Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

PARADIGM
EXAM
CHECKLIST

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

IDEAL STUDY ENVIRONMENT

Your Worst Your Best

PEOPLE
-Do you study best alone or with friends?
- If friends, which group of friends?

PLACE
-Which location allow you to focus the
best?
-Can I personalise my study space to
make it more inviting and conducive to
learning?

PLAYLIST
-What type of music help me concentrate
the best?
-Do you prefer instrumental, lyrical
music or complete silence?
-Are you aware of the types of music are
best suited for different subjects and
phases of learning?

PERIOD
-When do I feel most alert and
productive?
-Do I work better in the morning,
afternoon or evening?
-How long can I focus before needed a
break?

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

BEFORE BEFORE [SKILLSET]

What to do:
Why are you failing?
1. You can’t explain what’s the essence of the chapter. You feel confused/lost.
2. You don’t recognise the types of questions in every Chapter.
3. You are unclear of the concepts, formulas, method to solve questions.
4. You are not ready and prepared for the Exam.

How to get a C?
1. You roughly understand some parts of the Chapter.
2. You recognise some of the questions but unable to complete the questions.
3. You can do the basic questions, that’s why you will be able to Pass.
4. However, you are STUCK at a C because…
a) You did not spend time to understand the question types, you tend to
procrastinate and give up on the tougher conceptual questions.
b) You did not practice Past Year Exam Papers
c) You are unaware of the how Exam Standards are like
d) You are making too many careless mistakes and conceptual errors in Exam
How to get a B?
1. You understood majority of the Chapter and question types that can be tested
2. You recognise that Exam Questions and are able to solve most of them

3. However, you didn’t get an A because:

a) Your careless mistakes & small conceptual errors pulled you down
b) You did not have sufficient exposure to the tougher questions. Any small tweaks in
the scenarios, make you fumble.

How to get a A?
1. You know all the possible question types in every single chapter.
2. You know the method to solve all these question types.
3. You know the common conceptual errors, careless mistakes and pitfalls in every
single chapter.
4. You have practiced sufficient exam papers to feel confident and ready for the Exam.
These steps will help you to achieve an A.

Why didn’t you get the TOP?

a) You have not achieved the 1 mark per 1 minute pace.
b) You have yet to master the Art of Checking Paper
c) You did not expose sufficiently to all possible Challenging Questions [Hunting]

How to get to the TOP?

1. You clearly know all the possible question types in every single chapter.
2. You clearly know the method to solve all these question types.
3. You clearly know the common conceptual errors, careless mistakes and pitfalls in
every single chapter.
4. You have looked through past year papers & compiled all the challenging questions.
5. You have successfully achieved a 1mark per 1minute pace.

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

THE NIGHT BEFORE YOUR EXAM

What to do: Why you need to do it:
At Night: Last round of revision to ensure that you got
1. Active Recall the chapters you are tested everything absorbed.

You Active Recall based on the 3Cs for Avoid excessive practice – it will make you
every single chapter. tired.

• What are the concepts that you need If your heartbeat gets fast, pause and take
to know? long deep breaths. I know you are feeling
• What are the Question Types in each nervous.
Chapter?
• What are the method to solve these
questions?
• What are the mistakes that you need
to avoid?
• What are the challenging question
that potentially can be tested.

2. Focus on SPECIFIC topics/concept that

you ALWAYS tend to FORGET
3. Don’t do any more questions
4. After you’re done, ensure you pack
everything you need into your bag.

Sleep Math is a subject that requires focus.

When you lack sleep, your cognitive ability

declines.

You start calculating things wrongly.

Please Sleep Early. You start copying things wrongly.
You start seeing things wrongly.
You start applying concepts wrongly.

This is the definite route to NOT getting your

desired grades.

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

THE DAY OF YOUR EXAM

What to do: Why you need to do it:
Morning: Last round of revision to ensure that you got
1. Active Recall the chapters you are tested everything absorbed.
2. Focus on SPECIFIC topics that you
ALWAYS tend to FORGET – Recite Recite Avoid excessive practice – it will make you
Recite [3Cs] tired.
3. Don’t do any more questions
4. After you’re done, ensure you pack If your heartbeat gets fast, pause and take
everything you need into your bag. long deep breaths. I know you are feeling
nervous.
Meals: Eating junk food makes you sleepy, bloated
and the worst thing you want is a food coma.
Avoid eating fast food, eat something soupy,
easy to digest. Eating spicy food is even worst, I have seen
students having diarrhoea during Exam.

You don’t want that to happen right?

On the way to School:

Put yourself in a good mood.
1. Listen to Music [if it helps you] Youi feel confident, prepared & ready.
2. Active Recall Notes Your Mental state is very important.
3. Plan sufficient time to travel so you will
reach school on time

In School:
You want to protect your state.
1. You can continue to skim through your
cheat sheet and book. Put yourself in a focus, calm, confident
2. Stop reading any notes 30min before the mood.
Exam
3. Put your phone on Airplane Mode Airplane Mode before the Exam to avoid any
4. Avoid hanging out with Panicky Friends potential distractions, notifications that can
- People who keep asking you questions, AFFECT you.
complain about exams, make you anxious.
Stay Away from Them.
5. Go to washroom before entering the Exam
Hall
6. If there is some concept you always tend to
forget, just look at it one final time before
you go for your exams.

