Do You Really need a Good Vocabulary?

When it comes to the English Language, there comes the question of one's Vocabulary.






English, being the "lingua Franca" of the world, freely derives upon words from other languages, example , Latin, Greek and so many others, that it has evolved into possessing a massive vocabulary in its present state.
First off, What is Vocabulary?



The Simplest definition for vocabulary is:

Vocabulary is the set of words a person is familiar with, in any language.


Its apparent that a person's extent of vocabulary indicates the level of proficiency a person has with relation to a language.
More the vocabulary, more the person's command of the language.

The Language, we're discussing at the moment, is English.

There are majority of people who use the Internet. English speaking people, Non English Speaking People, People who are proficient in English, and so many other categories.

Now the Interesting point you have to keep in mind when it comes to English Vocabulary is that, a person who has English as his mother tongue, might have lesser vocabulary than a non native speaker of the Language!

That is the beauty of English. Though the Native English speakers have a natural form of accented English, The correct Accents associated with English, it is possible for non native speakers with a better vocabulary to get to know English more than them.

What does it matter, if you have a better vocabulary than others?

You can express yourself in a much, much better way than you ever imagined.

How so?

Languages exist only as a means for people to communicate.

The More words you know of in a language, will help you in expressing how you feel more easily, and more effectively!

For Example, lets consider two persons. They're taking up an examination, which evaluates the person's confidence level. Its for a spokesperson job.

One person has an excellent command over English. He knows a lot of words.

The other person, though he can speak fluent English, has only a limited choice of words, for he isn't that well versed with English.

They're asked to write a single line, describing their confidence level.

The person with a good vocabulary writes:

I'm never the bombastic person, always the suave, slick yet serenely foresighted to formulate the apparition of the best possible outcome of any precarious predicament.

The person with a limited vocabulary writes:

I'm a calm guy, I always take things the way they come, and try to turn them to my side.



Now, who among the two, creates a better Impression?

Obviously its the guy with the better vocabulary.

This does not mean that those who are fluent in English yet endowed with a limited vocabulary are looked down upon. Its just that those with a better vocabulary always fare better.

The primary difference is that there will be a better awareness in the person with a better vocabulary, a quicker response to any situation that arises and needs a quick use of persuasion to be done.



But, there are instances where a person who speaks simple, yet understandable English fares much better than a person with a masterful command over English.

But, if you ever take it to task, to work on your vocabulary, you can at any time Impress anyone, or take hold of a situation that involves verbal persuasion, and can turn it to your advantage, with a better choice of words right?

Think :)

Have an opinion concerning the above Discussion? Feel free to drop a comment below, Your opinion is valued very much!

How to present answers

Having discussed about bettering your grades obtained in the previous posts, its time we looked upon a very important step in the process of any examination : Presenting your answers.

No matter how impressive your answers are, believe me, you'll never get the grades you deserve if your presentation is shabby.

For, the Examiner is also a person, he should also be able to read your answers quickly yet he should also be impressed by the presentation you have provided to the answers.

A Good Presentation makes a good first Impression for the Examiner to provide you with more grades.

The First Answer

A lot of attention should be directed by you towards providing the best possible presentation for the very first answer in the evaluation sheet.
It Should be Neat, without any overwriting, legible, to the point, and should be written with a language that's simple yet classy.

You should also be careful in Choosing which question you're attempting to answer first.

It is not possible to provide an excellent answer to a question you barely know the answer to, is it?

So make sure the question you pick is one that you have read thoroughly about.

Proceed to answer the question, make sure its presented in a tidy manner and that the important points are underlined. Its okay if you spend five minutes or a little more towards answering the first question, to maximize the impression it creates, then you can proceed answering the other questions.

By presenting the first question's answer neatly, you subconsciously instill some confidence within yourself to answer the subsequent questions more effectively. You also impress the Examiner a bit, coax him into thinking that the paper he's evaluating has a lot of effort put into it.

Page Margins.

The Answer sheet you are working on usually comes with the default margins, on the top and left corners.
It serves a good purpose if you take some effort in drawing an additional margin to the right and the bottom of the page.
This additional margin you draw adds some more succinctness to your paper, gives it an impression that it contains some information that is worth looking into.
It all comes down to the 'Placebo' effect, a way of coaxing the Examiner into thinking that the paper is that of an exemplary student.

