There are two main factors that contribute to good test scores. One is Preparation and the other is Test taking strategies.
Test preparation is an ongoing process that needs to be done throughout the semester. Getting off on the right foot at the beginning of the semester is essential!!! Have you done the following?
1. Made and followed a workable time schedule?
2. Learned how to concentrate during classes and study times?
3. Taken effective classroom notes on every lecture and reviewed notes daily?
4. Kept up-to-date on textbook assignments, using selective underlinings and thoughtful margin notes?
5. Taken enough time each week to review and recite from lecture and textbook notes?
If you have, you are probably able to go into your exam today and answer at least 80% of your test questions correctly. If you haven't, now is the time to put this system into action. (Pick up handouts on any areas you feel you need help with.)
The summary sheet system can be used to organize and consolidate your notes into easily remembered categories and blocks.
The
summary sheet system helps you to reduce lecture notes into an
organized, manageable amount of material which can be reviewed the
night before and again the morning before the exam. Outline or cluster
the important ideas and facts in blocks of material under category
titles. Use a summary column with key ('clue') words OR use titles and
subtitles as key words. If your key words are in the margin, cover the
rest of the sheet and recite all material pertaining to that topic.
After reciting, expose the notes and check for accuracy. If you use
categories, titles and subtitles for key word, place a blank piece of
paper over your summary sheet, then draw the blank sheet down to expose
the first heading and recite. After reciting, expose the notes under
the heading to check for accuracy, and repeat the procedure to the
bottom of the page.
Use summary sheets to predict exam questions and practice answering them by means of self-recitation.
Make sure you have obtained all available test format information from your instructor before beginning your course review, so you can spend recitation time emphasizing the same areas of course content that your instructor does. You should know:
1. Topics the test covers (chapters from texts, units covered in class, etc.).
2. Percentage of questions that will be asked from each topic or unit.
3. Types of questions that will be asked (essay, multiple choice, matching, etc.).
4. Time limits.
5. Weighting given to lecture notes, textbook readings, handouts, lab work, etc.
A. STRATEGIES FOR ANSWERING OBJECTIVE QUESTIONS (Multiple choice, matching, fill-in-the-blank, etc.).
1. Read the directions carefully.
2. Get a running start. Skim
the entire exam to become familiar with the types of questions asked.
Notice the various weights assigned to specific questions and sections.
Quickly develop a time plan.
3. Don't get stuck. If a question begins to take undue time and
thought, mark it, leave it, and return to it later. (Allow time to
reconsider items you are unsure of, and re-read all questions with
negative wording.)
4. Read all choices provided in a multiple choice question before deciding on the answer.
1 . Read directions carefully. Notice whether you must answer all essay questions or whether you can choose.
2.
Read all essay questions before beginning. Select those for which you
are best prepared and begin with the easiest, to inspire confidence and
promote clear thinking. Avoid unnecessary content overlap by being
aware of information that could be better used in answering another
question.
3. Jot alongside each question. Quickly note a few key
words and phrases alongside each question. List technical terms and
names that come to mind. (Keep it clean.)
4. Calculate time to be used in answering each question.
1. Note key instruction words in question. Know the difference between comment, compare, contrast, etc. (See below.)
2.
Make a skeletal outline before beginning to write your answer. (This is
not a doodle.) Refer to jottings and organize key words and supporting
ideas. It will save time by providing direction and helping avoid
repetition. In addition, if you don't have time to finish, you can
instruct your teacher to refer to your outline and probably pick up
more points.
3. Avoid a flowery Introduction. Answer the question
directly and forcefully in the first sentence. Sometimes you can turn
the stem of the question into a direct answer (e.g., What are the
reasons for ... ? The reasons for ... are ... ).
4. Expand the first
sentence according to the skeletal outline. Support generalizations
with facts, illustrations, reasons, examples. Use technical terms and
references from textbooks and lectures.
5. Summarize and conclude.
6. Re-read all answers and correct any errors in spelling, grammar and sentence structure.
The introductory words in a subjective question are of great importance. Remember to observe the word that is used and do exactly what you are asked. It is estimated that five to ten percent of failures on individual questions are due to ignoring the key word or words. Read the following key words and their definitions.
1. Comments "to write a note or observation intended to explain,
illustrate or criticize,' says the dictionary definition. 'Comment'
perhaps gives you greater freedom than any other introductory word. It
is usually an invitation to express freely your personal opinion on the
subject. E.g., Comment on the desirability of lowering taxes in a
period of relatively high income. (Economics)
2. Compare: to point
out both similarities and differences. Students often make the mistake
of stating only similarities when they are asked to compare. E.g.,
Compare the marketing channel for wheat with that for livestock and
meats. (Agricultural Economics)
3. Contrast: to point out the
differences only. If similarities are included at all, they should
usually be no more than mentioned. E.g., Contrast the characteristics
of earlier postwar settlements with those following World War II.
(History)
4. Criticizes: to judge as a critic. Note that criticism
is not necessarily finding fault. Rather, it involves pointing out both
good and bad characteristics; it is weighing of evidence. Sometimes
testers may use 'criticize' rather loosely to mean 'comment,' or less
loosely as a synonym of 'evaluate.' E.g., Criticize Shakespeare's use
of the revenge motive in Hamlet. (Literature)
5. Defines: to give
the meaning. Giving definition requires you to do two things: put the
thing being defined into a general class and then differentiate it from
other things in the same class. For example, you may define botany as
'the science which treats types of plants. Here, the class is
'science." The phrase 'which treats types of plants' distinguishes
botany from other sciences. Never, never define anything "when" or
"where." Would you say a leopard is when a cat has spots? Would you say
botany is when people study plants? E.g., Define the relationship
between United States and other
American countries as implied by the Monroe Doctrine. (History)
6.
Discuss: to present the various sides of and points relating to the
subject. A discussion is ordinarily considerably longer than an
explanation of the same subject. A discussion of a mathematics theorem,
for example, would involve more points than an explanation of it. E.g.,
Discuss the use of irony in the short stories of Ring Larder.
(Literature)
7. Describe: to list the physical characteristics or total
characteristics of anything. This word is often used loosely, though,
to mean "explain," "discuss," or "give an account of." E.g., Describe
in detail the human heart., include a drawing in which you label the
parts. (Anatomy)
8. Explain: to make more plain. When you are asked
to explain something, the examiner wishes to make sure you understand
it. It is sometimes wise to write the explanation as though you were
giving it to someone who has not taken the course, or to someone who
knows the vocabulary but otherwise has no understanding of the point
you are explaining.
E.g., Explain the concept of universality as applied to United States membership. (Political science)
9. Evaluate: to express an opinion concerning worth or merit. In mathematics, it means to express numerically.
E.g.,
Evaluate this statement: "Because of the heavy burden of interest
charges caused by financing, public works should be financed strictly
on a'pay-as-you-go'basis." (Economics)
10. Summarize: to present in
condensed form. When an instructor asks for a summary, he normally
expects (or at least hopes) that you have acquired a mass of details
from which you will be able to pick the most important.
E.g., Summarize the provisions of the Treaty of Utrecht. (History)
