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Practicing the exact behavior
you will be required to perform in a test situation not only prepares you
to do well, it also helps you to relax and build your confidence. After
successfully passing practice tests, you are less likely to feel the
uneasiness and tension about tests that may have accompanied your old
study routines. You will know you have studied the right questions, and
you will sleep better for knowing you have studied correctly. Here is how
to make and take practice tests:
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Determine the amount of
time you'll be given to take your instructor's exam; take practice tests
over the same length of time. Taking tests under realistic pressure is
important. If you force yourself to do so, you'll feel more comfortable
when you're in the actual testing situation.
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Arrange the questions
you've been accumulating from chapters, lecture notes, study groups, old
exams, and other sources into practice tests.
-
Try to put the questions
into the same format that the test will offer (multiple choice, short
essay, and so on). Old tests will give you a good idea of the format
your instructor is likely to use.
-
Take the practice tests
under conditions as similar as possible to those under which you'll be
tested. The classroom in which you will be tested is the best place to
take practice exams, or come to the Assessment Center for a simulated
classroom situation.
-
Try to answer your
questions without referring to your books or other sources of
information.
-
When attempting to answer
questions for which you need more information, try to guess and make up
things as if you were in a real testing situation. This procedure forces
you to take what you already know and to determine what might be the
answer, rather than just saying, "I don't know." This approach is known
as "B.S.ing" and it often makes the difference between and A and a B!
This means writing out an answer which makes sense to you, even though
you don't remember exactly what was said in the textbook or lecture. You
often know more than you think. An imaginative answer can be a good way
to demonstrate your comprehension.
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Once you have completed the
test, compare your answers with those that you have in your own set of
questions. Use your notes to refine your answers.
-
After noting the questions
you have answered well and those in need of improvement design a new
test. Follow the same procedure that we have outlined in steps 1-7. Take
the new test and continue repeating the steps.
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