Apart from revision, what should students be thinking about the night before an exam? Are some thoughts more helpful than others? How can students reduce stress and increase their confidence before they approach the exam hall?
We’ve looked through the research to find 7 things to think about the night before an exam or a big event to help students manage their stress, confidence and well-being.
Let’s dive right into:
7 things to think about the night before an exam
1. Positive Imagery
Research has found that visualising successful performances can increase confidence. Spending time imagining a positive experience, such as doing well in an upcoming exam, can help students manage nerves. This practice has been shown as more effective at enhancing mood and reducing anxiety than telling yourself you will do well; after all, pictures are better than words.
It is worth noting that there are some potential downsides to daydreaming about your future success, but these relate to behaviour and self-control strategies over a long period of time. Thinking positively for a few minutes the evening before an exam (and once you’ve put in the hard work) shouldn’t affect this, and it will help boost your mood in the long run.
2. Remember Your Previous Best
Thinking about previous positive experiences can help improve students’ self-belief. Attempting to recall previous successful exams, events or classes can help them feel more confident about an upcoming one. It can be especially beneficial to get them to reflect on what helped them do well in these previous experiences and how they can apply this to their current hurdles. This Metacognition exercise is not just good preparation for high-pressure situations but can be a great skill to keep working on throughout the year, helping students to improve their confidence and task approaches.
3. Remind Yourself Of Your Preparation
How well you have prepared for a task can be an important source of confidence. Especially because preparation is a controllable source of confidence, it can lead to more enduring confidence levels. Try to get students to remind themselves of the preparation work they have put in; thinking about how much they’ve studied, how much they have trained, and how well they know the task ahead may increase feelings of confidence and control in the build-up to the exam
4. Focus On Yourself and Don’t Compare to Others
When students compare themselves to others, their confidence is dependent on those around them. The way other people perform and prepare is not within the student’s control, and as a result, this ‘unknown’ can increase stress, anxiety, burnout, and fear of failure. On the other hand, getting students to focus on themselves and what they can control can help increase confidence.
Where possible, students should be encouraged to focus on their own abilities and performances.
5. How You Have Overcome Setbacks
Going through setbacks can be a great learning opportunity for students. Experiencing these challenges and reflecting on how we overcame them has been shown to increase motivation levels, improve the way we deal with future challenges, and lead to better performance in the long term.
Try to encourage students to think back to previous setbacks that they have had as well as what was successful in helping them overcome these.
6. See the Exam as a Challenge, not a Threat
Our mindset can be a powerful thing. Research from Loughborough University has shown that when we perceive something as a threat, it is more likely to cause us stress. In comparison, people who reframe an event as a challenge seem to experience an increase in their performance. This suggests that continuing to think about the potential negative consequence of a failed exam is not conductive to students’ well-being and exam performance. Instead, try to encourage students to mentally reframe the exam as an opportunity to succeed and to improve their skills
7. Get a Good Night’s Sleep
Sleep duration and quality have a significant impact on a number of factors associated with exam performance. Getting a good night’s sleep can aid students by improving their memory, concentration, and even creative ability. On the other hand, a student getting a poor night’s sleep before an exam can have a negative impact on mood, with more focus being placed on negative thoughts.
If you need some tips and tricks to recommend to your sleep-deprived classes, check out our previous blogs on common sleep mistakes everyone makes and ways to help you nod off quicker.
Final thoughts before tomorrow’s exam
The night before an exam shouldn’t just be about last-minute revision. Utilising mental techniques and tips can be equally important in setting yourself up for success.
Ultimately, although stressful, exams are just one part of the learning journey. It’s important that students remain calm when possible and have faith in themselves. So, encourage your class to take a deep breath, trust in their preparation, and approach the exam with confidence.
