Academic Strategies Course Readings (ENGL 1003)

Preparing for Exams

“The test of success is not what you do when you are on top. Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom.” George S. Patton

Preparing for an exam is much like preparing for a footrace. An athlete doesn’t show up at the starting line of a race unless she has made a plan, practiced running many times, and prepared the days before the race. The same is true for college exams.

Preparation begins in the early weeks of the semester by attending classes, taking notes, marking textbook chapters, and completing homework.  But there are tasks to perform weeks leading up to an exam that reduce test anxiety and aid memory.

 

Analyze Your Test-Taking Preparation Techniques: Check one

Skill or Task	Always	Often	Sometimes	Rarely	Never
I schedule at least 4 study sessions per exam, 1-2 hours each.
I reread my notes.
I reread my chapters.
I take practice exams by creating questions.
I complete the study guide if provided.
I create a study guide if one isn’t provided.
I meet with a study group and we quiz each other.
I create retrieval cues to remember information in chunks.
I know the make-up of the exam and attend the review session.
I always attend the session when we go over the test we’ve taken.

 

In this video narrated by Professor Stephen Chew from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, the professor provides concrete examples of good study methods to use before an exam. 

Test-taking is a skill that has to be learned, just like driving a car or learning to play a musical instrument. It takes much practice to learn to parallel park or to play a minuet by Mozart on the piano, but with daily practice, the skill can be honed to perfection.  The novice driver can become a race car driver, and the piano student eventually can become a concert pianist. It requires talent to do these two tasks, of course, but more important it takes a lifetime of practice.

Overlearn the material— Overlearning means being able to recall information both accurately and quickly. Because students are often nervous when taking an exam, their anxiety affects their ability to retrieve information from long-term memory.  Also, exams are usually timed, and students need more time to retrieve information under pressure if they haven’t over-learned the material.  By learning the material so well that students can recall information under pressure, they will be able to complete the test in a timely manner with reduced stress.  

Use Elaborate Rehearsal — Elaborate rehearsal involves using many senses and connections to encode information in long-term memory: read it, write it, say it, think it, do it. If students merely hear information in a lecture, they will forget most of this material within 24 hours.  Note-taking requires students to use another sense—the sense of touch, as well as the process, thinking. As we record notes, we put the information down on paper in a way that makes sense to us: an outline, a classification chart, or in a web.  If along with hearing and writing new information a student practices the new process or concept by working in a group in class, the student has used an even deeper learning process to embed this new knowledge in long-term memory.

Using Retrieval and Application Processes

 

We want to hit the target on test day, remembering information quickly and precisely.  To score a bull’s eye, we need to practice using all the different levels of critical thinking that will be on the exam, meaning we need to apply,  analyze, and evaluate the concepts and processes, not just practice remembering them. 

Often students reread chapters and highlighted phrases, reciting keywords as they reread.  This technique is shallow learning, meaning that we merely skim the surface of all there is to know about a concept or process.  Rereading accomplishes little preparation for recalling information quickly on test day while enduring the emotional pressures of an exam. Instead, students need to practice deep-learning strategies. 

To practice deep-learning, try these things:

• Close your textbook and class notes to see if you can recall the information without looking at it

 

• Use flashcards to do practice quizzes and keep repeating the vocabulary words you miss
• Create real-life stories or scenarios that illustrate the concept or step-by-step process you are trying to remember

Use the Seven Theory to “Chunk” Information — Trying to learn pages and pages of information for an exam can be frustrating and nonproductive.  Memory has difficulty storing information that isn’t organized into clear units; using labels, or  retrieval cues,  that organize information into units of around seven pieces of information is an effective package for storage in memory .

 If, for instance, you are trying to memorize the order of the levels of critical thinking in Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy, create a mnemonic device to remember the stages, such as a sentence that uses the first letter of each word.

