How to get a Distinction in Junior Cycle Geography

Know the exam layout

The JC Geography final exam which takes place in May accounts for 90% of your overall grade (the other 10% comes from your Assessment task). As it is a common-level exam, there will be a variety of questions to suit everyone. The exam takes place over a two-hour period and you will be answering 10 questions which contain a mixture of short questions and longer paragraph-style questions. Becoming familiar with the exam structure will mean that you know what to expect on the day of the exam so you can plan your study accordingly!

Practise, practise, practise!

Exam questions are your best friend when studying for the exam. Check out the questions by topic by clicking on a subject from your dashboard to practise as many questions as you can. Timing is everything in the exam, so being comfortable answering questions under time constraints will be really important. In addition to practising past papers, Studyclix's Quizzes are a great (and fun!) tool to help test your knowledge. They can help you figure out what you know already and what topics you need to work harder on. Take the test and see how you get on!

Jog your memory regularly

The Geography course is long. Regular revision will be the key to success here. Consistent revision of your notes from class and past exam questions will help you to jog your memory. Memorising small amounts, often is the best way to study!

Use action verbs

Action verbs are essential to success in the long questions! They tell you exactly what the question is asking you to do. Some of the action verbs are quite similar so its important you learn them and make sure you understand exactly what they mean.

Discuss it with your friends!

Discussing geography with others is really helpful. If you discover something interesting when you’re studying; tell somebody about it – you won’t forget it! It’s strange how much I retained when I started telling Mum all about plate tectonics! You could even start a discussion about a topic on our discussion forum!

Teach others

Test others on the subject, and explain to them the meanings, and if they understand, you know it well. If you can’t explain it, you don’t know it well enough.

To read all of Stephen's tips on all parts of the paper, click the attachment below.

If you're looking for help with your Geography CBAs, click here.