Grade 12 is without a doubt the best year in any high-school student’s life — filled with excitement, parties, obtaining driver’s licences, dances and after-parties, and I encourage every student to take full advantage of it. I embraced high-school life and got involved wherever possible.
It is these incredible things that keep a person’s head above water when one has to deal with what, at times, seems to be overwhelming schoolwork — and not to mention exams!
It is unreasonable for anyone to expect you to bury your head in books. I used hockey, squash, playing guitar and student life to draw my attention away from school. These are the experiences you
will remember when high school is long over.
Support is important
Undeniably, support is crucial — support from your friends, family and teachers. I am fortunate enough to have parents who never allow me to lose focus of what I want to achieve. I also built an incredibly strong relationship with a teacher who I could talk to and receive support from, whenever it felt like I would be un-able to manage the tasks at hand.
At school you spend 90% of your time surrounded by your classmates. I have a circle of extremely close friends who I can trust in any situation — from “chilling” with them to having someone to share my opinions with.
Preparing for exams
When it comes to exams, everyone has their own strategies. I find that, for theoretical subjects, the best method is to shut everything out — close your door, put down your phone and tell your parents not to disturb you for the next few hours — and summarise and say your summaries back to yourself as many times as you feel is necessary.
For more practical subjects such as maths and science, I would do
as many past papers as I could lay my hands on. I did up to 12 past papers for maths and science prior to my finals. Through past papers you learn what is expected of you, you understand how questions will be asked and the practice is invaluable.
A friend’s valuable advice
The most valuable piece of information that I received came from a friend at the beginning of matric. It was right before an exam and a friend walked up to me and said: “Back yourself.”
These two words can get you through any challenge in matric. You have made it this far already, now all you need to do is trust that what you have learnt your entire high school will get you through what is still to come.
Since that day I always take the last 10 minutes before an exam to calm myself, clear my head, and convince myself that I will do amazingly. Most people freak out before an exam and worry about something that they maybe had not studied enough.
It is this mindset that I believe must change because what you have learnt is exactly what you need to get through your exam.
You can achieve
In the end it is up to you to achieve what you want. If you have faith in yourself and are self-motivated, then nothing can get in your way. Matric is a tiny milestone to the rest of your life and I encourage each student to enjoy his or her last school year, seize the day and “back yourself”.
David Bresgi was a grade 12 pupil at Dainfern College, north of Gauteng, and got distinctions in all the nine.