Pass the ACCA: 8 Strategies To Use Learnsignal Effectively

There’s no point in having access to the most effective ACCA learning tools if you’re not using them. Find out how to use Learnsignal to pass ACCA first-time!

Learnsignal gives you all the tools to pass the ACCA. If you use those tools right, there’s no excuse not to pass. That’s why we’ve helped thousands of students from all over the world secure ACCA’s success. So how do you use those tools right? Because we appreciate that every student works slightly differently – that’s why we built Learnsignal. But we also know there’s a clear right and wrong approach when taking your ACCA exams.

In this piece, we’ll share the 8 strategies to use Learnsignal best, and make sure your next result is something to celebrate.

8 strategies to use Learnsignal effectively

1. Start with the course introduction video

Starting a new topic can be overwhelming. There’s so much content, and it’s difficult to know where to leap in. That’s why our tutors create an introduction video for every subject, to set the scene for the exam right from the start.

That’s important because exam day doesn’t start on exam day. Exam day starts from the moment you decide to take the ACCA. So that birds-eye view is really important.

“Exam day starts from the moment you decide to take the ACCA.”

Which content is involved? Which areas might be most important for the exam? Where should you focus? What do you need to be aware of, from Day 1? The introduction video for each subject answers these questions, so you set yourself up for success from the start.

2. Video commentary on the examiner’s reports

Yeah, yeah, you’ve heard this too many times to count: read the examiner reports. But have you?

Every year the examiners (somewhat exasperated) note that many students clearly didn’t read the report, and made common, avoidable mistakes. So our guess is, that you probably haven’t read one report properly, front to back. That’s why every Learnsignal course includes a video breakdown of the previous examiner’s reports, pulling out the important points and explaining what they mean for you.

We’re not exaggerating when we say, if you don’t watch this video you’re leaving marks behind – and those marks could be very useful on exam day.

3. Use our 12-week study plans

If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it one thousand times: a study plan is the best way to stay on track and cover all the material. But lots of students aren’t sure how best to make a plan, or how long to leave. That’s where our 12-week plans come in. Each of our topics has a scheduled 12-week plan for students to follow, to make sure you cover all the material. If you go through all the content following this plan, you’ll be much, much more likely to pass.

Why 12 weeks, you might be thinking?

Because that’s how long most students need to properly prepare for a topic. If you’ve got less than that, you need to fit all the content into your remaining time – but the less time you leave to study, the more difficult you’re making it. Unnecessarily.

4. Absorb all the videos.

Technology is a wonderful thing because we can see the videos you’ve watched. This sounds like Big Brother, but it means we can keep an eye on whether our students are doing the right things to pass, or if they need a little nudge. What we can’t do, though, is see what’s going on your end. Like the 100s of tabs you’ve got open. The Facebook chat you’re having. The Whatsapp group. All while you’re ‘studying’.

“You’re only cheating yourself if you procrastinate.”

We give our students all the tools to pass, but we can’t control whether you’re really investing your time and effort in the right way. We can’t do it for you. It’s really important you take the content and watch it – absorb it – in real-time. No distractions, no Facebook, no Instagram, no Twitter, no Whatsapp, no whatever. Be honest with yourself – because if you’re not concentrating and not letting the content sink in, we can’t help.

5. Take advantage of the MCQs

Some students, especially if they’re doing their professional papers, wonder why we include multiple-choice questions after each video. If the exam doesn’t have MCQs, why do you need to practice MCQs? They’re designed to make sure you’re paying attention, essentially. It’s all too easy to watch a video, check it off your mental to-do list and move on – but without really learning anything. So the MCQs make sure you’re remembering the core points that you’ll need in the exams.

You should re-watch the Learnsignal videos until you pass the MCQ the first time, and ensure that you really understand the answer.

6. Use the question bank

So. You’ve watched the videos and passed the relevant MCQs. Your next step is to attempt some questions. Click on the question bank, and you’ll see a tutorial video where you’re walked through the answer. These are super helpful because they don’t just tell you the answer – they show you how to approach the question.

But do not – repeat – DO NOT just click on the video and watch that. To the right of each video is the question that the tutor covers in the video, as well as the full solution. Before you watch the video or download the solution, try this question on your own first.

“If you take the easy way out, you’re only setting yourself up to fail.”

This is critical – otherwise, you’re not testing your knowledge. You’ll think, ‘oh yes, I knew that’, as the video progresses – but, did you? Could you have expressed it properly? Would you have got full marks? Having your own work to correct against the tutor video will help you learn much more than just watching the video or downloading the solution. It might seem like more effort – and yes. It is. Because the ACCA takes effort. And when it feels easy, you’re probably not learning anything!

7. Do loads of revision questions

Research has consistently proved that testing yourself with questions is the best way to learn. So questions are a major part of Learnsignal, because they’re so important. There are a couple of ways to source revision questions through Learnsignal. First, you can keep trying the tutor questions again, until you confidently understand the approach. A good test is whether you can explain it out loud to someone else.

Then there’s also access to revision questions and solutions you can try yourself, without the tutor walkthrough. You’ll find these on the main course page, under course resources. Do lots of these. Once you’ve finished your study, you should focus on questions, questions, and questions. Even if you’ve finished every question on the platform, start again. Challenge yourself to get every single question right. There’s no such thing as too much practice for an ACCA exam.

8. Do the Mock Exam!

If you’ve followed our posts, social media or emails, you’ll know this is a constant theme. Learnsignal students can take a mock exam and our tutors will mark it, and annotate where you went right and wrong. It’s one of the best parts of using Learnsignal – and the acid test for how well you’ll do in your exam. But no matter how many times we say it, students seem to avoid it.

Come back to our point above. Yes: it’s difficult. Yes: it’s time-consuming. Testing yourself never feels nice; it’s challenging. Your brain probably hurts. It’s easier to avoid altogether. But would you run a marathon without practising? Would you take your driving test without getting in a car first?

Even if you’ve done loads of exams before. Just because you can sprint, you wouldn’t turn up to a marathon without practising long-distance. Just because you ride a bike, you wouldn’t assume you can drive a car. Every exam is different, and the mock exam is a vital part of your exam preparation. If you do avoid it, you’re making a fail much more likely. If you’re serious about passing your ACCA, there’s no excuse not to take the mock exam.

Conclusion

If you genuinely follow these 8 strategies, there’s no reason not to pass the ACCA. We’ve said before, that the ACCA is difficult – but every single person who takes it is capable of passing – if you do the right things. So don’t make excuses for yourself. Take responsibility for your success and feel free to contact us. And follow these 8 steps. You’ll be celebrating your results in no time.

Read more: How to Choose the Best Accountancy Learning Provider