Hey aspirants, have you been preparing for any of the competitive exams recently? Preparing for GK papers isn’t as easy as it sounds. If you are on the wrong path, you will waste your time, money and many more. Just follow the Few Secret Recipes for successful GK preparation. Do you ever think about the importance of the General Knowledge paper in your syllabus? If you are preparing for competitive exams, the GK section is the key to unlocking your dream career. So, are you ready to adopt the best methods to prepare yourself for GK? Here you go! Insightful reading!
Knowledge is power! Knowledge is wealth! What you need to know is the best way to channelize the knowledge. Let me brief one of my friends’ experiences with competitive exams. She is a hard-core passionate aspirant who frequently appears for competitive exams. In the pursuit to excel in the exams, she has put her wholehearted effort to prepare for the Reasoning Ability, English Language section, Quantitative Aptitude.
Meanwhile, she ignores the General Knowledge section, thinking of it as an easily crackable area. Alas! There lies the root cause for the problem. The aspirants should know the importance of the GK question and know the best methods to tackle the GK paper. This article can guide the aspirants who are eager to crack any of the competitive exams. Learn better and grow better!
Why General Knowledge?
General Knowledge is inevitable for even the layman. Let alone the candidates who wish to prepare for the highly competitive exams. The General Knowledge section can increase the knowledge about the world, country and state to which an individual belongs to. All the Government jobs are concentrating on the GK of the candidates. It is deemed as one of the main papers to be cracked off by the candidates. It is essential to learn Current affairs and GK topics. According to the survey, for almost all the competitive exams, almost 25% of the paper revolves around GK questions.
General Knowledge is essential not only for the qualifying exam but also for the interviews and group discussions. It is an inevitable part of any competitive exam. It plays an important role while performing in the GD. GK is usually treated as a light subject by many of the candidates without knowing its role in competitive exams. It is high time to realise the value of GK papers. The GK section can influence the overall marks of the candidates. The GK questions can be easily cracked because of the precise nature of the answers. It can save time while attending the exam and also helps the candidates to score more marks.
How to Prepare for the GK Exam at home?
The General Knowledge section is generally broad. If the candidates can systematically analyse the questions and prepare well, they can score better marks while dealing with the GK questions. The candidates who wish to crack the GK sections should have a pre-planned mode and focus point for the preparation. The topics mentioned in the syllabus should be thoroughly covered. Let’s get to know the important topics that should be covered under the GK section:
- Physical Geography
- Indian and World History
- International Organizations
- Everyday Science
- Awards and Honours
- Indian Economy
- Indian Polity
- Indian and World Geography
- Constitution
- Current Affairs
- Miscellaneous GK
- Current Affairs
Many of the aspirants are eager to crack the highly competitive exams as they provide decent jobs and high salaries. The life of the aspirants becomes stable as long as they enter into government service. But the dream come true moment appears only when the candidates can qualify for the exam. If you are desperate to qualify for an exam, you need to prepare yourself for it. Many of the candidates fail to score good marks in the general awareness section. Even though they are spending their energy and time, they are unable to crack the GK section. Why? It is not because they are not dedicated enough, but because they fail to follow the AP test method to tackle down the GK section.
The candidates should be specific about the target exams. Many of the exams are conducted annually by the central, state, public, private, and semi-governmental organizations. The candidates should understand the nature of the exam and prepare a target. The Gk section will not include everything under the sun, they will have set parameters and the candidates can follow the pattern of the exam to crack it effectively. Previous year question papers can only help the candidates to crack the exams effectively. Start from the very basic level and then try to upgrade yourself. After studying the portions, don’t forget to revise your portions. Solving the previous year’s question paper can be the next effective tactic to crack the exam
Top 8 Tips to Prepare Yourself for Cracking GK Exams
It is not easy to cover the complete syllabus within a limited time. Those candidates who aspire to crack the GK section should follow the simple tips to prepare themselves to tackle GK questions. It is not easy for any aspirant to learn the GK questions overnight. They need proper planning and preparation strategy to crack it effectively. Here are some simple tricks that can help the candidates with the GK questions
- Reading Newspaper Daily
Create a habit of reading the newspaper daily. The aspirants are advised to read more than one news [paper daily. They can choose a newspaper in their mother tongue. But reading an English newspaper is a must. Reading the newspaper can enhance the language and also function as the best tool to crack the exams. Some preferred newspapers are “The Hindu”, “The Times of India”, “The Indian Express” and “The Telegraph”. Newspaper reading can increase knowledge and get to know the world much better. Staying updated is possible if you have a habit of reading the newspaper daily.
