Hone your strength

The internal exams of most of the school going children are either over or will be over in the next few days. Same is the situation in case of board exams. The results of internal examinations will be declared shortly or would have been declared by the time this article is published. This is the time of the year when may parents and children are anxious to know the result of their hard work put in during the year and especially the last few months. This is true that the result in most of the cases will be as expected by the students but there can be some cases where the children many not be able to perform well and might fail. Some students would be unhappy as the marks obtained by them might be lesser than what they expected. But all are advised that once you have written your examination paper, you should get over the worry and think of the future. The worry now may not be of any help rather might create dilemma in the future. If someone has not been able to pass the examination then also he/she should see something positive in that (though I do not mean that failing is good but remember that every failure is a bigger lesson learnt than success). The individual must try to analyse about what went wrong? Was it the lack of hard work or the individual was not keeping well during the examination or the academic year? The role of parents and teachers is very important in such situation. Even the relatives should be careful while interacting with the children who would not have done well. It is expected that nobody should pass negative remarks now because even the adults who are intelligent enough tend to get carried away by the situations. The remarks like, “you were told a number of times to work hard and be sincere but you did not listen, now see the result”, should be avoided. I know the parents do feel bad when the children do not pay heed to their advice. But once the result is already out and the children themselves must have been feeling bad about it, then further nonconstructive remarks from the parents, relatives or the teachers might deteriorate the situation. All must understand that failing in one examination is not the end of life because there are many examinations which one has to pass through in life. This failure might change the thought process of the child for the better, if supported by the adults. No child feels good for not having done very well, even the one who would not have studied at all. This time of result declaration is such that invariably everyone has stress so the adults must rather dilute it than adding fuel to the wood. My advice to all concerned is that any result should be taken in a positive manner and this should also be taken as a learning experience. The mistake committed this time should not be repeated and if one is able to do that then this failure will certainly not be a failure.

Though the results of class X board examination will be declared in the month of May/June but there are many schools which admit the students in class XI on provisional basis. Everyone knows that till class X all students study almost the same course but in class XI they have to make a choice of combination of subjects as offered by the schools. We still say that there are streams in this class like Science, Commerce and Humanities with wide choices of subjects especially in CBSE affiliated schools. Think about the plight of the children seeking admission in class XI. They have just finished their class X exams and do not worry about subject options. I always advise the parents and the relatives that they should not impose their choices on the children on such issues. The children should be allowed to choose the subjects of their aptitude in which they feel comfortable. All individuals are different and we should accept it. If the elder child was good in Maths or Hindi and has got a handsome job because of these subjects that does not mean the younger will also be able to do equally well in it though he/she does not have any interest for that subject. I would like to take the example of the subject Mathematics. Most of the people think that this subject is very important in the life and I fully agree with this stand. That is the reason every child studies it up to class X and after that they can decide to opt for this or drop it. Sometimes, I hear people saying that if their child did not study Mathematics in Classes XI and XII then there would be no life. And mostly it has been found that if the child did not have any interest in maths and was forced to opt for it, it then becomes a nightmare for him. The statement of a teacher seems to be appropriate in such situation that the parents ruin the life of the child by forcing him to study maths. There are many children who opted for unconventional subjects (From the point of those who always professed the conventional subjects only) and did exceedingly well in class XII and later in their lives. So, my suggestion and advice to all students and parents is that the children should be allowed to choose the subjects of their interest in which they can do well and succeed in their future life.   

Now a few points for the students who are appearing in board exams. Many of them will also appear in some competitive exams. For example, the JEE (Mains) is to be held on 4th April followed by many more. So, the candidates have got to be calmer and more composed than the students who appeared in school based internal exams. Some of the students might not have performed to their potential in a few subjects but that should not affect their performance in competitive exams. Every one must try to expunge their performance of the board exams and have positive approach towards such examinations in which they will appear. Those who would have been through the board exams should concentrate on topics which they consider themselves strong in. This is advised that you should not try to lay your hands in new things or in which you would have struggled rather brush up all that you know already. Students must ensure that they exploit every bit of their strength to the best of their ability and avoid getting bogged down with certain areas they might not be good in. But at the same time the students must take care of their health also because it must have been quite a hectic time for most of them. You are advised to take proper rest and eat balanced diet so that physical health problem does not add to the mental fatigue. Physical stamina and proper rest will help you to perform better rather than feeling uncomfortable during the exams on account of ill health. I would like to strongly advise the students and the parents that they should be very well aware of the negative marking if it is there in any of the exams and attempt the paper accordingly. If there is no negative marking then try to attempt all questions. The students should also practice to darken the circles of correct answers as required in most of the exams.  The most important of all is that the students should reach the examination centre well in time and should take into account all possibility and unexpected things which might happen while commuting to the centre, for example the problem of traffic jam or diversion or the break down of the vehicle. It is generally observed that students prefer to reach the given centre on the day of exam, which should not be practised, rather check the location of your centre a day prior to the exam and that will comfort you more and you will feel settled.

These points may seem to be simple and unimportant but play a significant role in your performance up to the potential. I wish all the students good luck and May the Almighty help you achieve your goal.