Avoid Overwriting.

An oft committed mistake, this greatly reduces the value of your answers. An overwritten answer gives the impression of Insufficient preparation, Unsure-about-the-answers attitude, an overall detrimental effect on the Examiner to award more grades.
So, its vital that the answers provided are written in a continuous flow with as little overwriting to them as possible.

Underline the Keywords.

After having written the answers, quickly glance through them and underline the keywords and phrases you deem important with relevance to the answer.

Segregate Different Answers

Make sure you don't club all the answers together, leave a substantial amount of space between each and every other answer. Draw a simple line below each answer, to differentiate one answer from the other.

Underline the Headings

The Headings of each paragraph can do with a bit of underlining to them. It serves to accentuate the content of the following paragraph.


Remember, the answers do count a bit, but the impression you cast upon the examiner is also a vital part towards improving the grades obtained.

For, unless you cast the fishing pole into the water, you can't catch the fish right?

Without any effort, there cannot be an outcome.

Without a smart effort, there cannot be an appeasing outcome.

How to get better Grades - Part Two

Dissatisfied with those C's and D's you see each time whenever your papers get to you after evaluation?

Think you're worth much more, say, a B or even an A grade?

The previously written article on this subject was on improving your grades, focusing on the A and B graders. This article, is totally for those who aren't in the top tier yet.

There are a few basic reasons which lead to unsatisfactory grades (say C and D grades)

What are they?

Preparing at the last moment.

Not doing the necessary follow-up work for the subject.

Lack of interest towards the subject.

Poor understanding of the concepts.

Inability to properly present the answers.

Now any one of the above factors could be contributing to poor grades.

On first sight, they present themselves as casual, not-so-serious factors. In substance though, they are merely different manifestations of procrastination.

You need to realize what your primary objective is.

What should you do to attain that objective?

You're getting grades. You aren't satisfied with them.

Now this in itself is an indicator that there's a small part of you which feels the urge to put in more effort and achieve better results. Let's set about transforming that small, teeny urge and turn it into a huge, burning desire.

If you have been thinking all along that "intelligence" is a factor that contributes towards better grades, you're totally mistaken.

What is a grade? Its merely a reflection of your performance in an evaluation of a subject by a teacher.

The teacher evaluates a paper, finds what the paper contains with respect to the questions asked, and according to the answers, awards grades. If the answers are outstanding, the student gets an A. If they're to the point, but still lacking the final touch, that's a B. If they're okay, and agreeable, its a C. Mediocre and those below it, go with D's E's and with the penultimate F leading to the glorious "U".

Sounds like a musical note? In a way, yeah.

The primary thing you're going to do, in order to improve upon your grades, is to start preparing in advance. "In advance" means, you're going to begin preparing when there's atleast a full month before the evaluation of your papers.

You needn't put in ungodly hours into it. Just half hour a day. Open the book, or access the reference materials, and simply read the topics at hand. You needn't begin memorizing them. See what's in those materials, try to correlate them with the information you listened to during those classes, and relate them. Tell yourself that, "This concept is actually the process behind this."

For example, if the topic at hand is Nuclear physics, tell yourself that, "This concept is Nuclear physics, it actually deals with the various physical attributes of the nucleus of atoms."

Get what I'm hitting at?

You're making mental reminders to yourself, so that, at the time of the evaluation, you actually know what you're writing upon.

Then begin reading the subject. Remember, just casually read it. Approach the subject with a clear, unadulterated mind. Don't have any psychological blocks like "It's difficult" or, "I won't understand it"

Just simply read. Keep reading. Discuss it with your roommate or a friend. The discussion need not be one which is entirely for discussing the subject. You can try to include a few lines, ask a few questions during a casual talk with your friend about what he thinks of the concept of the forthcoming examination. He might be on the same boat as you are, so you both might end up discussing what you know (or the lack thereof!) and might even begin a joint venture to understand the subject at hand.

I imply again, you needn't put in hard work. What you're doing here is smart work.