- Watch Special GK Programmes on News and Live Telecasts
Watch the special live GK programmes and news channels to increase your knowledge. Never allow yourself to completely immerse yourself in social media. Try to invoke interest in the GK section by watching current affairs related programmes. Watch the news channels at least once. Online platforms are providing the news 24*7, you can choose your comfortable time to watch the news and prepare short notes. You can watch the most popular ABP News, NDTV, Times Now, ET Now, Zee News etc
- Making Study Notes
It is important to make study notes for the GK section. The study notes must be short, simple and crisp. The study notes soundbox is lengthy. The points shall be noted down easily so that the candidates can use them for quick revision. The candidates can also revise the portions anywhere at any time. It is not easy to memorise all the things happening in the world at a stretch but the study notes can help you to memorise the GK points effectively. It is one of the most effective working strategies that you can try out at home while preparing GK sections.
- Use Online Platforms to Learn Effectively
As we are living in a technological world, candidates can gather knowledge in a single touch. The candidates can use the available online materials and study resources to crack the GK questions effectively. The information can be available free of cost and you can learn anytime at your convenience. The major criteria while using an online platform is to select the best application to study. You can self-assess while attending online test series and mock tests.
- Attempt Mock Tests and Online Test Series
If you are determined enough to crack any of the competitive exams, what you should do is attempt the free mock tests and online test series daily. This should be part of your preparation strategy. This is the best way to check your performance potential. Mock tests are the best way to improve your knowledge. The candidates should cover up the entire syllabus before attending the exam. So, mock tests are the best ways to increase the GK of the candidates and also to identify the strong and weak focus areas accordingly.
- Choose the Best Books and Magazines for Preparation
Nowadays, many of the books and magazines related to general knowledge are available in the market but it is the sole duty of the candidates to select the best book and magazines to study. Read the magazines and books thoroughly and note down the important points then and there itself. Many of the magazines fail to update the information. Choose the best magazines that can provide the latest current affairs, news and events. Try to buy the books which include the question bank by the end of it. Pratiyogita Darpan and Manorma etc are some of the useful magazines that can help the candidates to improve their GK. Try to read the latest business magazines and sports magazines along with the common GK Books. Here are some of the best General knowledge books you can refer to.
- Lucent’s General Knowledge
- Rapid General Knowledge 2021 for Competitive Exams
- The Pearson Concise General Knowledge Manual
- One Liner Approach General Knowledge
- General Knowledge 2022 by Arahant Pandey
- Chand’s Advanced Objective General Knowledge by R.S. Aggarwal
- Participate in Online Quizzes
The online platforms provide a better way to improve your GK. Attend the online quizzes for free daily to improve the quality of your preparation. Learn time management by attending quizzes online. This is the most effective way to check yourself whether you are competent enough or not. The candidates who wish to crack the exam must attend the online quizzes without fail.
- Participate in Discussion Forums
The aspirants are advised to participate in the discussion forums to effectively crack the GK section. These debate forums will deal with all the current and important valid problems, events and issues that our world is handlining. This can help the candidates to increase their general knowledge. These forums which are available online will increase the knowledge of negotiations in innumerable fields. Such discussions can help to increase your general awareness.
Best Hacks to Crack the GK Section
- Follow 2 to 3 newspapers daily.
- Reading newspapers daily can help you enhance your GK learning.
- Keep an eagle’s eye around the happenings of the world
- Don’t forget to stay updated.
- Never miss the editorial page
- Read the newspaper in your mother tongue and an English newspaper
- Watching News channel daily can enhance your GK
- Never miss the breaking news and headlines. BBC News, Al Jazeera, NDTV and other Indian and International news channels, Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha Parliament Sessions on Doordarshan, RSTV, and LSTV, KBC quiz show etc can help to increase the General knowledge.
- Keeping a notebook in your handwriting is the best choice to memorise the ideas and concepts.
- Maintaining a habit of keeping a diary or journal helps you memorize points effectively.
- Use online sources to gather more GK points. YouTube, Wikipedia, and Google can help you to locate the most vital points. Twitter and Facebook Pages of online GK and Current Affairs groups can help you directly to gather information.
- Attend online quizzes on educational websites.
- Evaluate your progress frequently
- Test your performance level by attending regular mock tests
Grab it! Use the Best Tricks!
Download an eligible and authentic application for updated mock tests and special Quizzes which will enable you to focus on exam mode of study. If you are confused about which, you can try Entri App, which has been serving the best for the aspirants for a long time now.
- Entri App ensures updated teaching methodology
- You will be able to explore the learning experience in your native language
- Learn with study notes from an exam point of view
- Bored of reading? Listen to the lecture sessions and learn effectively
- Try some games in Entri App and remember the knowledge forever
- And finally, get you confidence from the live exam where India participates
- See your score and improve the best
Preparing for a competitive exam often stands as the most challenging due to the competition level in it. Learning GK is casual, but learning Gk for a competitive exam is a warning. All those traditional ways of reading and learning do not often work here. So, along with the old style, spice up some new tech styles too!
Prepare Like you Earn It!