Test-Taking Strategies

3: What to Do in the Test Room

3 What to Do in the Test Room STRATEGY 1: GET INTO THE MOOD Just as your emotional attitude before the test influences how well you prepare for it, your emotional state during the test can determine whether or not you do your best. We have found six ways you can use to get yourself into the best testtaking mood. Tactic 1: Don't fight it Sure, there are lots of reasons to resist tests. They classify students. They categorize people. They often unfairly reward students who memorize and penalize people who analyze. Conformity is an asset on tests, but creativity is often a liability. The trouble is that you will get a higher mark if you can convince yourself that a test does count, that it's really worth your best effort. If you can't work up some enthusiasm for 19 20 TEST-TAKING STRATEGIES the idea of showing how much you know, then try imagining what A's can do for your career. And if that doesn't impress you, deliberately focus on something that does. Tactic 2: Get to the test room early enough to relax Being a bit keyed up helps, but being uptight or feeling rushed can cost you points. Get to the exam room a few minutes early so that by the time the test begins, you are relaxed and comfortable in your surroundings. However, don't arrive so early that you'll have time on your hands to work yourself into a panic. Here's a relaxation technique that will help you loosen up your body and your mind. Practice it first in your own room, then in a room at the library, and finally in the actual test room a day or two before the exam, if possible. Once you have mastered the technique, you'll be able to use it even during the actual test. I. Get comfortable in your chair. 2. Now tense every muscle in your body-and keep it tensed-starting with your head and working down your body. Concentrate on how each muscle feels as you progress. First tense your forehead by scowling, then your neck by pulling in your chin, then your bac;k by squeezing your shoulders down. Pull your stomach up against your ribs, tighten your lower back, stretch out your fingers, knot your upper leg muscles, and then your calves. Str~tch your feet and finally your toes. By now you should be as stiff as a board-all over. 3. Next, relax each set of muscles that you just tensed. Start with your toes and work upward. Pay attention to how each muscle feels as you relax it, and keep all the muscles relaxed as you move upward. Concentrate on how you feel as the tension leaves your muscles one by one. When you get to your chest muscles, breathe deeply several times and What to Do in the Test Room 21 continue breathing deeply as you finish the relaxation procedure . As you breathe, notice how you exhale all the tension. 4. After you have practiced this relaxation exercise a dozen or so times you'll be able to spot which muscles are the ones you generally tense up under pressure. Those should be your signal muscles, the ones that cue you, "Hey, you're getting uptight. Take a minute to relax." 5. As soon as you are comfortable in the exam room, go through the entire relaxation technique once. After that, simply watch for signs of tension in your signal muscles. At that point, some people go through the entire relaxation technique, which takes less than a minute; others simply tense the signal muscles fully, then deliberately relax them while breathing away the tension. Tactic 3: Concentrate If you can block out all distractions and concentrate only on the test, not only will you finish faster but you will lose fewer points for careless mistakes. So it's important that you expose yourself to as few distractions as possible. • Take a seat away from the windows so you won't be as tempted to look at people passing by outside. • Take a seat away from the aisles so you won't pay attention to students leaving the room early. (The first people out of a test room, it's been shown, are usually the ones who have failed. So don't make the mistake of comparing your time...