By gradually building upon understanding the concepts and the subject from the grassroots level, step by step, day by day, over four weeks, you ultimately accumulate enough information about the subject, that at the time of the evaluation, you fare a better performance than what you'd do by preparing only on the previous night.

When the results come, you'll be surprised, for you'll see your C's and D's transformed into a B.

The important thing at this point is, don't be satisfied with what you get!

Strive for more

Once you attain and accomplish an objective, don't sit still. Set a higher target and find about ways achieving it! A,B graders should aim higher, and what lies ahead? A+! The final step in academic exellence. How do you improve upon an above average grade, and achieve even better results? The answer lies here.

Please feel free to drop a comment on whether you liked the article, or if you have any similar experiences or suggestions. I'll be very glad to read it, Drop a comment below!

How to get better Grades

Throughout your lives, you would have, at one point, asked yourself this question. You might have thought of this question when you were getting mediocre grades, or when you were getting above average grades. 

This post will cover a few of the areas that might help you maximize your scoring potential and to get better grades.

First of all, whatever grades that you have obtained, consider it as a benchmark. You need to set a goal for yourself. The goal being : Bettering your previous grades. How do you set about achieving it? 

I'd like to quote a saying here :

"You have to run faster Just to stay in the same place."

Now, I can hear a lot of groans coming up cause I said that. Don't let the fact that you need to put in more effort bring you down. It's just that, there are so many others co-existing along with you in your class, your neighborhood and the entire world. The world keeps changing every single second. Population increases, methods of earning money increases, way of living changes second by second. 

Being a part of an ever chaning environment, how will you fare if you remain the same person you always were?

I'm not telling that you should work upon your personality and change it. Each one has an unique personality. Every personality is equally special, intriguing and liked upon. But, what counts is, how you apply your thoughts to suitably chameleonize yourself to blend with the changing trends and make your personality stand out.

You can ask me,"Ha, how does one's personality, character, social well being reflect upon one's grades?"

Believe me or not, it's true. Its often extremely trivial things that produce changes of mammoth magnitude. Little did scientists predict that the splitting of an atom- a particle that is unobservable unless you have an electron microscope- could cause such mass destruction. Small things, when left unnoticed, will spiral into bigger things that can produce massive detrimentive effects.

The first step you should do in order to achieve better grades, is to Analyze yourself.

You do know that you're capable of much more, You know that you can do better, and your teachers and professors know that too. So, what really is stopping you from achieveing what you really deserve? 

The primary thing that prevents most people from realizing their true potential is Procrastrination.

By postponing things, concepts to be memorzied, understood, you're just imposing more workoad on yourself. And at the final moment, when the time of submission of your answer sheet comes, the workload becomes huge, and you tend to lose out on the finer points, thereby costing you some grades.

The difference between an A+ grade and an A grade is not tiny. Its enormous. Do you know that?

Why is there so much difference? Its because, getting an A means that you have memorized the concepts thoroughly well, you are capable of reproducing them Verbatim, also, you have written them in a coherent manner appeasing the Examiner.

Wheres, an A+ implies that, you, not only having memorized,

 having done the assignments perfectly, having given impressive seminars, have also gone one step further. 

You have found a way to apply the concept In your life, that is, you have realized in what way the subject at hand is going to aid you or any other human in the real world.

Concepts on paper might seem totally out of context when we try to relate them to our daily lives. So why are they included in the syllabus?

Education is a compilation of Humanity's work over the ages, and its provided to contemporary Humans in order that they can get a better insight into how the world around them really works, right down to the grassroots.

This is what ultimately all those grades, those GPA's, those marks, all boil down to. Not mindless mugging up of mundane concepts. Its an evaluation of how much You, as an individual, has benefited from it.

In the beginning of this article, I talked about running faster in the same place to retain your current standing.

So, If you want to achieve a higher objective, you should think about this too:

"If you want to go somewhere else, you have to run atleast twice as fast as that!"

Self analyze yourself. Think. Think where you are going wrong. Look at people who are obtaining better results. Ask them, discuss with them. Mulling over spilt milk never serves a purpose, but learning how Not to spill the milk again serves one!

Having talked about those who get an A grade and an A+ grade, its easy to assume that there is no redemption for those who are scoring lower grades. Definitely not. Do you know how many people out there are underachievers throughout their lives because they failed to stop and realize what their mistakes were, and kept on mulling over the mistakes they committed? 

