© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests Chapter 5

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Getting Ready Cause great anxiety for students and instructors Tests are valuable – helps define what you know and what you still need to work on Don’t allow tests to define your worth as a person Tests measure how well and how much you studied, and your test- taking skills

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Prepare Take a long-term view on preparing for tests Know what you are preparing for –What material will be covered? –How many questions will there be? –How much time will you have to take it? –What kinds of questions will be on it?

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Prepare Match your preparation to the type of test you are studying for –Essay: big picture questions, how do all the parts fit together, know facts and how they are connected, imagine questions your instructor will ask –Short-answer and fill-in: must be able to recall information, study specific and detailed information –Multiple-choice/True-False/Matching: requires attention to details rather than big-picture, must know a lot of facts, use index cards to study

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Prepare Test yourself –Textbook website –Write your own questions –Take practice test questions with your study group Deal with test anxiety –Prepare thoroughly –Take a realistic view of the test –Eat right and get enough sleep –Learn relaxation techniques –Visualize success –Utilize school’s counseling services, if needed

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Prepare Organize a study group –Help members of the group to organize and structure material –Members can share different perspectives of material –Prevent members from overlooking important information –Forces members to rethink the material by explaining it to other members of the group –Motivates members to do their best

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests -- Prepare Organize a study group –Identify motivated members of your class –Use a variety of people with different strengths –Identify your group’s purpose –Keep your group the right size Use campus tutoring center Try not to cram

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Organize Bring the right tools the day of the test Bring notes and text, if permitted Avoid comparing study preparation with friends the day of the test Listen to what your instructor says before the test is handed out – this is valuable information!

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Work Take a deep breath Tell yourself you’re going to do your best Answer the easy questions first Write legibly and only on one side of the paper Carefully mark machine-scored tests

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Work How to tackle different types of test questions –Essay: note specifically what is being asked, write outline if needed, be brief and to the point, move from major points to minor ones, answer every part of question –Short-answer and fill-in: unlike essays, these require specific information, be brief –Multiple-choice questions: be sure of the number answers you can choose, answer the question in your head first, look for absolutes as possibilities to discard, break the question apart, use an educated guess strategy

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Work How to tackle different types of test questions –True – False questions: answer the ones you’re sure about first, consider the absolutes because they will determine the answer, if part of a statement is false then the whole statement is false –Matching questions: match the ones you know first Keep academic honesty a priority

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Evaluate Save time at the end of the test to evaluate your work –Check for obvious mistakes –Proof-read your essays and short answers –Add any additional information and attempt questions you weren’t sure about earlier Run out of time? –Stop and plan a quick strategy for the final minutes of the test –Outlines essays, write keywords –Remember: something is better than nothing

© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved. McGraw-Hill Taking Tests – Rethink How did you do? –Think beyond just your score –Examine mistakes for how to do better in the future –Actively listen to what your instructor says about the test –Were your errors based on not understanding the material or due to test-taking skills? –Follow up with your instructor, if needed