Advice on

Studying for Tests & Taking Tests

Studying for a Test

• Figure out the type of test you will have. That goes a long way to helping you do better
• Study in a quiet place with NO TV, NO radio, and NO Internet. I heard one hour of studying in silence is worth 4 hours of studying with the TV or radio on.
• Read your notes, and reread them and rereread them. The more you do this and the earlier you do this, the better you could do on the test.
• Study Actively Do not just read your notes and your textbook. As you read, connect yourself to the information. For example: A leader makes a decision. Do you agree with it? Why do you he/she did that? What would you have done?
• Quiz yourself to make sure you really know the information
• 50 minutes of studying then 10 minutes for a break. I heard this is the best way to study.
• Write down all the major topics and think up the questions the teacher could give. It is a lot easier to predict questions than most students think.
• Think about the big picture: look at themes, and patterns instead of just raw data. This is especially important on essay tests.

Taking a Test

Overall

• Nothing replaces studying for a test and knowing the material. No tip or piece of advice will help you get an A when you do not know the material at all. Still, Here are some tips to help you show what you know and do slightly better.
• Answer the big questions you know the answers to first. Then answer the small questions you know, and then work on the more difficult ones.
• NEVER leave a question blank!!!! Its better to guess and have a chance of getting it right than leaving it blank and having no chance to get it right. The only exception I know of to this advice is the SAT. Apparently, a “no answer” is less damaging than an “incorrect answer.”

Essay Questions

• Try to predict the essay questions: It is easier than you think. Using your notes, you can probably figure out the main topics of the class since the last test. Topics that would be a good "essay length," not too long but something that has three or so major points involved with it.
• Next, think about how you will answer the questions you predicted.
• Some teachers, including me, like it when you underline the major points in your essay. It makes it much easy for the teacher to see that you know the material. 

Objective Questions

(True/False, Multiple choice, short Answer, Etc.)

• For multiple choice, eliminate the choice you know are wrong.
• Read the questions carefully. Look for things like "which one of these is not a …." If you can write on the test, underline all the words like “not”, “except,” etc.
• If you do not know the answer, your first "guess" is more likely to be correct than later  "guesses." Be sure to have a sound reason for changing our answer.
• For True/False, look for words like “always” and “never.” When you see these, be skeptical.