That is the message Launceston College maths teachers and careers advisors want to send to their class.

“There are lots of different pathways to get where you’re going, this is only one way,” AST careers advisor and maths teacher Louise Searson said.

“So, if, on the day, you don’t perform the way you expected, or you don’t get the result you were hoping for, there are other ways to plan for the future.”

The Tasmanian Certificate of Education examination period begins next week, but students in grade 10 have already begun their exams.

Mrs Searson, along with assistant principal Rebecca Miller and maths teacher Sallyanne Armarego man the Launceston College careers office, which provides support and advice for students planning their next steps after college.

The trio said exam time often was a stressful time for students, but teachers plan the year around ensuring there was adequate time for their classes to prepare.

“We have a pretty strong plan in place, so they last two weeks of the year are dedicated to revision,” Mrs Searson said.

“We make sure that there’s enough time for everyone to go over all the things we learned throughout the year and do practice exams and practice questions.”

Tips for students from the teachers included: starting revision early (read: not the night before), set up a study schedule (one-hour blocks work best), make sure to have snack breaks, invite friends for a study group, summarise and highlight notes and work off past exam papers.

Mrs Searson and Mrs Armarego, who are both maths teachers, said the maths exam usually instilled a lot of nerves in their students but the best practical advice they had was to revise early.

“Don’t leave it until the last minute, and make sure you have time to go over everything,” Mrs Armarego said.

However, written exams are only one way students are tested, Mrs Miller said, with some courses changing to have folio work prepared and assessed as their examination.

“The way we assess students on what they’ve learned throughout the year is evolving, as our courses change and adapt,” Mrs Miller said.

“So while some students may be preparing for a written examination, some have already done work on preparing and presenting their folio work, or they may be doing interviews on their work.”

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