JC Economics: The Answer Key to the 4 Top Challenges Students Face

Picture this: your Econs tutor is going through the concepts explained during lecture, but all you hear are random words spouting out of their mouths. Your exams are in two months, and the only thing you can think of is pulling up your scores by at least 2 grades, but you don’t even know where to begin!

Aaaand okay back to reality! Do you relate to the above scenario more often than you wish to? For some, this can be considered a ‘rite of passage’ into JC life. It’s true, going through your A level years is tough, and not complete without challenges. Especially when Economics as a subject is only introduced to you during JC, there might be new challenges for you to conquer.

Don’t worry, you are not alone on this journey! In this article, we compiled some common challenges students face when studying A level Economics, and lucky for you – we have the solutions! Or shall we call it the “answer key”? 

Jokes aside, keep reading to find out more!

Challenge 1: I keep re-reading the question, but I don’t even know what concepts to apply!

Our Solution: JC economics is a theory heavy subject, and there might be information overload. A lot of concepts are learnt, and it may be difficult at first to pick which one to apply when you look at the question at a glance. So first, you need to be thorough with your concepts. Understand what each concept is about, and try to relate to it using real-life examples. Another very helpful way to grasp your concepts well is drawing diagrams! Yes, the many diagrams you learn in class could be your best friend and a useful tool if you use it correctly!

Second, practise, practise and practise some more! You need to practise matching your concepts to questions as a start, because sometimes there are keywords in the question itself that act as a hint for you to figure out what concept you need to apply. This could be a good exercise to train your intuition, until you are confident to do so without referring to any answering guides.

Challenge 2: Okay, I have my concepts down! But how do I write the answer?

Our Solution: Sometimes, even though you might be familiar with the theory, it could be a bit difficult to align them specifically to the exam question. To overcome that challenge, the most important thing you need to do is to plan your essay!

You might be thinking – plan? Where did you have time to plan? Well, time management is one thing (and we’ll come back to that later, promise!) but planning is very underrated and students tend to underestimate the importance of it. Of course, we are not asking for an elaborate outline, but a simple one is extremely beneficial. You would want to highlight the keywords, which includes the phrasing of the questions (e.g. assess vs. discuss ask for very different kinds of answers), and concepts – and think of 3 main points to include. This will help you analyse the question and stay on track.

Challenge 3: It’s so difficult to structure my answer! Where do I begin?

Our Solution: So if you have followed our advice thus far, you would have had your planning down and the main points ready. However, the points are not enough – you need to structure them into an essay. To do so, let’s recap something you may have picked up in secondary school – the P.E.E.L method. For your economics essay, you need to structure your answer in a similar way. 

Start your paragraph with your thesis (or anti-thesis, depending on your question) statement. You will then need to elaborate it and provide examples to strengthen your argument. Et Voila, there you go!

Challenge 4: Oh dear…how to manage my time? I always keep exceeding the time limit!

Our Solution: (Don’t worry, we didn’t forget about this!) This is most likely the number one challenge faced by most of the students, especially for Economics. However, we believe that nothing is impossible! Time management is something that can be trained, however it comes with practise and a lot of self-discipline. 

One tip is to break down the question and assign each part a time limit. For eg. your Economics paper 2 is 2 hours 15 minutes, 3 essays worth 25 marks each. If you divide the time equally, each question should take 45 minutes. Practice writing the answers and stick to this time limit.

Reading all this, it’s no surprise how you may be overwhelmed by the challenges of studying Economics. It is thus important to know how to tackle these problems properly so that you can stay on the right track. Through our economics tuition classes, we can help you get through these challenges in a focused and interactive manner under the guidance of Mr. Anthony Fok, our Economics ‘super-tutor’! 

So, what are you waiting for? Click here for more details about his classes and sign up today to reserve your slot!