Types of Students: Behavior During Exam Season

In every class, there are a variety of types of students. From nerds to backbenchers and Mr Know-it-all to teach-me-if-you-can, this range adds to the beauty of the time you spend in a school, college or university. But even though they are fun, sometimes the classmates in your life are overly annoying, especially when it comes to exam season.

You see different types of students acting in really strange and weird ways during this period. And don’t even get me started on their behavior on the exam day. Based on my personal experience, here are some of the broad categories that I have created after my encounters with different types of students (many of them are my own friends, of course!).

The toppers

As the name suggests, these are the ones who always top the class. How do they do that?

Right from the first class until the last one, they will make sure the teacher notices them. They will never miss a class, and always try to grab the front benches. Where a first-come first-served rule applies, they will be there half an hour before the class starts. Some of them will even laugh at the boring jokes of the teacher.

During the exam season they will be the center of attention because they are the only ones who literally transcribed everything said by the teacher into their notebooks. They won’t admit it, but they do enjoy their “15 minutes of fame”.

But you know what the worst part is? On the exam day, they will be among the most nervous. They will be reading books and trying to memorize everything as if they have just joined the class and been asked to appear in the exam. Their personal mantra? “Practice makes perfect.”

Well, ok, but stop freaking the rest of us out!

The know-nothing guys

These types of students are pretty cool people. They will never ever be serious during the semester. You will see them occasionally attending class, if they have nothing better to do. But even when they do bless the rest of us with their presence, they are hardly paying attention to what the teachers are saying.

But their happy-go-lucky attitude transforms into something creepy when the exam schedule is announced. They run around for help. They are reluctant to ask the toppers for help because they have spent the rest of the semester making the lives of the front-benchers miserable. How can they get help now? They usually have to take assistance from someone who volunteers to help them pass the exam through a crash course the night before. Their justification? “Why worry for the whole semester if you  can pass after studying for one night?”

Maybe they have a point!

The what-you-know guys

These are funny people. They generally consider themselves competitors of the toppers, but they never beat them. And once the exam results are out, they always curse the toppers, saying they don’t have anything fun in their life. But secretly, they harbor wishes of being a topper.

During exam season, they will pretend they know nothing and keep asking others what they know. In some ways, they try to ascertain the level of competition they are facing. Their most annoying aspect is that they will ask you every possible thing, but when you need help they will tell you that they know nothing. If you ask them about their preparations for exam day, they will casually tell you that they have read one chapter and the remaining nine are untouched. Well, the truth is there is only one chapter that still needs their review. Their obsession? “What do you know that I don’t?”

Guys, we know you are hypocrites. Get a life!

The honest guys

These are the people who don’t know where their life is going. They attend classes because they have to. They might not have anything important going on. But their regular attendance does not mean that they are the brightest. They might have the highest IQ among the lot, but they are genuinely not interested in studies and grades. They occasionally take notes and sometimes ask interesting questions during the lecture. But that’s just when they are in the right mood.

During the exam season, they are the calmest. They usually will not know a lot about the exam, but they don’t care too much either. They don’t ask for anyone’s help. They will spend some time reading the books, but only as long as their interest is retained.

If you ask them anything before exam day, they will honestly tell you that whether or not they know the answer. If they have something to share they will do so. Hmm, why do they do that? Their honest approach makes others think they are hiding something, and their level of confidence sometimes worries the toppers as well.

Well guys, what if you could get real serious?