R – Remember:              (Remembering)            

U – Understanding        (Understanding)

A – applied                   (Applying)

A – aids                        (Analyzing)

E – every                      (Evaluating)

C – Creature                 (Creating)

Multiple Choice Test Tips

In multiple test questions, there is the stem of the question and many distractors.  It is the job of the student to read the stem and select from the list of distractors the appropriate answer, a daunting task.  Try some tips to help you choose the best answers for this kind of test question:

• Read the stem of the question and try to answer it without looking at the distractors; then read the list of distractors and choose the one closest to the answer you predicted. This technique is good for students with low self-confidence, who often know the material but have little faith in their own knowledge base.  The task builds self-confidence, too.
• Read all the possible answers and choose the most inclusive answer.  Often there are several correct answers, but it is your job to choose the best answer, the one that includes the most information that is correct information.
• Avoid unfamiliar terms.  Often a professor will include words in the choices that have nothing to do with the course to see if you are truly familiar with terms related to the topic or if you are simply guessing at answers.  If you have attended all lectures and have read the course materials, you will know when a word hasn’t been covered in class, and avoid choosing this term. 

• When two possible answers are very similar, the correct answer is usually one of these two choices.  In seeing whether or not students know subtle details of a concept or theory, the professor will likely create two correct answers, but one answer has more correct information than another.  Choose this response.
• Write down the criteria in the margins when you must evaluate statements based on set criteria.  The most difficult multiple-choice questions require students to evaluate possible answers based on set criteria. 

             Example:  Choose the long-term goals that meet all the criteria for goals:

               a.   Buy a Honda Accord.

               b.  Buy a new house with two bedrooms, a garage, and a yard for the kids.

               c.   Earn a degree in nursing and work at a hospital by the end of the summer semester two years from now.

               d.  Earn an Associate of Liberal Arts with a 3.5 GPA by the end of next year, fall semester.

               e.   All of the above

               f.    Both c and d.

 If a student jots down the three criteria for long-term goals (a single item that is measurable and has a completion date), the student can rate each statement based on the criteria.  For example, in the question above, “a” doesn’t have a completion date; “b” doesn’t have a completion date; “c” is measurable and has a completion date but it is two goals; and “d” is the only one that meets all the criteria.  Taking a few seconds to record the criteria in the margins reduces the stress caused by higher-level critical thinking questions. 

 

True-False Test Tips

• Always answer the T/F questions even if you must guess because there is at least a 50% chance of guessing correctly.
• Pay attention to absolute qualifiers, such as never, only, always, and none. These words allow for no exceptions to the rule; therefore the words usually make a statement false. Words such as usually, sometimes, and often are qualifiers, too, but these words allow for exceptions.
• Watch for negative statements.   Also, when a question contains a double-negative, cross through the two negatives and read the statement as a positive one because two negatives equal a positive. 

             Example:

             It is not unrealistic to plan the majority of study time for an exam the night before the test.

             Now cross out the two negatives and read the statement as a positive one:

              It is not   un realistic to plan the majority of study time for an exam the night before the test.

 

Short Answer Questions

Short answer questions on an exam should be written in formal sentences using correct grammar and mechanics that supply overviews as well as examples and concrete details.  A good rule of thumb is to write at least a couple of sentences for each point; therefore, a five-point question should contain 8 – 10 sentences.  (Note:  Always include an example even if not asked to do so.  Be sure to use the stem of the question in the response so that the sentence makes sense without  If the description or definition you provided is vague or unclear, a precise example illustrates to the professor that you understand the process or theory and can use it in a situation.) 

 

Tips for Short Answer Questions

• Circle the direction words and answer according to each one; answer all parts of the question.  If the question asks to define a word and provide examples of it, as well as explaining the example, don’t simply write down what the word means.  Short answer questions worth 5 – 10 points each often contain 2 – 3 parts.  Be sure to answer each part even if you have to guess at it. 
• Never leave a short answer question blank. If you don’t know the answer to a question, look over the exam and see if you can find information on the test to help you answer the question.  It is difficult to create a test without giving students some of the information covered in the course, and you can use that information as an advantage. Also, try to reason and use logic to answer a question.  For instance, if asked to describe the SQ3R reading process, and you don’t know the exact word that each letter represents, write your own reading strategy that is likely part of this reading strategy; you may receive at least partial credit for the response.
• Be sure to use the stem of the question as part of the response in short answer.  The professor should be able to understand your answer without rereading the question. For example, in a question that asks students to Define and exemplify the three phases of a self-regulated learner as defined by Barry Zimmerman, the first sentence of the student response will likely be: The three phases of a self-regulated learner as defined by Barry Zimmerman are forethought phase, performance phase, and self-reflective phase. 

