By Sitha Maliwa:
As thousands of South African Grade 11 and Grade 12 learners prepare for one of the most important examination periods of their academic careers, a silent battle is unfolding behind bedroom desks, kitchen tables and school libraries across the country.
It is not a battle of intelligence. It is not a battle of talent. It is a battle against time.
For many learners, the coming weeks will determine more than just report card results. Their performance could influence admission into university programmes, unlock bursary opportunities and shape future career pathways. Yet education experts say the difference between top-performing learners and those who struggle often comes down to a surprisingly simple habit: effective time management.
Research has consistently linked strong time management skills to higher academic achievement, while poor planning is associated with increased stress, anxiety and declining academic performance, particularly during high-pressure assessment periods.
According to Susan Friederichs van Harmelen, Dean of the Faculty of Education at Emeris, the ability to organise and manage one’s workload is one of the most valuable skills learners can develop.
“Whether it’s managing a university assignment deadline, preparing for lectures, balancing self-study or adapting to remote learning schedules, the ability to plan and organise work consistently is essential now for exams and in the future for your career,” she says.
“In the workplace, deadlines are fixed and expectations are high, and there is very little space for delayed delivery or last-minute work. Time and task management becomes one of the most valuable competencies a young person can develop.”
The dangerous trap of leaving it too late
Every year, countless learners fall into the same cycle.
Revision is postponed. Notes are left untouched. Study plans are delayed until “tomorrow”.
Then suddenly, tomorrow becomes exam week.
What could have been revised steadily over several weeks is compressed into a few frantic days. Textbooks pile up. Sleep disappears. Panic sets in.
Education specialists warn that this approach dramatically increases cognitive load, making it harder for learners to absorb, understand and retain information.
Instead of developing a deep understanding of their subjects, learners often resort to memorising facts and hoping for the best.
The consequences become evident in examination rooms where questions demand critical thinking, application and problem-solving rather than simple recall.
The secret weapon of top achievers
While many learners scramble to catch up, South Africa’s top academic performers often follow a very different strategy. They build systems.
Rather than waiting for motivation to strike, they create structured study schedules that spread the workload across days and weeks. They divide subjects into manageable sections, tackle challenging topics early and consistently revisit material long before examination papers are placed on their desks.
This steady approach reduces pressure and improves understanding.
“Learners who build structure into their study approach reduce unnecessary pressure during exam periods,” says Friederichs van Harmelen.
“They engage with content steadily over time instead of trying to process large volumes under time pressure. That leads to stronger understanding and more reliable recall under exam conditions.”
Small daily actions, big academic results
Experts recommend that learners avoid marathon study sessions and instead focus on realistic daily goals.
Breaking content into fixed daily study blocks helps maintain momentum and prevents difficult subjects from being ignored until the last minute.
Another powerful strategy is active recall – testing knowledge without looking at notes before reviewing the material. Studies show that this method strengthens memory far more effectively than repeatedly reading textbooks and notes.
Perhaps most importantly, successful learners build study habits into routines they already follow.
This technique, known as habit stacking, links revision to existing daily activities. A learner might review notes after dinner every evening, listen to recorded lessons while walking or spend 30 minutes revising immediately after arriving home from school. The result is consistency. And consistency often beats motivation.
A habit that lasts beyond school
While exam success may be the immediate goal, educators believe the lessons learned through effective study planning extend far beyond the classroom.
The same discipline that helps learners prepare for mathematics and science examinations today can help them navigate university deadlines, workplace responsibilities and professional careers tomorrow.
As examination season approaches and pressure mounts across the country, one truth becomes increasingly clear:
The learners who excel are not always those who study the hardest at the last minute. They are often the ones who started earlier, planned better and remained consistent when others waited. In the race for academic success, the greatest advantage may not be intelligence at all. It may simply be mastering the clock.- @NewsSA_Online
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