#fail exam

1. Firstly don’t stress if you don’t get a great grade in one test, this doesn’t mean you’re failing or bad at the subject. HOWEVER if it’s consistently happening you may have to reconsider your approach to the subject.

2. Speak to your teacher. This is perhaps the most important thing. Ask them where am I going wrong and what can I do to improve my grades? Then try and implement their advice.

3. Look back at your tests or essays and see where specifically you lost marks. Make a list of key points that you must improve on and then either re-do the same paper or implement these things next time you do a test or essay.

4. If you feel like you aren’t putting enough effort in and this is the reason you aren’t doing great, dedicate a number of hours you MUST work on that subject a week and stick to them rigidly, creating a study timetable could help with this. 

5. If you feel you are working hard but still aren’t getting the results you expect, reconsider your studying methods. Perhaps you’re not working as effectively as you could be, or are using methods which don’t work for you.

6. Don’t compare yourself to other people, focus on your own work and acknowledge that people work at different paces and pick up stuff at different times.

7. Lastly, print off the ‘failing conditions’ for your year and be aware of what the requirements are.

Unexpected/bad exam results can be the result of several outcomes:

Procrastinating studying 

Forgetting about having a test 

Random unannounced class test

 Freaking out and blanking in the middle of the exam

Regardless of the situation that left you with an upsetting test result here are some tips to deal with it, learn from it and move on.

Read the teachers comments 

As students we can't help but automatically look for the grade when we get an exam back. This is then followed by everyone asking and shouting out what they got. We all ignore the classic teacher line: “Please read my comments before looking at your score.” (Who really does this???) But in all honesty, read the teachers comments because they wrote them for a reason and they may help you understand better the score you got. 

The teacher didn't mark you down on purpose

“She/ he hates me”

Remember that teachers mark our exams based on a marking scheme. They try to follow it as closely as possible because when it comes to the real exams the external examiner won't be as forgetful and considerate. So it’s all good practice and never personal... If you're still unsure about the grading ask for the mark scheme and see where you missed out on marks.

“I swear I wrote the same thing and I didn't get the mark”

Everyone has said this at one point. Maybe to some extent you did and it all made sense in your head but your teacher didn't understand it. Many times the teacher will admit that they knew what you were trying to say but it was explained clearly. Again remember that in the real exam the examiner won't know you personally so you have to make sure your ideas are clear. In subjects like biology for example make sure you know how the correct spelling of terms. I once wrote blood magma instead of plasma and I obviously didn't get the mark.

It's a learning process

Always remember that the IB is not easy and is supposed to be challenging. For most of us, the first year is all about learning and adapting as it is often a big leap with higher demands from the level we were doing before (IGCSE/GCSE etc). Don't feel discouraged if you're suddenly not the best and aren't getting top scores like you were used to. It is very unlikely for teachers to give you 6 and 7 at the start of the IB as it is a two year program and your skills haven't fully developed. Also, keep in mind that there will be many other tests and its better to be “failing” these practice tests and learning from them than the real ones at the end of the second year. However, this doesn't mean you should brush off a bad test result. Take it as an opportunity to revise more or talk to your teacher if you need extra help.

Hope this helps