November 2016 – Ara Library Blog

exams

The exam period is well under way and a few simple strategies may help you manage any stress and increase your marks.

The day before the test/exam

Check the start time of the exam and the place
Make sure you have all the equipment you need: pens, pencils, watch, water
Eat and sleep well

On the test/exam day and in the exam room:

Do not learn any new information
Get to the exam room early
Wait in a quiet area and try not to get distracted by noise
Read the instructions carefully. You may have 10 minutes of reading time before you start answering the questions
Read all the questions carefully
Check how many marks there are for each question and then work out how much time you need for each
Answer the easy questions first – this will lower any exam anxiety and allow you to get into the rhythm of the exam, whilst writing easy answers.
Attempt ALL the questions you have to answer. The first few marks of every question are usually quite easy to get.
Plan your short answer questions and keep to the point
If you are short of time write down your main points as these may earn marks
If you have spare time at the end check your work thoroughly

Good Luck from everyone in Academic Support – Library, Learning Services and Disability Services.

Tomorrow marks 98 years since the end of World War One. At 11.11am, on November 11, 1918, a ceasefire was called that ended over four years of fighting.

I recently visited Ypres (Ieper), in Belgium. Part of the town walls is the Menin Gate memorial.

menenpoort_ieper — Menin Gate memorial, Ypres

Within this memorial are recorded the names of 54,395 Commonwealth soldiers whose bodies were never found. New Zealand soldiers are not listed here – at the time, the decision was made to record New Zealanders in separate monuments in cemeteries closer to where they fell.

On the town walls of Ypres is a small Commonwealth War Graves cemetery, containing 198 graves. There are 14 New Zealand graves here, of members of the Māori Battalion and the Army Engineers.

rampartsypres — Ramparts Cemetery, Lille Gate, Ypres

Ypres itself was almost completely flattened during the fighting. After the war, there were some calls to make the town a memorial. The people of Ypres, however, wanted their town back, just the way it was. It was strange to walk around and see ‘old’ buildings, and then realize that the date over the door is 1927.