve any existing information they’ve written to have it respond even more specifically or fully to the requirements of the question.

 

There are no discretionary ‘aww, bless, them , they’ve tried really hard’ marks.

Or, ‘gosh this person really knows their stuff – even though it isn’t the stuff we are asking for’  marks.

Not even, ‘oh, they’ve worked it all out correctly but for the wrong chemical’, sympathy marks.

(Oh and no extras for answering more questions than they needed to either).

 

As a marker I’ve seen all these scenarios and many more. Where I can see that a student deserves a great mark but I just can’t give it to them if what’s on the page doesn’t match the criteria. That’s as far as it goes.

So, rather than end this on what now feels like a bit of a depressing note!… I want this to be a positive take away 🙂

So that this as an insight into exam content and marking, so that your teen can put effort where it will more likely get rewarded and can spend every minute wisely in their tests and exams.

 

If you’ve gotten value from this video, then please feel free to share it with any other parents who might find it helpful too 🙂

Leave me a comment below – is this blog ‘confirmation’ or ‘revelation’ for you and your teen, that there are no hidden marks.

Until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!

Katie

 

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Working SMARTER in homework and assignments

Has your teen ever gone over and above in their assignments or homework tasks?  Perhaps adding an extra case study in a research project, using some amazing home-crafted props to add some pizazz to a presentation, or simply making a beautiful, front cover for a project, (laminated of course)! ?

What was the payoff and the result?

Was it worth it?

Because there are times and places for this sort of extra effort.

Sometimes it can pay off, sometimes it won’t.

So how do you know which situation is which?

 

Well, as a general rule, in tests and exams, this is not the time to do this. Every question has been given a clear and strict mark scheme as it’s been written, and every mark will have been accounted for in the specific directions and wording in every question.

In extended tasks, assignments, projects and coursework, these are a little more flexible and there is the possibility of added extras or special effort gaining credit, extra marks or at least some form of informal recognition like a positive comment from, and a great impression made on the teacher.

 

Now, when it comes to these sorts of extended or open-ended tasks, the lower the year group, the more these sorts of extra efforts will be rewarded.

It’s certainly the case that a great first impression can put the teacher or marker in a more generous frame of mind. Even with a marking rubric teachers are still human

(yep, really) 😉

And of course they want to nurture and encourage that effort and work ethic by having it pay off for your teen.

Plus, more officially, some of these ideas and added extras will actually count towards the success criteria. For example: Props in a presentation would likely count towards the delivery of the presentation being engaging and original. Additional independent research could mean that the level of detail or breadth of research is regarded as higher quality.

 

However, as your teen moves up through the years and into the senior years, things get more formal with mark schemes and so added extras not on the task sheet or marking criteria won’t make up for problems like a lack of in depth analysis or sophisticated evaluation.

Teachers as well as examiners are looking for academic performance in years 11 and 12 (and year 10 really too). All assessments in the senior years will have been matched with the exam board or curriculum criteria and all submissions need to stand up to being scrutinized by outside moderators, so there’s no opportunity for teachers to give any extra discretionary marks or credit anywhere.

 

As you’ll know if you’ve followed me for a while now, I’m all about sticking to the mark sheme, BUT if your teen really is keen to go over and above in a task, then I’d say that in Years 7 to 9, as long as it’s staying within the realms of the task AND not going off on a tangent AND doesn’t involve spending hours of extra time or effort, then go for it 🙂

It could make a good impression on the teacher which can have positive knock-on and long-term effects, but can also produce a better mark or grade if it’s related to the criteria in some way, and of course will give your teen a confidence boost from the positive comments and teacher recognition.

 

However, in Year 10 onwards, I’d hold back on any added extras not mentioned in the instructions or criteria, and put that time and effort into making the elements specifically required as deep, complete and detailed as possible.

They should spend their time and brain power extending their explanations.

Or, perhaps theycan they make a clearer link to their background research to enhance their analysis.

Can they craft a more sophisticated or engaging opening?

These are the sorts of improvements that are going to move them up through the grade descriptors AND will make a great impression on the teacher or exam marker. 😉

 

Don’t forget to leave me a comment below this video, let me know your thoughts and your teen’s experiences around this 🙂

Until next week, let’s make this a fan-TAS-tic week 🙂

Katie

 

 

 

 

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Ignoring Examiners’ Instructions (eek!) ?

So, you’re taking a driving test.

The examiner gives you an instruction – and you ignore it and do something else.

You would expect to fail the test, right?

 

And yet this is what happens in academic exams All . The . Time.

