DAY 1, Happy Birthday Jilu Bhaina

My biggest support, strength and my first love, Jilu Bhaina, Happy Birthday. I am the luckiest sister. 13th Sept will always be special.

Coming back to our discussion...

The biggest problem I faced during my preparation was that I was working very hard towards something regarding which I had no clear idea. At Vajiram and Ravi (the institute where I took coaching), generally teachers were good and some were very good but no one really discussed what type of questions may be asked from the taught sections. Everything seemed easy and was happening fast. I found the course very interesting but was unaware of the kind of questions that have been asked or can be asked. I realized it as late as February when the test series began and I got the biggest shock of my life.

Perhaps, it was foolish of me to expect it from them because some preliminary work should have been done from my side before joining the institute itself. Not all decisions should be emotional and impulsive. I was usually unsure as to where to stop buying books, where to stop studying. For instance, there were times where I liked a particular subject so much that I went on researching on it, referring different books for it. I developed the understanding but with time it faded away because that was the wrong approach for this exam. I hope you will not face the same, as I am there for you.

Will start with a discussion on preliminary examinations and once you are comfortable in that we can move to a discussion on Mains. Yes, preparation should be an integrated one but the candidate should first know very well what the preliminary exam demands and once he gets comfortable in that, one should move towards Mains examination. However at this stage the optional selection is very important so that the relevant materials can be downloaded, bought and a basic understanding of the subject is developed. I think we are sorted regarding the Optional which in all probability will be Sociology in this case, as I will be unable to guide in any other subject ;)

Also for prelims the approach has to be very objective and smart or else one will just read and read and will be unable to deliver output. A particular teacher at Vajiram and Ravi always emphasized the importance of syllabus and he used to ask us to mug up the syllabus which I didn’t and I regret. Perhaps the mugging up part may be discounted but his concern was very right. Without knowing the syllabus by heart, without knowing why you are studying whatever you are studying, you are just making the journey more difficult.

So let us get acquainted with the syllabus for the Preliminary Examination.

Syllabus for Preliminary Examination

The Preliminary examination consists of Paper I and Paper II, each carrying 200 marks. I have mentioned the syllabus below, alongside which you will find dates allotted to the specific subjects. In those particular dates we will try to gain an understanding on the way each subject is to be approached, books to be referred/avoided, websites and essential videos that may be useful and a very basic discussion on the pattern of questions. So by the end of October 8th one will have a little clear idea about what to read and how to do so. Once this is over we may take individual topics in details that may start late October or Early November.

Paper I - (200 marks) Duration: Two hours

• Current events of national and international importance 

  (14^th -15^th Sept)

• History of India and Indian National Movement 

   (16^th-18^th Sept)

• Indian and World Geography - Physical, Social, Economic geography of India and the World. 

  (19^th-21st Sept)

• Indian Polity and Governance – Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy,      Rights Issues, etc. 

  (22^nd-24^th Sept)

• Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics,  Social Sector Initiatives, etc. 

  (25^th- 27^th Sept)

• General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change - that do not require  subject specialization 

  (28^th-30^th Sept)

• General Science 

  (1^st-3^rd October)

Paper II- (200 marks) Duration: Two hours 

(4^th-8^th October)

• Comprehension

• Interpersonal skills including communication skills;

• Logical reasoning and analytical ability

• Decision making and problem solving

• General mental ability

• Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. -Class X level)

• English Language Comprehension skills (Class X level).

• Questions relating to English Language Comprehension skills of Class X level (last item in the Syllabus of Paper-II) will be tested through passages from English language only without providing Hindi translation thereof in the question paper.

• The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type.

Note:

As you will be asked multiple choice questions which may be very indirect sometimes, the minute details cannot be ignored. So I would recommend slow and in-depth reading rather than a hasty one. The first reading is extremely important and requires maximum efforts. So if you are studying about elections in India you need to know everything about the election process of MPs, MLAs, President, Vice President etc. You need to know the difference in their election procedure, who conducts it, how is the election commission appointed, who are its members, what is their usual tenure, how are they removed etc. It isn’t difficult and is actually interesting as an aware citizen one should know about these things. So once you read about elections and election commission you should try to solve as many questions concerning it.The approach remains the same for other subjects as well.

So as per the time table we will start discussing different topics in depth from tomorrow. Kindly read and re-read the Syllabus today and reading Hindu should be started seriously from today itself.

Much love..Always.