When Students Don’t Know the Correct Answers

Guessing is something everyone has to do on an exam at some point in a college career, but the trick is to guess using logic and common sense.  Here are tips that may help students make better choices when they have to guess:

• Go with your first instinct (unless you know you misread the question or you found the correct answer somewhere on the exam). Research indicates that over 70% of the time when students change an answer, they change from the correct response to a wrong one.  Remember that the subconscious helps us when we get stuck and can’t remember information or recall something because we’re under stress.  Trust your instincts.
• When two choices are similar on a multiple choice, choose one of these as your response. As mentioned in the multiple-choice section, professors are often measuring whether or not you know the fine details of a concept or theory, so two answers will be very close in meaning, and the correct one is usually one of these choices.
• When there are ranges listed on an exam and you have to guess, choose one in the middle range.  For example, if asked how many hours should a student plan to study for every one hour in class and the range is 1, 3, 5, or 6, choose either 3 or 5.
• When you don’t know the answer to a question, mark it in the margin and return to it later.  You may find the answer to it on some other part of the exam. 
• Try to reason out the response using logic.  If you are asked on a psychology test to describe three strategies for conflict resolution and you don’t know the response, think about the techniques that you used recently to resolve a problem with a friend, spouse, or parent, and write those as the steps. 

Often success or failure in a college course depends on a student’s ability to write well during a timed essay exam. 

 Highlights of an Essay Question Response

•  Professors expect students to answer an essay question in an organized method using complete sentences, concrete details, and paragraphing.

• An in-class essay exam should look like a formal essay written in composition courses and use all parts of the essay.
  
  
• There is not time to write a formal introduction, but in a sentence or two write the main idea and a summary of the points that the essay response addresses.
   
• In the body paragraphs, be sure to support statements with examples and explanations of those examples. 
  
  
• In a sentence or two, summarize the information presented in the essay response.

 

How to Use a Blue Book for an Essay Exam    

A composition test booklet can be purchased at the Campus Book Store and makes a perfect template for an essay exam that must be completed in class.  If students are nervous about taking essay exams, using a blue book formula will provide a tool that can be practiced at home. 

 

1.  READ the directions carefully and CIRCLE the direction words. In this way you will be sure to answer all parts of the essay question according to the professor’s directions. “Define” or “list” is a much different response than one required by the words “explain” or “compare.” 

2.  Make a JOT CHART using the inside of the blue book cover, jot down all the ideas you want to include in your response, making sure to list one idea per line.  (Don’t worry about the order or judge the ideas as good or bad, just jot down a possible response for each part of the question.

3.  OUTLINE the material you want to use by going through your jot chart and numbering the items in the order you plan to write about them,  crossing through items or examples that you don’t want to use in your answer.

4.  WRITE on one side of the page only, using double-spaced writing.  (Double-spacing the writing allows you to add words, cross out words and make corrections, etc. in the space above your writing.) Write clearly and legibly.  Use the numbered jot list as an outline for your writing. Keep the left side pages blank to insert additional information into your essay when you revise and recheck your response (indicating the insertion point in the essay with a *). Writing on one side of the paper and double-spacing the answer also leaves plenty of room for the professor to make comments and corrections when grading, and a professor’s feedback is essential to improving the items you missed on an essay exam.

5.  REREAD AND REVISE when you are finished.  Reread your response and make corrections.  Check to be sure that you sufficiently addressed every direction word you circled and responded to all parts of the question.  If you’ve forgotten a sentence or two, if you want to add an example, or if you need to expand a portion of the writing, make an arrow to show the point of insertion within your text, draw the arrow out to the left margin, and add the information on the opposite page, which you have left blank for this purpose. 

6.  PROOFREAD your answer for technical and mechanical errors and correct these. 

PRACTICE MODELS FOR ANSWERING ESSAY QUESTIONS

This exercise consists of three essays written in response to an essay question on a test.   As a group, complete the tasks listed below.  Pretend the essay is worth 50 points.

 1.  Make a list of criteria to use in grading the essays and assign a number of points for each criteria.

 2.  Read each essay aloud.  Mark the strengths and weaknesses of the essays, using your criteria as a guide. Deduct points according to the criteria established by your group.