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

RIGHT BEFORE THE EXAM

What to do: Why you need to do it:
Before Entering Exam Hall: -

1. Go to the Washroom, Wash your Face

2. Get Water Bottle, Jacket, Stationaries,
Entry Proof & NRIC [National Exam]

The Moment You Sit Down: Be on a Good, Calm, Laser Focus State.

1. Lay out your Stationary Apply the 2 Min Breathing Technique you
2. Take Deep Breaths to calm yourself down learnt from Coach Chun if you are feeling
3. Close your Eyes. Visualise Success. Do nervous.
Affirmations. Be Confident.
Prime yourself. Prepare yourself for the
battle.
The Moment You Begin: Early completion gives you more time for
harder questions, provides you time to
Math is a Sprint – because we have many validate and check repeatedly and it makes
methods to VALIDATE our answers. you CONFIDENT.

Remember to SKIP question when STUCK. Hydrate yourself but not to the point you
We are aiming for A. Not 100%. It’s okay to must go to the toilet.
SKIP questions.

After You Finish 1 Round: If there’s a lot of time, proceed to clear the
questions you have skipped.
Look at the time left to decide next action.
If there’s insufficient time, proceed to
CHECK. Get ALL the MARKS you can do.
Once you are ready to check: Once you have validated and you know it’s
100% correct – Put a Tick at the Number.
Remember about the 3 layers of checks I You DON’T HAVE to come back to that
mentioned! question again because it’s CONFIRM
correct.
First Layer: Validation
Second Layer: CUTQ Use different methods to check to reduce
Third Layer: RI chance of errors/careless mistakes.

Check if all numbers are TRANSFERRED

carefully
Before Submission: This allows you to WALK OUT of the
EXAM HALL confidently, knowing that you
1. Check Handwriting if it’s neat have done well!
2. For questions you are unsure of – include
random workings in hope for extra working
marks
3. Count the total score based on the TICKS. You Got This!

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

DURING THE EXAM

What to do: Why you need to do it:
The Moment You Begin: Early completion gives you more time for
harder questions, provides you time to
Math is a Sprint – because we have many validate and check repeatedly and it makes
methods to VALIDATE our answers. you CONFIDENT.

Remember to SKIP question when STUCK. Hydrate yourself but not to the point you
We are aiming for A. Not 100%. It’s okay to must go to the toilet.
SKIP questions.

After You Finish 1 Round: How to decide:

Look at the time left to decide next action. Checking your paper should always be the
priority because we can easily jump 1 or 2
There’s only 3 Actions to be taken: grades if you find your mistakes. Trust me,
1) Try Again there are MISTAKES in your working.
2) Move on to Another Question
3) Check Paper To decide whether to try again, or to move on
to another question – depends on TIME &
CONFIDENCE.

You need to make decision at that split

second. That’s why speed training and mock
papers training is important because the more
practices you have – you can decide better as
you KNOW your abilities.
Once you are ready to check: Once you have validated and you know it’s
100% correct – Put a Tick at the Number.
Remember about the 3 layers of checks I You DON’T HAVE to come back to that
mentioned! question again because it’s CONFIRM
correct.
First Layer: Validation
Second Layer: CUTQ Use different methods to check to reduce
[Calculation, Units, Tranfser, Qn Type] chance of errors/careless mistakes.
Third Layer: RI
[Redo, Intuition especially for Graphs, Check if all numbers are TRANSFERRED
Diagram questions] carefully
Before Submission: This allows you to WALK OUT of the
EXAM HALL confidently, knowing that you
1. Check Handwriting if it’s neat have done well!
2. For questions you are unsure of – include
random workings in hope for extra working
marks
3. Count the total score based on the TICKS. You Got This!

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 Paradigm Specialising in O & A Level Mathematics

AFTER THE EXAM

What happens? Life Lessons
Psychology Life Lessons:
If you FEEL you haven’t done as well… #1: Disappointment is okay because we have
our own standard & expectations. That will
The key question that you must always ask spur us to do even better.
yourself is: Have I prepared well & have I
done my best? However, Regret is the one we have to
AVOID. Regret is a Poison that will stay
If the answer is Yes – you will feel long in the future. Just recall your PSLE,
disappointed for a while, but that’s Normal. some of you are disappointed at your results,
that’s okay – the feeling have subsided. But
If the answer is No – we need to know the for some of you who have regretted not
reason WHY so we can avoid the Mistake. studying at all – that’s Painful. Don’t let
happen again.

#2 Failures & Mistakes are part and parcel of

life. These mistakes make us better. What we
want to avoid is REPEATING THE SAME
MISTAKE. That’s not wise.
If you have other incoming Exams Quote:
“You can lose a battle, but still Win the
In your National Examinations, you are War.”
assessed based on L1R4/R5.

I know you feel dejected and disappointed –

that’s Human. But you need to focus on the
Bigger picture & not let this setback affect
your state for the remaining papers!

After receiving your paper We are never taught how to review exam
papers. That’s why, just put our paper one
Look at your mistakes and consolidate them side and never touch it again.
into 3Cs – Concept, Careless, Complex
As I mentioned at the top,
What’s the individual percentage errors?
Mistakes are okay – but we cannot be making
If it’s HIGH on careless mistakes – you need REPEATED MISTAKES.
to learn how to Check your Work.
Compile your mistakes into the book of 3Cs
If it’s HIGH on conceptual error – you need and make a promise that you will never make
to Unlearn and Relearn concepts. these errors again.

If it’s HIGH on complex questions – you

need to HUNT and EXPOSE yourself to
tougher questions.

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