Each examination board at GCSE and A-Level respectively share the same content with small differences in scope. 

The key difference often lies in the exam technique. Understanding how to manage time for each paper is key and understanding the pattern of testing that evolves over the years and building that pattern of answering into one's mind is the crux of exam success.

Point #1: Start Past Papers early

The strategy that my best lecturers shared with me and what I urged fellow classmates and juniors to do all the time is to start attempting past paper question from the very first month of Year 10 (if doing GCSEs) or Year 12 (if doing A-Levels). Mind-boggling? No.

Many wait till the last three months before the final exams before even looking at the questions. By then it is too late to start familiarising oneself with what questions demand and gaps in knowledge and understanding.

Point #2: Start with the oldest past papers

In my experience, doing at least five years of past papers questions for each subject is the absolute minimum to achieving an A*.

The order in which one does them matters. Observing exam board trends, we see a constant change throughout the years on the remits of each subject's syllabus. I personally think that a common reason why many exam boards change their scope of examination every few years is to simply benefit from the publishing of new textbooks. As the exam board receives profit of such sales, royalty, the running of seminars to train teachers and examiners all help to keep the industry profitable.

"Start with the oldest past papers"

To the student, this means we have to play smart. In the four months leading up to the final GCSE or A-Levels exam, always start with the oldest past papers you have. Then a month before the exam, ensure that you are only left with the previous year's paper. This keeps the latest pattern of testing in your mind, sharp for the exam. 

Every IGCSE, GCSE and A-Level student would remember the dreadful feeling of cracking one's head at a question only for the teacher to say, "sorry it was removed from the syllabus, hence why you wouldn't know how to do it".

Point #3: Do one page, mark one page

"Do one page, mark one page"

-Mr Kumaraveelu (2016) 

This is especially true when doing past papers to learn concepts, not when timing oneself in the lead up to the final exam. My favourite Math tutor, Mr Kumaraveelu, made this my watchword. It is thank to his excellence and many blessings by the wise people around me that moulded my strength in tutoring today. In fact, each of the three strategy outlined here was written in Mr Kumaraveelu's wisdom. Indeed my arrogant teenage brain made me rebel much against my amazing mother wanting to be tutored but me accepting it was tantamount to opening a hidden treasure chest.

Too often I see students marking three years of past papers they did... All at once. Although I commend their industriousness, what cause is a machine gun that scatters bullets mindlessly? By the time the student attempts the second half of even the first paper, they would have forgotten what they worked on at the start to a large extent.

Rather, placing the marking scheme next to one's answer script and marking as one goes along, "do one page, mark one page", reinforces concepts much better. Coupled with a deep mental acknoeldgement of one's mistake, bookmarking the page to clarify any doubts with one's teacher makes for a tremendous increase in learning speed.

Key approach

By focusing on the studying each exam board's exam technique and style of marking, I am aim to deliver exam-readiness to students from an early stage. How? By drilling lots of past paper questions. Each exam board besides having its own syllabus (although greatly similar to the rest), has examiners that are trained to award method marks in different ways. For instance, in Math, to present answer the three significant figures or one decimal place.

For students who start with me early, I always spend a short amount of time covering the entire syllabus. This is achieved with my continued passion for using simple language to dissect complicated concepts followed by past paper questions.

Following that, once the syllabus has been covered, we then ride the motorway and constantly do drills. Regardless of Math, Chemistry or Physics. Through practice drills and questions, only do we truly put the student's understanding to the test. When cracks show up in understanding or method of presentation in answering questions, that is where each class continually strengthens that.

In the final month before the exam, the student should be so familiar with each concept, have real confidence and an A* would be within their grasp with a focus on health, mental peace and clarity in that crucial month.