Jewish Exam Wisdom

This morning, Rabbi Miriam Lorie joined BBC Radio 2's Pause for Thought.

Listen here.

My heart has been bursting with maternal protectiveness this week, because my 10-year-old has SATS every day. His whole class received an adorable letter from their teacher, Miss Rosenthal, saying,

“Please remember, the scores you get from your SATS will tell you something, but they will not tell you everything. They won’t tell you how kind and thoughtful you are. They won’t tell you all the sports you can play, or that you can sing and dance, or that you’re an amazing artist. They won’t tell you how special and unique you are. Don’t get stressed, just do your best”.

Well, I thought that was just wonderful. 

GCSEs and A levels started this week too. And more SATS are coming soon for Year 2s, renamed by my 7-year-old’s school as “Special Agent Tests”. Scott, exam season is very much upon us. So I thought I’d share some Jewish study and exam wisdom. 

In Judaism, studying is pretty sacred. We say three blessings before studying any Torah, and we call God a “Melamed”, a teacher. So banish exam stress with the thought that knowledge is holy, and that studying is a privilege. 

Jewish study has always been done in pairs, something called chevruta. So, schedule a study session with a friend. Talking things through - questioning each other and clarifying your understanding - will sharpen both your knowledge, and hopefully it will also take you out of your own head and give you a bit more perspective.

Take breaks! Rest is sacred in Judaism, with Shabbat, the Sabbath each week, as a day of rest, to completely switch off from all work. So schedule time when you can totally relax, and let it fuel your focus for the rest of the time. 

But if none of these tips help, and you feel unprepared and like a failure, then please know that exams are not the measure of your worth. You are a whole person, a unique and precious human being created in God’s image, and no score, result or grade can ever compromise this fact. But my son’s lovely teacher, Miss Rosenthal, could have told us that.