How to Succeed in Secondary School: A Practical Guide

In the Covid era, the importance of self-guided study is more important than ever for secondary school students. Alongside this, students need to be able to balance study and exam preparation with sport and other social outlets in order to prevent burnout.

In How to Succeed in Secondary School, study mentor and former teacher Tony Bellew uses his 50 years of experience to advise students how best to use their time in preparing for the Junior and Leaving Certificates. He stresses the importance of bringing real structure to all aspects of students’ lives, and guides students on how to create their own personal study timetable with emphasis on:

• Allowing adequate time for homework, study and revision
• Blocking off time for leisure, sporting activities, family time, and rest and recovery, to ensure a balanced lifestyle
• Identifying personal strengths and weaknesses, and giving time to improve in weak areas
• Ongoing monitoring of progress
• Setting targets and then focusing on the process
• Addressing difficulties and problems head-on
• How to cope with setbacks
• Recognising that the overall objective is for each student to realise their potential

With a strong emphasis on ensuring a balanced approach to study and developing your own personalised study approach, How to Succeed in Secondary School is an essential guide for all secondary school students, not just those in Sixth Year, and will also prove useful for students in other academic settings.

Tony Bellew spent 38 years in St Brendan’s College, Woodbrook, Bray (now Woodbrook College), first as a teacher and then as principal. Education is his passion. Following his retirement from the school, he has spent the last twelve years mentoring second-level students through his own coaching service, One2One Mentor.