Why Past Papers Beat Re-Reading the Textbook
Head Mark Coaching11 October 2026 2 min read
Re-reading feels productive but teaches little. Practising with past papers shows you exactly what the exam asks and where you lose marks.
Many students spend the weeks before an exam reading their textbook a second and third time. It feels like hard work, but research on learning shows that simply re-reading is one of the weakest ways to study. You recognise the words, so you think you know them, but you cannot yet produce the answer when the question is in front of you.
What past papers do for you
- They show the style of questions the Board asks, so nothing in the exam hall feels strange.
- They show which topics come up again and again.
- They train you to write answers in the time you will have.
- They reveal your weak areas honestly, while there is still time to fix them.
How to use a past paper properly
- Revise a chapter or two first. Do not start with a paper before you have studied anything.
- Sit the paper in one go, with a timer, and no notes.
- Mark it strictly using your teacher's or the Board's marking scheme.
- Write down every question you lost marks on, and why: did you not know it, did you run out of time, or did you misread the question?
- Go back to those topics, then try another paper a few days later.
When to start
Begin with one paper a week early in the year, then move to two or three a week in the final month. Our past papers page lists the papers available by class and subject, and students can attempt them online inside the portal.
One warning
Past papers are practice, not prediction. Questions are rarely repeated word for word, so always understand the idea behind an answer instead of memorising it.