 3.  Assign a grade to each essay and be prepared to defend the grade assignment.

 ESSAY QUESTION: 

List five guidelines to use in answering an essay question on an exam.  Describe the process for each guideline and explain the importance of each step in this process.  Finally, describe two things you can do if you don’t know the information requested and you have to guess on an essay exam.

1.  List the criteria and the number of points for each item. (Criteria might include points for each direction word (content), points for organization, and/or points for grammar and mechanics.

Criteria	Points

               

2.  Record the grade for each essay and list the reasons for the grade.

GRADE for Essay ONE: ______________      List reasons for point deductions. Be prepared to defend this grade in class.

Deductions	Number of Points Deducted

 GRADE for Essay TWO: ______________      List reasons for point deductions. Be prepared to defend this grade in class.

Deductions	Number of Points Deducted

GRADE for Essay THREE: ______________      List reasons for point deductions. Be prepared to defend this grade in class.

Deductions	Number of Points Deducted

 

What strategies did you learn from this exercise that will help you on your next essay exam? (Describe three – four process or steps you will use from this exercise.)

 

 

ESSAY ONE

       The first thing you should do is read the directions.  Mark the words, keep to the idea you have being sure your writing it carefully so teacher knows your writing style. Stay on the topic.  Divide it into paragraphs.  Check your work to be sure its written write.

       It is important to be sure the teacher can understand your work so she knows what you are talking about.  It is also important to stay on the topic so you don’t include things off the topic.  If you do these two things, you should have an excellent essay answer. It’s good to answer everything on the test, so do this by writing out your answer in a blue book.

       I think that taking essay tests is harder then doing multiple choice. Its important to do both right if you want to pass a class. You can’t just do it by doing the right multiple choices, you have to do good both places.

       Finally, you should check your essay for errors.  When you proofread it, find the things that are wrong.  Mark the things that are wrong and fix them because you need to show that you can do this work for the teacher. This should take about 5 minutes, so always allow time to correct the mistakes you made in the essay. You can fix the stuff that is wrong and that’s the best way to make a good grade on an essay test.

       If you don’t know it, guess.  Never leave an essay question blank. Try to figure it out using your mind. Keep an open mind while you’re writing an essay, and you can’t go wrong. Its important to answer everything correct, so write out your answer in the blue book. 

ESSAY TWO

       When responding to an essay question, it is important to complete the following steps before beginning: read the instructions carefully, circle the direction words (or keywords), make a jot chart as an outline, write the essay using good essay practices, and save time to proofread your essay before turning it in.

  First, it is important to read the instructions and the essay carefully to be sure you have provided the instructor with the information requested.  Mark the direction words so that you will be sure to answer the question completely and not skip a portion of the question. Before you begin to write, jot down a list of the main points you want to make in your response to be sure you don’t leave out important information.  Number this list before you being writing, which will help you organize your answer.

       When you begin the writing stage, be sure to use good essay skills.  For example, write legibly so your instructor can read it. If your instructor can’t read your writing, you may lose points even though you wrote down all the information requested.  In a blue book, write on one side of the page only and use double-spacing so that you can record corrections neatly during editing; also, double-spacing the essay leaves your instructor room to write comments or corrections.  Write in complete sentences and avoid using fragments or lists.  In an essay response, the instructor is testing to see if you can organize your thoughts in complete sentences on paper.  Include examples and specific details in your response to show your instructor that you comprehend the material and can apply it to specific real-world situations.  Also, including examples may clarify your explanation if it was too vague or poorly articulated.

       As a final step in the essay process, be sure to revise and proofread.  First, check your response against all the direction words listed in the question.  By doing this, you can be sure you completely answered all parts of the question.  Second, make sure you’ve included specific examples for each major point in the essay.  If you forgot to include a detail, add it to show you completely comprehend the material.  Next, go through the writing and correct errors in spelling, punctuation, and grammar.  Even though the teacher may not count these kinds of errors against you, a clean essay will make a better impression.  It will also make you proud of your response.

       If you don’t know the information requested on the essay exam and you have to guess, look back through the objective portion of the exam for information you can use.  Sometimes the essay question is so broad, the teacher has inadvertently included part of the essay response in another portion of the test.  If that fails, use your common sense.  Try to reason out the meaning of the question and think about all the items covered in your class lectures that relate at least partially to the answer.  Above all, don’t leave the question blank; a professor cannot give partial credit to a blank page, and by guessing, you may accidentally choose some of the correct material for your response. Be confident and trust your instincts when taking an essay exam, and you will do better than you realize.

