DON’T FALL BEHIND! HOW TO GET ON TOP OF THE WORKLOAD IN THE SIXTH FORM

As the routine for sixth form pupils starts to take shape, Felicity Kilpatrick, head of learning support at Christ College, Brecon, offers some advice on how to stay on top of the workload.

If you started AS levels this term, GCSEs will already be a fading memory and that first week in the Sixth Form, when you were getting used to a new friends, new teachers and new ways of working, will soon seem a lifetime away.

As the novelty of Sixth Form life begins to wear off it is easy to feel overwhelmed. Often the guilt caused by avoiding tasks is more burdensome than the tasks themselves and if you are not in control you may find yourself anxious about managing your workload.

If you do not yet feel you are managing your modules effectively, there are a few easy steps to take which will make a difference: it’s not too late to act on the get yourself and your study time organised:

• make sure you have a good sense of how your courses are arranged. You can get this information from your teachers, from subject syllabuses and course guides.

• take time to organise your files and course materials in a way that reflects the nature of your modules: different files for different modules and subject dividers to separate main topics.

Even if you are in control of these aspects of your AS modules, you may still feel as if you are not making the most of your time. Try the following:

Draw out your timetable, not just your school timetable but your free time - in school and outside the school day. Then write in:

• your lesson timetable and your study periods;
• the time you spend on other activities;
• your preferred ‘me time’ – whether it’s a double study period when you want to spend time with friends in school, or every Sunday morning for a lie-in;
• time for homework: a pattern is probably starting to emerge and you will have some idea of the days when you have the heaviest workload.

Look carefully at your study sessions and be honest about how well you use them. Make changes so that there is a good balance between your own life and school work. For example, a single period of ‘me time’ might be refreshing in the middle of a long day but a triple study period set aside for time with friends on a day when you plan to spend the whole evening socialising is starting to squeeze out study opportunities.

Tell yourself what you intend to achieve in a study session and how you are going to achieve it. This is more important than you think: working towards a personally set goal is much more effective than watching the clock and waiting for your study time to end.

Above all, be self-aware and be realistic: you only set yourself up for failure if you plan to work for two hours before school everyday when you’ve never managed to wake in time for breakfast.

Sixth Form life is meant to be challenging, busy and enjoyable. Taking control of the way you manage your time will help you get much more out of your life, in the classroom and outside school. Take control of you work before it starts to take control of you!

Felicity will be available to answer questions during an Open Morning at Christ College on Saturday 13th October 2007 between 10:00 am and 12:00 noon.