AND it’s why many students end up getting results they’re disappointed in and that don’t reflect their effort or true ability.

 

The difference is, that for most students, it isn’t that they are IGNORING instructions, they just weren’t totally clear on what the examiner was really asking of them.

(Although sometimes the ‘IGNORING instructions’ thing does happen when a student realises they don’t know how to answer what’s actually being asked, so decide to answer a different Q they WISH it was asking instead!).

FYI – that doesn’t work either. Ever.

 

Both of these scenarios will lead to the same result (though perhaps the second will mean the disappointing result is little less unexpected).

This is why it’s SO important for students to not only read the INSTRUCTIONS on exam papers rrreeeeally carefully.  Things like the front cover info, such as the number of questions to answer, the amount of time available and so on.

(Because EVERY year there are students who don’t answer the right selection of Qs, or too many, or not enough).

But moreover, it’s essential that students understand how to dissect and break down each and every exam Q so that they can work out the exact instruction they’re being given.

The problem with this, is that unlike reading the front page of exam info, most students don’t know how to dissect or precisely what to look for in a Q, or exactly how to respond.

That’s why the 6 Elements of Exam Technique are so important, so that your teen isn’t performing a parallel park when the examiner has asked them to do an emergency stop.

But of course, it’s usually more subtle than that – more like the examiner’s asked them to turn left, but they’ve simply moved into the left hand lane (and failed to indicate) 😉

They’ve heard ‘left’ – which might be the topic or a key word in the Q, but they’ve missed the command word in the question. And in an exam, *that* is what determines the level of cognitive skill their response needs to be at and is what the mark scheme is centred around.

 

So, if you’d like to get all the behind-the-scenes info on Command Words, what mark schemes demand aaaaannnnnd get advice on how your teen should prepare for exams, then come join me at my Exam Special – Parent Webinar that I’m running this week, where I’ll be teaching and sharing all this info and (lots!) more.

CLICK HERE to save your digi-seat 🙂

Can’t wait to see you at one of the webinar sessions!

Katie 

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Exam Rehearsal is Critical

It’s long been accepted in education that ‘teaching to the test’ is NOT the most effective way to great grades.

Plus it’s also not really possible these days.

Exams and the curriculum are designed so that it just doesn’t work.

And this is a *good* thing as it means students have to be taught in a more holistic way and are required to actually understand the content, rather than learn and rehearse it parrot fashion (like so many of us used to do!).

Memory flashback happening right now – reciting and memorising German verb tables – arrrrgh!!!

But that doesn’t mean that students can’t prep and practice for tests and exams.

There’s a much more useful and transferable skill and process: ‘TRAINING for the Test’.

 

In other words:

  • Getting familiar with the format of the exam to be sat.
  • Being clear on exactly how to tackle it strategically.
  • Having go-to strategies to address different types of questions and a toolbelt of techniques to write top-notch responses.

…So that the ‘unknown’ of an exam is no longer daunting, (partly because those ‘unknown elements’ are minimised).

And the fact that many students still AREN’T being trained in exam technique is a little bit crazy – or at least I think so – and is of course why I’ve made it my mission to help as many students as possible with this.

Because we wouldn’t go to an interview without having rehearsed our answers to possible questions they might ask us , and researching what will likely impress them (AKA – things that I should definitely try to include in my answers!) 😉

No TED Talk presenter would turn up not having practiced their talk or knowing what rules or expectations or guidelines they’ll need to follow.

And if we had our driving test coming up, we’d not only know exactly what manouevers they could ask us to perform, but we’d have practiced those exact procedures many, MANY times and have a clear strategy to follow for each, like lining up the wingmirrors for a reverse park or having specific steps for a three-point-turn.

 

And yet SO many students go into exams having learnt the subject info but not having clear strategies, steps or techniques to perform at their best.

That’s like going into a dance competition having read a ton of books about ballet but never actually having danced. Or going into a boxing match having watched hours of matches but never having been coached and trained in the ring yourself.

Being able to perform brilliantly and knowing exactly what the judges are looking for is a whole other world, right?!

 

So make sure your teen isn’t just relying on their subject knowledge to help them achieve success in their essays, exams and assignments.

They need practical strategies and go to tools, templates and techniques so that they can produce answers and responses that align with the wording of essays, tasks and exam questions AND with the mark schemes and rubrics.

Be sure to check out my upcoming ‘Exam Special’ webinar with loads more practical and in-depth training on this. (Look out in your inbox or on the Facebook news feed for registration info next week!).

And until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!

