Test Taking: Skim over the test, seeking the easiest questions. This reduces stress and allows time to avoid silly mistakes.
Greg, a freshman, was taking his first exam in Engineering 101. He’d studied and was ready to roll—or so he thought. Unfortunately, the first problem was quite complex, challenging and worth lots of points. He spent too much time on this question and then had to rush through the rest of the exam, making several careless errors. He didn’t get to finish the last problem–and he should have. The professor, feeling compassion for the students, had placed a relatively easy problem worth a substantial number of points at the end of the test. If Greg had taken a moment to review the test, noticing the type of questions and point counts, he would have gotten a better score and been less stressed while taking the test.
On tests, you can’t control the number or types of questions, but you can control your reaction. You can exert control over your test-taking behavior. For example, make a plan to survey the test before you put pencil or pen to the page. Be mindful of the fact that there are always some questions that are easier for you than others. Similarly, there are often those about which you have no idea.
Whether at the college or high school level, doing the easiest questions first helps in several ways:
- It’s a specific, yet relatively easy task to do, especially if you are tense and worried that you won’t remember facts or other information.
- It helps get you started in a productive way and you can feel some sense of control once you have some certainty about the types of questions and their point values.
- It allows you to budget your time. After you previewed the test and know the number of questions, points, and topics, you can allocate time so that you earn the most points possible.
