Introduction – Passing Exams With Dyslexia
Exams can be difficult, and you need to prepare for them in two different ways. First, you need to know the content of the exam. This is the actual information that you are going to be tested on. This is the stuff you’ve been learning in class, or on your course. The second thing you need to learn is how to answer exam questions, and how to perform well in exams. A significant part of doing well in exams comes down to your familiarity with them. Let’s look at how you can improve your skills at passing exams with dyslexia.
Practise Handwriting Beforehand – Passing Exams With Dyslexia
If your exams are handwritten, you need to make sure that your handwriting is legible. In the exam room, people tend to write incredibly quickly. As the exam goes on, some students will write more frantically. Others might slowly ease into the exam and get better as time goes on. Either way, ensure that your handwriting is as easy to read as possible.
In the exam, make sure to take your time if you feel as though your handwriting is suffering. If it helps, ditch cursive (joined-up) handwriting so that the words are easier to read.
Finally, you want to practise handwriting so that your muscles are used to writing for extended periods of time. This is important for avoiding hand cramp. Find a way of gripping the pen which is as comfortable as possible. Make sure you’re still able to write efficiently and neatly. Learning some exercises to gently warm up your hands before the exam can also be helpful. It will hopefully make you less worried about your hands giving up halfway through.
If your assessments are based on the computer, you obviously don’t need to worry about handwriting. However, if you need to type out your answers, take some time to work on your typing so that you can answer questions quickly and with no typing errors. Being able to touch-type is preferable, but not necessary – just make sure that you can type at a decent pace and with a high level of accuracy.
Keep Calm – Passing Exams With Dyslexia
Getting a handle on your nerves can be really difficult during exam season, but remember that this is completely normal. If you consider that doing well in your exams is very important, then it would be bizarre for you not to be at least a bit nervous. Millions of people will be going through the same thing as you, and millions more have been in your position and have made it out of the other end in one piece. Life goes on after your exam, even if it doesn’t feel like that during the heat of the moment.
Exams are stressful, and the conditions you take them in aren’t pleasant either. Being stuck in a silent room for an hour, with nothing but a question paper and your own thoughts, can be incredibly daunting. However, you need to remember that you’re not the only one who feels this way, and that a bit of nerves can give you the boost you need in the exam hall.
That said, you need to keep any anxiety under control.
A breakdown just before the exam (or even worse, during it) is uncommon, but just remember that not doing as well as you’d hoped in a single exam isn’t the end of the world. You might feel as though you aren’t prepared enough, or perhaps a classmate or colleague has made you unsure about what you’ve revised – minutes before entering the exam room.
This happens often, and can be incredibly demoralising. Remember that how prepared you think you are doesn’t necessarily represent how well prepared you actually are. Sometimes, people who feel poorly prepared for some exams in the minutes before taking it end up doing incredibly well, and some people find themselves doing worse in exams that they felt completely ready for. Essentially, you never truly know how prepared you are.
Conclusion – Passing Exams With Dyslexia
Now that you know how to improve your chances of passing exams with dyslexia, you’re ready to make a real difference in your studies. If you want to learn more, check out our guide: How to Study With Dyslexia.
Fancy listening to the book rather than reading it? Check out the How to Study With Dyslexia Audiobook.
