Standardized Test
Taking Tips
| General Test Taking
Guidelines |
1. Arrive early and take a moment to relax and reduce your anxiety.
This brief time period will boost your confidence and give you
time to think positive thoughts and focus your mind.
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2. Listen attentively to last minute instructions given by the
instructor. The teacher will almost always give you some valuable
information just before handing out the test. Don't miss them
because your anxiety causes you to talk to a classmate.
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3. Read the directions very carefully, looking for specific
instructions on how to proceed. Watch for details. You may find
that more than one answer may be possible on multiple choice or
that you only need to answer three out of the five essay questions
given.
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4. Plan how you will use the time for the test. Estimate how many
minutes you will need to finish each test section and finish in
the total time allotted. Bring your watch and pay close attention
to the passing time. Follow your own pace and do not let the pace
of others cause you to become nervous. Be confident in your plan
for completing the test on time.
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5. Determine which test sections will receive priority. It is
generally best to do the section that is easiest for you
especially if it has a high point total. It is not a good idea to
do the most difficult section first. Often, a student following
this method will not leave enough time for questions that would
have been sure points. Leaving essay and sentence completion
questions for last can often be beneficial because you find answers
among the already completed objective questions. However, if essays
are left for last, be sure to leave enough time to outline your
thoughts, and then write the answer clearly.
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6. Keep a steady pace and do not let more difficult questions affect
your attitude and steal your valuable time. Students often cloud
their minds by lingering over difficult questions. Moving on and
finding success with other questions is a better method. If you
are not penalized for wrong answers, guess and move on.
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7. Rely on your knowledge and don't watch for patterns. Noticing that
the last four answers are "c" is not a good reason to change an
answer. It is better to trust knowledge to help you answer the questions.
Change answers only when you are certain. The answer which comes
to mind first is often correct. Reviewing with an anxious mind
and changing answers when you are not certain can do more harm
than good.
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8. When you have completed your test, use the remaining
time effectively. Review the difficult questions you left.
Proofread your essays. Check your grammar and spelling. Make
sure you answered all questions. More than one student has turned
in a test and received only 50% because there were questions on
the back side of the paper. Learn from your tests!
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| Guidelines for Answering
Multiple-Choice Questions |
1. Read each question with the intention of answering the question
without the alternatives which follow.
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2. Focus on finding an answer without the help of the
alternatives. This will increase your concentration and help you
read the question more clearly.
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3. Use the process of elimination when you do not know the answer
for sure. Eliminate two alternatives quickly and then make the
decision between the two remaining. This increases your
probability to 50/50.
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4. Another helpful method of elimination is
to use the true-false methods described in the previous set of
guidelines. When you can determine a likely false alternative,
eliminate it. The true-false elimination method is particularly
helpful when more that one answer is possibly true.
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5. When numbers are in each alternative, choose the numbers
that are in the middle range, not the extremes. For example, if the
height of Cascade Mountain is requested, eliminate 20,000 feet,
and 3,000 feet. Then choose between 8,000 feet and 11,000 feet.
Remember, the best results are obtained when you have studied
and know the exact answer is 11,000 feet.
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6. Choose answers that are longer and more descriptive. These
answers stand out from the others. Instructors will often give
you descriptive detail to help you identify the truth.
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7. When two very similar answers appear, it is likely that one of
them is the correct choice. Test makers often disguise the
correct option by giving another option that looks very much
like the correct one.
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| 8. Watch out for negative words in the instructions or in the main
question. You may have been told to select an option that is
not true. Remember to reverse your procedure and eliminate truth,
not falsehood. When looking for negative options look for extreme
modifiers that make them false (always, never, all, etc.) |
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Guidelines for Answering True-False Questions |
1. There is no substitute for the truth. Many concentrated
hours of study to force facts into your memory is the best way to
prepare true-false questions. Teachers, however, often try to
test your memory of the material by slightly altering it. In
this case, practice and some test-taking skill will help.
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2. When you do not know or can't remember information to
determine the truth of a statement, assume that it is true. There are
generally more true questions on true-false exams than false
questions because instructors tend to emphasize true questions.
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3. If there is specific detail in the statement, it may also tend
to be true. For example, the statement "There are 980 endangered
species worldwide" has specific detail and is likely to be true.
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4. Carefully read each question, looking for any factor that will
make it false. It is easier for the instructor to add a false
part to an otherwise true statement. Students often read the
question and see some truth and assume that the entire statement
is true.
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| 5. Look for extreme modifiers that tend to make the question
false. Extreme modifiers, such as always, all, never, or only
make it more likely that the question is false. A more complete
list of extreme modifiers follows.
| all |
none |
best |
absolutely |
| always |
never |
worst |
absolutely not |
| only |
nobody |
everybody |
everybody certainly |
| invariably |
no one |
everyone |
certainly not |
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| 6. Identify qualifiers that tend to make the question true.