If you're getting low grades, its just an indicator that, either you haven't had a good understanding of the subject, or, you have other distractions that keep you from giving in the necessary hours to achieve the result.

Maybe you've always had an aversion to the subject. You don't like it in some cases. In some cases, you might deem the subject as "being unworthy to waste time and effort upon."

In that case, if that subject doesn't really matter in your academic performance, feel free to forget it!

But if, that subject also counts towards the end aggregate, then there's no alternative other than to master it.

You need to find a way to turn your dislike into your like so you would ultimately stand to gain from something you hate so vehemently!

Approach the concepts with a clear mind. Allay all your doubts and set aside any psychological blocks you might have that prevent you from learning the subject.

If you're having any difficulties understanding a particular concept, feel free to ask your peers or the professors/teachers for guidance. They're always ready to help!

Its just you who have to take the impetus to actually study.

Remember, the choice is upto you. You can either choose to work harder, put in more hours, and achieve the result you so desire.

Do you also know that, once you achieve your aim, you will automatically find a better, more satisfying one?

Its true!

In the next article, I will provide more hindsight for the B ,C and D graders to improve their grades, and I'll show the magic tricks that will get them an A+!

Please feel free to drop a comment on whether you liked the article, or if you have any similar experiences or suggestions. I'll be very glad to read it!

Remember, sharing is caring ;)

How to Cheat the Invigilator - An In Depth Real time Guide.

You're seated in the exam hall. The exam has begun. Time ticks on.

You, the intelligent person that you are, unfortunately forgot to read the topic of today's exam earlier. You are definitely not in any position to even attempt to answer the questions, for realization dawns on you that its entirely Greek and Latin to even make a guess at.

What should you do now? 

You have to pass the exam. No other way. If you flunk it, you WILL have to revisit that nightmare once again in the not so distant future, for this exam counts towards you gr

aduating. 

There's only one viable option for you.

And what is that?

I'll get around to it. In time.

Now, look around the exam hall. You see other people. Few are engrossed in writing answers. Few are rackling their brains for the answers, head in their hands. Few others are staring at the ceiling. A few are dozing off, resignedly accepting their failure in the exam.

But you don't fit in here do you? No. 

You see your friend just ahead of you. He's studied well for today's exam. He, apparently is doing a good job at writing furiously, obviously giving you the impression that he will get an A grade.

Eureka! Edison's lamp alights inside your brain, You have found a path, a light at the end of the tunnel, to escape out of the darkness you are presently in.

Yes, you are going to solicit the help of your friend, DURING the examination to get some answers out of him some way or the other and get around to eventually obtain a decent score in the exam, thereby leaving no trace of it behind in your academic career.

In all this euphoria about you having found out a recourse, there's one huge obstacle. Its Enormous. Every bit enormous as all of the letters in the word Encyclopaedia.

He is the Examination Invigilator. The one obstacle standing between you and revelation, Mmk, that is, passing the exam.

You have to find a way to circumvent this surreptious individual, in order that you, Undetectedly stealthy sneaky Cat that you are, are going to obtain answers from your friend.

How do you set about garnering answers from your friend?

Here's how I would do it.

This is part one of how you cheat the Invigilator

Wait for the moment the Invigilator lets his guard down a bit. He turns, bored, and looks at the blank board in the classroom. He's faced away from you.

Instantly, you hiss, HISS, at your friend. 

Startled, your friend, broken from his furious writing, turns back at you.  

Important Tip! :Make sure that you have one eye upon the invigilator at this crucial moment, for they have a unique knack of identifying normally unscrupulous Hisses and promptly catch the wrongdoers red handedly.

You signal the question for which you are seeking the answer, and you, using your left hand, signal the question. 

Step one done.

This being done, now the Invigilator returns back to his usual routine. He starts scanning the faces of the people in the hall, and tries to make eye contact. As much he tries to make this act look subtle, believe me, there's every bit of malicious intent in those eyes.

He's marking his prey.

Its of utmost importance that you keep your head firmly rooted in the pages of your answer booklet and even though you aren't writing anything, atleast give an Impression that you are TRYING to do SOMETHING.

