Getting a 5 on the AP Homework exam

Do you get homework? Yes, it's a rhetorical question. Whether it's the next set of math practice problems or that English research paper you've been pushing back for weeks, homework has manifested itself firmly in the quotidian lives of students, a fact that however much we want, we cannot deny. And it's not going anywhere. No, I'm not here to rant about how homework is a completely useless use of time. I don't have the ego or the energy to challenge decades' worth of teaching practices and dogma. We all know what the result will be in Goyal vs. the World Education System. Not good.

With the boatload of assignments I get from my 4 AP courses, I have begun to consider homework as another AP course with its own AP exam - one which actually lasts the entire school year. In my opinion, AP Homework is probably the most important of all courses because it truly gauges your college readiness. If you can handle the load, you are good to go, but if you are having trouble, you better step up your game if you want to enjoy your college years.

The trouble with AP Homework is that you are all alone, left to stumble through a long, winding, rocky tunnel with no ray of hope in sight. You must dance with due dates, break through low printer ink errors, circumvent paper shortages, and overcome many more challenges in the process of doing your homework. In my painful journey, I have learned a few key lessons about what - and what not - to do when doing homework. You have likely heard most of them, but it doesn't hurt to get a refresher.

DO:

• Start it early. I know we all just want to flop down on the couch with a snack and the TV remote as soon as we get home. Perhaps take a "quick" nap. After all, you've just spent the last 6 hours or so endlessly toiling. But cut that break short and get started early. Aim for a starting time of 5 (PM, not AM) at the latest. Trust me, it'll save you a ton of stress later on when you are actually able to get to bed before midnight. Also, teachers know what they are doing, and there is a reason they give you multiple weeks to do major assignments. Start these early as well and work steadily on them so that you don't overwhelm yourself the day before they are due.
• Use your planner. The school paid thousands of dollars to get these for a purpose. When you get free stuff paid for by taxpayer money, you use it. Keep track of your assignments by recording them in your planners during each class. I stopped using my planner for a while this year, and my homework grades plummeted drastically due to missing work that I had forgotten about.
• Prioritize the hard things first. Tackle the most challenging assignment first, when your mind is the freshest. The temptation of the easy work may be difficult to endure but you must resist. Getting the difficult part out of the way first leads to a quick and satisfying sprint to the finish. This strategy also forces you to deal with the important assignments first so that you don't push them back.
• Form a routine. Create a pattern that you like. Find a groove that works for you and stick with it. If you like to go for a run after coming home and before starting homework, make it a habit. If you have dinner at 7, make space for that in your homework schedule and plan around it. Keep your starting time consistent. Soon you'll be churning out homework without missing a beat like an assembly line in a factory.
• Take breaks. Unfortunately, no cure for mental fatigue has been discovered yet. So you WILL get tired. To keep yourself from completely frying your brain cells, take small breaks at regular intervals. Watch an episode on TV or take a short nap, anything to give yourself a little time to rest and recharge. Breaks are key to tackling lengthy assignments .

DO NOT:

• DO NOT PROCRASTINATE! This devilish act is the bane of success, and I figured this out the hard way. Don't procrastinate your homework! Procrastinate procrastination! Save procrastination for later; do it tomorrow! Don't let it screw up your schedule and routine. Once it becomes a habit, it is very difficult to let go, and you'll find yourself scrambling to put together something that barely resembles homework the period before it's due.
• Do not touch your bed. YOU WILL FALL ASLEEP. Trust me. Despite my hardest efforts to stay awake, I have fallen asleep while working on my bed countless times. Even entering the proximity of a soft, flat, comfortable surface can prove disastrous. Multiple times, I've caught myself zoning out while working, subconsciously randomly laying down on my bed, and just falling asleep.
• Do not get distracted. Yes, I'm talking directly to you, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and YouTube addicts! Close that laptop and concentrate your full attention on your homework. The world will not explode if you don't check that Facebook notification, and live-tweeting your homework is just lame. In addition, don't get lost surfing on the treacherous seas of the internet. Time is of the essence. If you are having particular trouble with this, consider downloading one of those programs that bans access to Facebook and such for a set amount of time. Or go hardcore and just cut your internet connection. Both work.
• Do not take a nap without an alarm. Alarms are friends, however loud and obnoxious they are. They form a safety net that prohibits you from falling asleep for extended periods of time. Without an alarm, a "nap" turns into a deep slumber, and unless you like to spend the next day of school trying to finish homework in class, you will kick yourself.  

Unfortunately, homework is here to stay, here to taunt us and stress us and overwhelm us and turn us into fatigued zombies white from the lack of exposure to the sun in the hope that we will someday soon learn the importance of responsibility and time management. The magic has worked on me only recently. I revamped my horrible homework routine this January and it's been working! Hopefully I can maintain this momentum as I head towards senior year.

In the spirit of the AP Exam season, give yourself a score on your AP Homework exam.  Think you got a 5? Awesome! You are on your way to a successful college career. Making do with a 4 or a 3? Not bad. There's room for improvement! Hopefully none of you are failing in this department (cough*seniors*cough).

I hope these tips help you get a better score on the AP Homework test! Additional tips (from the consummate College Board) can be found here.

If you would like to share tips and strategies you use at home, feel free to contact me via email by clicking here or by leaving a comment below. Thanks for reading!

-Raghav