Comments:

 ESSAY THREE

       On an essay test a student should do 5 things. These things are to circle the keywords, make a chart on the cover, write the essay, grade the essay, and reread it to check the keywords. 

       First I should circle keywords such as explain and describe.  This is so I won’t forget part of the question and not answer it.  Also, I should describe not just list and provide detail.  Next, I should write down what I’m going to say on the cover before I write it out.  I should do this to organize my answer and not just write down everything I know without any order.  This will show the teacher I know the information and I can write it in essay form.

       Next I should write it.  Using one side of the paper and writing on every other line making room for me to write down corrections.   It also gives room for the teacher to write things, too. After I write it I should check it.  I should look for mistakes and missing words and fix them.  I should check to be sure I answered it all, too. Finally, I should revise it. Revising it shows that I care enough about the class to take the time to revise my answer.  It shows the teacher I used her process.

       If I don’t know the answer and I have to guess, I can look back through the test.  There may be parts of the test that could help me by giving me the answers.

       Using this writing process is a tool for taking essay exams that work.

 

Discuss this exercise with other students to compare results. 

Exam Question:

Describe five test-taking strategies to use the weeks leading up to an exam to be sure you are prepared for the test. Next, explain three strategies to apply to each of the following methods of testing during an exam: multiple-choice, True/False, and matching.  Describe three strategies to use when you have to guess at a response during an exam.  Finally, describe your own process for test preparation and incorporate at least four tips recommended in your textbook that you plan to use during test preparations in the future.

 Directions:

1.  First, circle the direction words.  Next, jot down the main points you want to make in your answer on the cover of your blue book.  Don’t try to write out these ideas in complete sentences.  Simply jot down a key word or phrase—one major or minor point per line. (After you have jotted down as much of the answer as you know, look in your textbook to find the rest of the answers.  Don’t copy information right out of your textbook; rather, read it, repeat it back to yourself in your own words, jot down a keyword on the jot chart, and move to the next step on this sheet.)

2.  Number each item on the jot chart to establish the sequence you will use to write your answer. Now look through the numbers you listed.  Are there other details you need to add? If so, add them now.

3.  Write your answer as if you were completing an essay question on an exam (use the bluebook provided).  Write in double-spacing on one side of the page only, using complete sentences and paying close attention to proper grammar and punctuation.

4.  Reread your response.  Did you completely answer all the direction words?  Did you explain your points?

5.  Finally, proofread your response, correcting spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Also check your words choices for accuracy.

Taking tests is a stressful experience for most students, and many students don’t see the point in exams.  Remember that taking a test provides an opportunity for students to see the concepts, theories, or processes covered in the course that they still haven’t mastered.  Students may find they understand basic concepts, but if asked to create their own version of that concept, they cannot apply it to real life situations.  Even more critical, a student may not be able to analyze and judge the difference between an exemplary model of a concept and one that is merely competent. A good example of this process can be seen in the essay exam practice that students completed.  Were you able to discern the subtle differences between essay two and essay three?  Can you see why one is an “A” response and one is merely a “C”? Tests provide a reflective overview of our mastery of material, rewarding us for information we’ve mastered and notifying us of items we still need to learn.

Practicing meditation can help students overcome test anxiety.  Here is a video that describes a “One Moment” meditation.  Practice it and use this method to control stress before and during an exam.  You will also find it helpful to use throughout your day whenever you feel overwhelmed or anxious. 

Finally, learn to live in the moment, accepting college for what it is: uncomfortable.  If students aren’t uncomfortable in a classroom at any time, they aren’t learning anything.  Each time we challenge our brains to accept a new perspective or master a skill or process it hasn’t done before, the brain sends us into a state of confusion and frustration.  Within moments we become overwhelmed.  When we realize that perseverance is the key to succeeding in college, we feel fortified with new determination.  We face feelings of stress and walk through them.  Watch the video by Professor Duckworth on Ted Talks and hear what this psychologist has to say about college students and “grit.” Link to transcript here.