Being lazy in the exam hall is a sure give away of your precarious position to your adversary, the Invigilator.

Your friend, in this time, is aware that you are in need of dire Intellectual assistance. He turns the pages of his answer booklet, and being seated just a few feet before you, you can see him resting his hands on the page which contains the answers you're looking for.

Now begins the period where you wait.

Have you seen the cheetah that waits for four or even eight hours in broad, roasting daylight in the african wilderness to spot out its prey?

That's who you're going to transform into, so you can get the answers you so direly seek.

Divide your visual and perceptive senses into two parts. Set one on getting the answer Just at the right moment your friend lifts the sheets and shows it to you. Set the other part of your senses on the invigilator himself. Start thinking empathetically when it comes to cheating him.

Right when the invigilator turns his head so that his line of sight doesn't include you, your friend, being the correct timer he is, lifts up the sheet and displays the answer.

This moment has a lot of factors in play. You have three objectives. You need to KNOW what the answers are, you need to jot it down real fast, in span of five seconds, and you need to arouse Zero suspicion in the Invigilator's eyes.

For, getting caught means severe penalties, penalties that far outweigh even the worst possible outcomes that you are trying to avert.

Here's what you do.

Scan the sheet. Look For formulae. Look  for diagrams, and parts in those diagrams. Look for paragraph headings. Do not, I repeat, do not attempt to copy the answer of your friend word by agonizing word, its simply not feasible. You'll end up getting caught , or you'll end up wasting both you and your friend's invaluable time.

Remember, you need to do this, all in the extremely short span when the Invigilator lets down his guard.

Another very important factor is deciding the question that you're going to seek assistance for. The question should be one that has the least amount of descriptive answering required, for, the lengthier the answer is, the harder it is for you to reciprocate on your answer booklet.

So, Make your decision aptly, and keep the factors I outlined in mind, and lets hope it serves us for a better outcome!

Also, I have a long list of different ways to Cheat the Invigilator, and more updates on this context coming soon! Bookmark this page, or subscribe to the RSS feed, so you don't miss it!

If you have any memorable experiences in this context, or would like to share them, You're Most welcome.
Feel free to leave those thoughts, experiences, or opinions as a comment below, I'm sure everyone will love reading it!

The Best Thing to do before an Exam is...

There are two different possibilites.

• The subject of tomorrow's examination is one of your favourites.
• You are ..ahem... kinda aversed to the subject. 

FIRST CASE

Since its one of your favourites, you really like spending a lot of time with the concerned subject naturally. You tend to retain information for a longer period after studying the subject's concepts.

Naturally, You also tend to score progressively good in the subject's exams. You adore the teacher, you'll feel piqued if by any chance you are forced to skip one of that subject's classes.

So, even if by any unforeseen chance you haven't prepared for that exam aforehand, even before the day of the exam, the chances are that if you launch into a full fledged preparatory effort, you'll fare well.

If you like the subject in question, then allay any fears you have and start reading.

Remember, Time lost is never gained.

SECOND CASE

Its always been a hard nut for you to crack. You're a proclaimed adversary of the subject at hand.

You hate the teacher, the books, you hate that subject with such maddening rage that the very sound of it makes you curse all the bad things .. or Hey, even everything in the world. 

So, What would you do, if you have an exam of such a subject tomorrow, and haven't prepared a bit?

The natural recourse would be to sit with the book in your hand and wade through the pages all the while praying to Mighty Exam God Almighty that tomorrow's question paper is the easiest one ever in examination history.

There is, however, an extremely viable option too. Simple. Forget it. Yes, don't put in any effort. Scared of a huge Zed ee arr Oh ? Nah, don't be. Its just, you have more important things at hand instead of wasting time on something you never ever wanted to spend time on in the first place.

Having considered both the alternatives, what's the bottom line?

It all boils down to your attitude towards the subject of the exam.

I might even venture to say that, the determination to score good or simply get on with the exam.

The choice you make determines the outcome.

If you want to feel good about tomorrow, then spend today fruitfully.

You might have different choices, ideas or strategies on how tackle a predicament as seen about in this post. Feel free to share it with us in the comments below!