Qualifiers (seldom, often, many) make the question more
likely true. A more complete list of often used qualifiers
follows.
| usually |
frequently |
often |
sometimes |
| some |
seldom |
many |
much |
| probably |
a majority |
apt to |
most |
| might |
a few |
may |
unlikely |
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7. Watch out for negative words and how they may affect the truth.
Statements containing negative words may be true or false but
you must see them to make that determination. The prefixes (un-,
im-, miss-) will alter the meaning of the statement. Double
negatives make the statement true. For example "not uncommon"
actually means common. Don't let this language dilemma cause
you to make a mistake.
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| 8. Questions that state a reason tend to be false. Words in the
statement that cause justification or reason (since, because,
when, if) tend to make the statement false because they bring
in a reason that is incorrect or incomplete. |
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Guidelines for Answering Matching Questions |
1. Examine both lists to determine the types of items and their
relationships. The test maker uses many terms or a large number
of facts on a matching type test to discover if you have
mastered a subject.
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2. There are usually two lists that need to be
matched. Take a look at both lists to get a feel for the
relationships and build your confidence.
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3. Use one list as a starting point and go through the second list
to find a match. This process organizes your thinking. It will
also speed your answers because you become familiar with the
second list and will be able to go straight to a match that you
saw when looking through the lists a previous time.
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4. Move through the entire list before selecting a match. If you
make a match with the first likely answer, you may make an error,
because an answer later in the list may be more correct.
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5. Cross off items on the second list when your are certain that
you have a match. This seems simplistic, but it helps you feel
confident and stay organized.
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| 6. Do not guess until all absolute matches have been made. If you
guess early in the process, you will likely eliminate an answer
that could be used correctly for a later choice. |
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Guidelines for Answering Sentence Completion or Fill-in-the-Blank
Questions |
1. Read the question with the intent to give an answer and make the
sentence grammatically correct. In this process it is important
to focus on how the sentence is written. For example, if the blank
is preceded by the article "an," you know the word that goes in
the blank must start with a vowel.
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2. Concentrate on the number of blanks in the sentence and the length
of the space. The test maker is giving you clues to the answer by
adding spaces and making them longer.
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| 3. Provide a descriptive answer when you can not think of the exact
word or words. The instructor will often give you credit or
partial credit when you demonstrate that you have studied the
material and can give a credible answer, even when you have not
given the exact words. |
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Guidelines for Essay Questions |
1. Organize your thoughts before you begin to write. A short outline
on a separate piece of paper will improve your thinking. There is
usually a main idea or issue, several supporting issues and
examples to illustrate the issues.
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2. Paraphrase the original question to form your introductory
statement. This benefits you in two ways. First, it helps you
get the question straight in your mind. Second, it may protect
you from the teacher. If you have re-phrased the question, the
teacher can see how you understood the question. Perhaps you
understood it to mean something other than the teacher intended.
If so, the teacher may give you credit for seeing another
perspective.
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3. Write your answer clearly, so the reader will be able to decode
your writing and understand your ideas. Without clearly written
words your chances of a good grade are severely diminished.
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4. Write or print clearly, using a dark-colored erasable ball point
pen. Avoid crossing out words or sentences, and don't smudge your
paper.
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5. Read each essay question with the intent to identify the verbs or
words that give you direction. These are the verbs that describe
the task you are expected to complete. Circle the direction verbs
in the question to make sure that you are focusing on the desired
task. Sample direction verbs or adjectives, and their generally
intended action or task, are listed below.
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6. Use the principles of good English composition when answering all
types of essay questions:
a. Form a clear thesis statement (statement
of purpose) and place it as near to the beginning as possible.
b. Provide supporting issues to back up the main concept you present.
c. Underline or highlight the main and supporting issues. Examples
will improve your answers and set them apart from other students'
answers.
d. Remember to save some space for a brief but adequate
summary.
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| 7.Lastly, writing at its best is great fun. Enjoy the
opportunity to offer your comments and opinion on a variety of
different topics in a written form. So, relax, think thoroughly,
and your writing will improve. |
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Guidelines for Reading Comprehension |
1. In reading comprehension sections, the questions demand plenty
of serious reading, and you might be tempted to "speed-read." You
may try to scan paragraphs and pages as fast as you can while
hunting for main ideas. In a word: Don't. First, main ideas
usually aren't quickly accessible from "speed-reading" complex
texts.
For Example, if you race through good writing, you are likely to miss
the subtlety and complexity. A paragraph of text by Frederick
Douglass or Joyce Carol Oates, a poem by Auden, or a drama by
Shakespeare cannot be appreciated -- or even minimally
understood -- without careful, often-repeated readings.
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2. In reading the text provided in the test, keep in mind to:
a. Read slowly
b. Reread complex and important sentences
c. Ask yourself often, "What does this sentence, paragraph,
speech, stanza, or chapter mean?" |
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