Katie

 

 

 

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Sketch it in crayons

Practicing exam responses and testing knowledge using past or sample exam papers is an EXCELLENT way for students to prepare for exams.

And if they don’t know where to find these, my GTZ Members can find quick links to all the state exam boards, their past papers, mark schemes or chief examiner reports in the Grade Transformation Zone Member Area 🙂

However, it can be a pretty intense exam prep activity, and when your teen’s feeling exhausted, perhaps mid-exam-block, BUT they still *need* to be doing some productive work to prepare, then here’s an alternative, slightly ‘lighter’ way to tackle this.

And just quickly – I can’t take credit for this. I got the idea from Steve Collis who, at the time was the Director of Innovation at SCIL – the Sydney Centre for Innovation in Learning, and he once said ‘if you can’t sketch it in crayons, you don’t understand it’.

It wasn’t meant to be a profound statement,  but it struck a chord with me and so here’s one of the ways I took this and made it into a practical strategy….

 

Instead of writing a formal full answer to each question on the practice exam paper, have your teen try to draw a response. This can be fun, but also pretty challenging (in a more light-hearted way)!

But it’s that extra challenge that makes it really effective 😉

 

Because the fact that your teen is having to convert their knowledge from text format into a visual form, means that their brain is doing an extra step of processing of that information. And more processing means more retention AND easier, faster retrieval when it comes to getting that info back out, from brain to paper in the exam hall.

Plus, it  highlights any knowledge gaps. Because you can’t sketch something you don’t know or understand.

 

Now, a quick ‘Captain Obvious’ note here – obviously this is not something to do IN the REAL exam – this is just a suggestion for revision and exam prep, when they need a bit of a break from the really hard core revision, but still want to or need to be productive.

Ok, that’s the disclaimer done 😉

Scroll down and leave me a comment to let me know if your teen fancies giving this a go!

And until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!

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Environment is everything

The space and environment where students study matters.

(Don’t worry, this isn’t me giving your teen a free pass to start requesting expensive trips to IKEA or Kikki K!
In fact it’s usually a case of cleaning up and clearing out rather than adding more stuff) 🙂

If their environment is well-suited to focused, motivated and effective study, then they are more likely to FEEL motivated and GET and STAY focused.

Here are the specific factors you need to consider.

 

If their space is messy and cluttered, then (apart from taking ages to find anything and then losing focus and ramping up frustration) their thinking and processing will also be messy and inefficient.

Buuuuutttt…. if their environment is well-suited to focused, motivated and effective study, then they are more likely to FEEL motivated and stay focused.

Here are the key factors that it’ll be helpful to consider, because even though everyone is a little different in terms of what helps us stay on task or produce our best work, these will all play a part:

Firstly, the Visual.

It absolutely needs to be a neat and tidy space.

Mess and clutter are never conducive to effective work or study.

Now that doesn’t mean it has to be totally sterile – it can be inspiring for sure, perhaps some motivational quotes or travel photos or precious items around, but not so much that they become a distraction.

 

Secondly, it needs to be QUIET.

Some students need or prefer silence – and that’s me too BTW! If I’m working, I can’t deal with any noise, TV, people talking or music – boring perhaps, but I know what works for me. So I’m not one of those cool people you see working away at their laptop at a coffee shop and ideally, your teen won’t be either!

If they do insist that they work better with music, then it should only be baroque music. They likely won’t like it, but I’ve done a whole other blog post previously on this (which you can watch HERE!) to explain this in more detail.

 

And thirdly is COMFORT.

Now this is a fine balance.

They need to feel comfortable but ALERT. So no lying on their bed, sitting on the couch or slouching in a bean bag. Again, not always a popular fact, but again, this is proven to affect our focus and quality of our work.

For me, I actually do a lot of my work standing. I have a perfect height kitchen bench top for my laptop and it keeps me more focused than sitting at a desk. However, when it comes to marking for exam boards, I have no choice but to sit down, but I take along blankets to prop myself up a bit! I don’t care what I look like (way past that these days!), I just don’t wanna be distracted or less productive because I feel ache-y or uncomfortable or slip into sleep-y mode.

Students often do need motivation and focus and a lot of that has to do with them being in the right environment and setting to do their best work.

So… Neat, tidy and inspiring; quiet or with baroque music; and a desk and chair that has them comfortable but alert will go a long way to helping them be the best they can be 🙂

I’d love to hear about anything your teen has done to make their study space more positive and productive for them. Drop a comment below 🙂

Until next week, let’s make this a fantastic week!

Katie

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