As you have all become very familiar within a few short days we are in unprecedented territory at the moment. We are living through a situation that none of us know exactly how to deal with. We may be feeling more stressed, insecure, irritable, unsettled, having irrational thoughts. However we all have the capacity and the responsibility to listen to our Government and our professional medical people and the WHO to do our bit to stop the spread of this virus.
What we are being asked to do is not easy, it’s not comfortable, it is however 100% necessary if we are to come out the other end of this safe and well, and we will. Students, I am sure many of you were delighted last Thursday when news filtered through to the classrooms that schools were closing effective from 4pm that evening, so what now?
This is not school holidays albeit those schools are closed. I am speaking especially to Junior and Leaving Cert students who now this week may find themselves at a loss as to how to put structure into their study and their lives in general. Structure is very important and if you have been following advise on social media and on or radios and TV, they are all saying that you should in so far as is possible follow a similar pattern to that which you would be following if you were in school this week.
You all have the capacity to plan and study and now is the time to prove to yourself that you can do this. I would ask your parents, older siblings or guardians to sit down with you and work out a study plan with you which will empower you to take back control of the current situation. None of us have any control of what is happening externally however we are in full control in our own homes.
Revision
Firstly a good place to start would be to look at the mock results for any of the exams which you have already received. Are there areas in which you can now improve? Many students came to my office stressed out about the fact that they ran out of time during the mocks. Did this happen to you?What questions do you feel that you could have scored a higher mark on and why?Was it a lack of study or lack of understanding that stopped you performing at your optimum level?
What mistakes did you make? Did you answer the question you were asked?.Did you highlight the important words in the question?Did you use time management well? If not this could have caused you valuable marks.
Pomodoro
For students who struggle with time management there is a technique called the Pomodoro Technique which is a time management system that helps people to work with the time they have rather than against it. After about four Pomodoros, you will have become very confident and start to see the benefits. How does it work? Choose a question/topic you want to work on. Set a timer for 25 minutes. Totally focus on that question/topic for 25 minutes.When the timer rings STOP Take a five minute break to renew your energy. Do something totally unrelated for five minutes. If you have not completed the question start the next Pomodoro process again.
The idea behind the technique is that the timer instils a sense of urgency. It is a great opportunity for you to practice exam techniques. Next A lot of schools will be engaging on-line with their students, keep checking in online to access those resources. There is also a lot of other on–line resources:
On-line resources
Quizlet: you can download the app., create flash cards or study subjects
Homeschool .ie are offering discounts at the moment or in some cases a free service. Examinations.ie has all the exam papers and marking schemes for ALL Junior Cert and Leaving cert students.
Study clixCreate a Study plan.Firstly go back over the curriculum. Check all of the chapters covered to date and ask yourself:Would I be able to answer a question on this chapter, if not flag it
Follow the school time-table as much as possible each day, this will keep you focused.Give that subject 40/80 minutes. Link up with friends on social media, maybe set a question for you to work on together and check answers, put deadlines on those. By tomorrow I will have completed.......... Find a place at home to study, many of you would have been using study centres which are no longer available to you.
Organise yourselves
You need to organise yourselves differently. All of those measures will make you feel energised. Write EVERYTHING you plan to do down and give it a deadline. Just think about how you are going to feel when you have achieved your study goal as opposed to how you are going to feel if you do not.Award yourself for a job well done.
Those are difficult days and we need to put structure and routine into our lives right now in order to get through this together. We have no idea how long this is going to last, at the moment we are working towards March 29 but that could all change. You are not alone, not just in this country but throughout Europe many, many students are experiencing the same difficulties.
None of us have control over the measures which are being put in place by our Government, we can only work with them, we will all get through this PG and we will feel so much a part of the responsibility we have all taken together as individuals to stop the spread of his virus.Parents/guardiansPlease support your sons/daughters throughout this difficult time, please make sure they practice social distancing, it will be very trying to keep them at home as they will miss their friends terribly.
Please help them to keep a routine and keep studying, learning, reading, especially exam students.
Self-care/taking care of your mental health
This is extremely important for everyone, take walks, sleep well, eat well, practice relaxation techniques. Stay connected. Watch funny movies together, play silly games, Ludo, Monopoly, Draughts, Connect 4 etc. Do not allow your teenagers to stay up late.
Leaving Cert students/College choices.
This can also be a very good time to check in on how you are feeling about your college choices. You all have a very wide range of interests and hobbies, some of which are not available to you at the moment. What are you learning about yourself right now because of the need for social distancing and how are you coping with the current situation?
Are there any new pictures emerging? You will find yourself having to ask questions and look at your behaviours that you never had to do before, and how is this sitting with yo? Are you hating every minute of this or do you see it as a God- to get a break the stress of exams. Stay safe, please limit the amount of time that you are on social media and only read the most up-to-date factual information about the virus. Let us look after each other and the most vulnerable people in our society young and old.
