My Experience in the End-of-Term English Exam

Preparation before the Exam

As an international student, I am not a native English speaker, which always makes me feel nervous when facing the English exam. In order to prepare for the end-of-term English exam, I took several actions to enhance my language ability, such as reviewing grammar rules, practicing different types of writing, and listening to English radio programs.Firstly, I revisited the grammar rules I had learned before, such as tenses, conditionals, and sentence structures. To enhance memorization, I also made some notes and examples to explain the rules more clearly. Besides, I tried to apply them into some writing practices.Secondly, I practiced writing several types of essays, including argumentative essays, descriptive essays, and narrative essays, by choosing some topics from previous exams. By doing so, I could accumulate writing experience, clarify my thoughts, and also explore new language points.Thirdly, I listened to English radio programs to improve my listening skills. I always choose the radio channels that are interested in or have unfamiliar accents to challenge myself. I focused on understanding the main ideas and details of the shows, and also tried to imitate the pronunciation and intonation of the speakers.

The Exam Experience

The end-of-term English exam consisted of three sections: listening, reading, and writing. The listening section contained several short passages, and each passage had several questions to answer. I was required to listen carefully, and write down the answers within the given time frame. For the reading section, there were three reading passages which required me to answer a set of questions that were also vocabulary-based. The final section was writing, and I had to complete an essay within 1 hour.During the exam, I felt a little bit stressful but I tried to keep a calm mind. Firstly, I read through all the questions and instructions carefully before starting the exam. I made sure that I fully understood the requirements and the expected answers. Secondly, I divided my time for each section and each question, which helped me to allocate my time more efficiently. For instance, I spent more time on the questions which I was not sure about or those carrying more marks. Lastly, I tried to organize my answers logically and clearly, and also write them in an accurate and concise way.

Conclusion

To sum up, the end-of-term English exam was a challenging but rewarding experience for me. Through the preparation process and the exam itself, I have improved my grammar knowledge, writing and listening skills, as well as time management. Examinations are an important way for us to reflect on our strengths and weaknesses and improve our abilities. And now, I am more confident with my English ability, and I will continue working on this language proficiency for my future study and career.