Every year, hundreds of thousands of students write CBSE board exams. The CBSE Class 10 and Class 12 board exams are highly competitive, and even minor differences in exam preparation and revision can make a difference in the rankings, impacting their future.
While students strive to revise everything systematically during exam prep, a supportive helping hand can improve how they prepare and approach the exams. This is where the support from parents becomes pivotal in navigating the challenges and pressure of these board exams.
This article covers 10 practical and effective tips for parents to help their children study smart for CBSE board exam.
1. Assist in Creating a Schedule
Exam preparation for CBSE class 10 and CBSE class 12 board exams requires a systematic approach. To cover all the subjects and topics within the available time and excel in the exams, students must employ effective time management techniques and learn how to create a schedule for exam prep.
While it may sound straightforward, it could be overwhelming, since students often face difficulties finding adequate time for revision due to the sheer amount of multitasking they need to do, juggling between attending school, coaching classes, and other extracurricular activities. So, they certainly need help with time management.
As a parent, you can sit with your child, audit their daily activities, identify the unnecessary tasks they can discard and replace them with exam preparation activities, and help them map out a realistic and effective study schedule by dividing the available time for school assignments, self-study, and relaxation, thus ensuring a balanced approach to preparation.
By streamlining exam preparation with an optimised schedule and time management, you can help your child focus better, use the available time wisely, and excel in the CBSE board exams.
2. Provide Emotional Support
Your child can prepare and perform well in the board exams only when they have good focus and emotional well-being. Strictly following a tight schedule and immersing oneself in multiple activities day in and day out can cause burnout.
Further, CBSE class 12 board exams determine the future of your child. The stress caused by competing for their future can cause anxiety and stress for any student. At this juncture, being emotionally present for your child can work wonders for their confidence and focus.
You can support them by spending time listening to their concerns. You can also ease their pressure by avoiding statements that remind them of how the future depends on their exam results and avoiding comparisons and unrealistic expectations. You can motivate them to do their best in the board exams and let the results follow.
3. Encourage Regular Breaks and Healthy Habits
To avoid burnout and stress during exam preparation, you can encourage your child to take regular breaks and gently guide them into getting back to their studies without getting distracted during those breaks. You can encourage them to do physical activities during the break and practice mindfulness. You can support them by providing a nutritious, balanced diet, reminding them to stay hydrated, and encouraging them to get adequate sleep daily, ensuring focus and memory retention.
4. Monitor Progress with Mock Tests
While your child can manage revision with minimal help, verifying their memory retention and assessing how well they have internalised the lessons they have revised so far is crucial. You can achieve this by conducting mock tests and assessments under a fixed duration with previous years’ question papers, like the sample papers from Study Smart for class 10 CBSE board exams and class 12 CBSE board exams.
These tests also help build familiarity with the exam pattern and improve time management skills. Analyse their performance in the test, focus on areas of improvement, and celebrate their progress to boost morale.
5. Manage Distractions Smartly
Regular breaks may help reduce stress; however, there is always a danger of losing focus due to excessive distractions, especially from social media and mobile usage. Even overindulgence in hobbies can derail a child’s focus. So, it is crucial to oversee their breaks without intrusion and positively guide your child back to studies at the right time.
6. Reward Efforts, Not Just Results
Good results are a consequence of great effort. While we celebrate the results post-exams, it is more important to celebrate the efforts during exam prep, irrespective of the outcome, as it fosters a growth mindset and reduces the fear of failure. Rewarding the effort motivates the child and boosts their confidence. Setting short-term and long-term goals and rewarding your child suitably for achieving them ensures motivation.
7. Discuss Effective Exam Strategies
Both exam prep and writing in the board exams involve sound strategy. For instance, you may find some questions from a particular chapter appearing in the board exams year after year. Prioritising and revising them can ensure your child scores a sizable chunk of marks easily with minimum effort.
Similarly, some sections carry more weightage in the CBSE class 10 and CBSE class 12 question papers. It is vital to attempt them first before proceeding to other sections.
However, students often struggle with identifying these topics and answering questions strategically in the board exams. You can help your child plan how to identify the questions that will most likely appear in the board exams, assist them in prioritising them during revision, and advise them how to tackle the paper by deciding which section to attempt first.
8. Post-Exam Support
While exam preparation and writing exams can be stressful, the post-exam stress is often overlooked. Students like to come out of the exam hall, compare the answers with their peers, verify if they have done well, and try to predict the marks they will score. If they identify mistakes, it can make them judge themselves harshly. The fear of discussing it with the parents can also cause panic.
Be there to listen to your child’s thoughts about the paper without passing judgment. Avoid dissecting the paper for mistakes immediately. Instead, focus on preparing for the next subject with constructive feedback after a few days.
9. Watch for Warning Signs
Exam stress can often cause burnout and depression. It can also manifest in other harmful ways, such as lack of sleep, negative thoughts, and loss of appetite. Look out for unusual signs like these and address these concerns with patience. If needed, get your child professional help to ensure their mental well-being.
10. Promote Peer Learning
Studying alone can help in some ways. However, it may not cover all aspects of revision. For instance, understanding complicated topics could be challenging. It can exceed the allocated time in the schedule and cause a domino effect on the entire revision plan.
On the other hand, group studies and discussions with peers can help your child clarify the topics, share knowledge, and get over them with ease. Peer learning fosters collaborative problem-solving in a comfortable setting. It can also unlock new perspectives on challenging topics and enhance memory retention.
Final Thoughts
Exam prep and writing board exams can be stressful. But it can be far less taxing if you can assist your child in every way possible. Depending on your child's comfort level and abilities, you can decide the extent of your involvement in helping with revision and exam prep. Irrespective of it, being with your child and letting them know you are always there for them can create a nurturing and supportive environment for them. This positive environment can enable them to excel not just in exams but in life as well.
FAQ
Encourage regular breaks, balanced meals, sufficient sleep, and light physical activities. Prioritise their mental well-being by creating a stress-free environment and monitoring signs of excessive pressure.
Focus on their efforts and support them in improving. Emphasise learning over grades and remind them that exams are part of life, not the end of it.
Assess their specific needs. Extra tuition can help if they struggle with certain topics, but ensure it does not overwhelm them or reduce self-study time.
Set clear boundaries for screen time. Encourage study apps or educational content instead. Lead by example and plan fun activities as breaks to reduce dependency on gadgets.