Reflecting on exam failure

Failing an examination could be overwhelming and you might feel that it is difficult to continue with your studies. Reflection will help you to gain perspective about your situation: what do I need to do in order to pass my examinations next time?

Step 1:

We have developed an examination self-reflection sheet to help you reflect on how you prepared for your exams, how you write and what you would like to do differently. Download the sheet here.

Step 2:

Once you have worked through the activities and identified the areas you would want to pay attention to, you could explore further self-help resources that we have available on our website with regards to preparing for examinations:

Podcasts
Exams part I: Motivation	It is important to reflect on your motivation to study when approaching the exams. Listen to some questions or aspects you could reflect on.
Exams part II: What do you still need to pay attention to?	It is important to reflect on the things you still need to pay attention to in order to prepare for the exams. Here are some aspects you might want to think about.
Exams part III: Demotivators	You need to reflect on those aspects that are making it hard for you to concentrate on your studies - what is demotivating you and what can you do about that?
Exams part IV: Exam revision	What are the practical actions you have to take in order to revise for your exams. Listen to some aspects that may be important for you.
Exams part V: Exam questions	Different types of questions require some adaptations in terms of your preparation for the examinations. Listen to some difference between essay-type and multiple-choice examination questions and what you need to be aware of
Exams part VI: Exam anxiety	Feeling anxious before or during an examination is normal. However, you need to be aware of the signs of anxiety and think about how you could deal with this anxiety positively.
Exams part VII: Before, during and after the exams	We share some tips for what to do before, during and after your exams.
Exams part VIII: Exam self-reflection	After you have written the exam, you need to relax, but before you do so, spend some time to reflect on your experience of completing the exam, as well as what you could do differently in terms of your preparation for the next examination period.
Thinking differently about challenges	All of us experience challenges in terms of our studies - is there another way to think about challenges so that you could continue with your studies more effectively? Listen to this podcast to find out more.
Workshop handout
Exam preparation brochure	More about academic anxiety as well as time management and exam preparation skills
DRIVER programme
DRIVER programme	The DRIVER programme will help you to further reflect on practical steps you can take in order to complete your examinations more effectively
External resources
Exams (University of Melbourne) http://cms.unimelb.edu.au/studentservices/asu/study/exams Answering essay questions (University of Victoria, Canada) http://www.coun.uvic.ca/learning/exams/essay-questions.html The Multiple choice exam (University of Victoria, Canada) http://www.coun.uvic.ca/learning/exams/multiple-choice.html

Step 3:

Complete an on-line questionnaire to provide us with feedback about the exam resources. This feedback will help us to adapt our support services to be relevant to students' needs.

Did you know?

You can apply for a remark or rewrite. For more information about the requirements for this, go to the Unisa website at https://my.unisa.ac.za/portal/site/!gateway/page/4fdcd53a-023c-46f5-80a2-d28f7829e9f1.
You can contact your lecturer to discuss options in terms of how you could approach your examination differently, especially if this is not the first time that you have failed the examination.
You can purchase your examination script. If you would like to purchase a copy of your examination answer book, please apply in writing for a copy of the prescribed application form via e-mail: purchasescript@unisa.ac.za (student number must appear in the subject heading) or fax: 012 429 4150. Students requesting a copy of the answer script will receive a photocopy replica or electronic version via e-mail of the examination answer script via registered mail once the application form and fee have been received and processed. Question papers and model answers/memoranda will not be included with the copy of the answer script. Question papers are available in the university library or on the myUnisa student portal.

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