If you got the GCSEs you wanted, well done. But if you are now about to do A-Levels, then watch out. Study at AS-Level is far more demanding than at GCSE. The concepts are more difficult, and there tends to be a lot more material to absorb. Here are a few tips to help you keep on top of things . . .

1. Make sure you keep a decent set of notes. Good notes are concise and well organised, so you can locate what you need quickly, without having to wade through non-essential material.

2. Your notes must be learned. This is done by a combination of conscious effort and regular use. You can’t consult them in the exam – by that time they need to be in your head.

3. Understand the material. It is not enough simply to memorise sections of text from your notes, or paragraphs from a book. You also have to appreciate what it means. To make sure you have understood a point, try explaining it to somebody else, or to yourself in different words.

4. It is often easy to get lost in fine detail. Try to see the big picture. As well as learning facts and principles, take a step back and try to follow how they link together.

5. Revise. When you learn something, you will often forget large parts of it. Don’t worry — if you genuinely understood it, you will learn it more easily and quickly the second time round, and even more so the third. After a while, you will remember it without too many problems.

6. Study must be active. Simply reading your notes over and over is rarely of much use. You have to interact with the material. Try turning your notes over and recalling them. Try summarising the main points in words, diagrams, graphs or flow charts.

7. For each topic, make a list of key words and phrases. For example, these could be technical terms in biology, or names, places, dates, events etc in history. Then go through each item on the list, and make sure you are aware of its meaning or significance.

8. Apply the knowledge. Practice answering lots of exam-style questions.

9. Analyse your answers with the help of notes, books, mark schemes, friends or teachers. Note where you could have improved. Be tough on yourself — strive for perfection.

10. Make a study and revision timetable based on your own situation and the way in which you work best, and stick to it. Allocate time for everything you need to do, but don’t try to do too much in any one session. Little and often is best.

Following these suggestions will help you face your A-Levels with confidence. Of course, if you want extra tutorial support, we at Oxford Science and Maths Tutors can provide it. We have been doing so for many years and — despite the name — we can help in any subject. As well as individual one-to-one tuition, we run excellent small group evening classes.

A good tutor can offer a fresh perspective on areas of difficulty.

But he or she can also guide students and keep them focused — by ensuring they are aware of what they should be doing at any given time. A good tutor will make sure a student always has a plan for making progress.

Zaid Marham
principal, Oxford Science and Maths Tutors
e-mail: principal@get-those-grades.com