How can I cover backlogs with complete practice at the JEE level?
Backlogs are something which will hinder you a lot during preparation and can have a large impact on your question solving capabilities as you will unconsciously be surrounded by thoughts that you have left some topics.
Such thought will constantly revolve in your mind and you will not be able to solve questions efficiently. This is one of the key problems of backlog and deferring daily scheduled tasks.
So, it is better to complete tasks within the scheduled time.
Of course, All topics aren’t easy to recall at the time of exam unless you have very rigorous practice of topics and they all aren’t necessary to be remembered, you can still get decent marks in MAINS.
Simply, topics carrying higher weightage must be given top most priority which you can get via analysis of weightage of prior JEE exams. Solve all question papers of JEE mains 2019/20 and past 40 yrs as well, to get well acquainted with the JEE level questions.
For those who are in 11th:
Try to cover most of the topics taught to you in class, because you wouldn’t want to have many backlogs in future. However there might be some topics which will remain untouched by you due to time constraints or pressure of school exams. So here’s how you can deal with your backlogs:
- Do not overdo a topic. For example if you love studying Physics, then it should not be the case that you keep wasting your time with Physics only. Chemistry and Maths are also to be done with an equal pace to avoid backlogs in future.
- If you feel that you left some topic untouched during your preparation, try to stretch your study hours on weekends for upto 8–10 hours a day. Devote time weekly to your weak topics (2–3 hours) on weekends. But make sure you are not sacrificing your new topics due to older backlogs.
- Decide your priority. Let’s say you have your school exams going on but there are some important topics being taught in your JEE coaching institute. For majority, it is not possible to do both things simultaneously. Hence decide your priority and keep the other thing on hold for some time.
- Mark the important questions whenever you are practicing from your modules or question banks. When you will reach class 12th and start revision of 11th, doing only those questions will save your time and you will be able to give more time to your backlogs.
- Do not make a habit of doing 2–3 chapters simultaneously. If you have decided to complete one of your backlogs on a day, try to finish it on that day itself without thinking about other backlogs. Mastering one thing is always better rather than over-complicating 2–3 chapters simultaneously.
For those who are in 12th:
Follow the above mentioned points so that you avoid having backlogs regarding class 12th topics. Remember that you don’t want to screw up your class 12th syllabus due to class 11th, because class 12th holds more weightage in JEE.
Now the question arises regarding completing backlogs of class 11th as well as revision once you are done with the syllabus.
- Try to take advantage of school hours. What I used to do during my preparation was that I took the modules of my weak topics of class 11th to school and complete my backlogs whenever I found free time (recess, avoiding PT periods, skipping practicals etc.) While at home, I used to cover my class 12th topics. But I again mention, it is NOT a good idea to screw your class 12th because of 11th. Class 11th syllabus should be done alongside only when you are comfortable with class 12th topics
- Once you are done with class 12th syllabus around October, then comes the most crucial stage of your preparation. Try studying like a layman for your Pre-Board exams as their marks will hardly matter at that stage. You will have 2 whole months which I feel are more than enough to complete all backlogs. For example, I screwed up my class 11th- Part Two Physics but later on strengthened it during this time. Remember it’s never too late until you are ready to put efforts.
- Every JEE institute provides a question bank for revision after syllabus is over. My strategy was to first revise the older topics from my short notes, then revising the important questions from my modules and then solving that question bank related to that specific topic. This took around half-one day but my topic was strengthened.
- Prepare short notes as soon as you finish revising a chapter. They will come very handy at the last stage of your preparation (i.e. 2–3 weeks before the actual JEE exam) when you will have a lot of content to revise. Short notes should include all basic formulas, facts, analogies and other important stuff. Do the same for all the three subject