Testing Method

One of the tools I use to get good grades is the way I take tests. This method really only applies to multiple choice exams and it involves several passes of the test along with quite a bit of logic. I will lay out how I take tests, step-by-step, after the break.

The first thing is to put your name, date, class—whatever your instructor requires—on the paper. This allows you to take a breath and it helps to get the "blank paper syndrome" out of the way. Doing this step first also ensures you do not forget it. You should do this for any kind of test, not merely the multiple choice type.

For each question, read it entirely, no matter what, and then read each choice. If you can answer it within five seconds, put a mark beside that choice and mark the question how certain you are. Put a plus sign (+) for 90-100% certain, a minus sign (-) for 75-90%, and a vertical line ( | ) for any less than that. Do not guess on the first pass and do not mark the question with anything if you are less certain than 75%. On this first pass, do not use your book or notes (if allowed); it takes a long time to find anything in the book.

Your marks should look something like this:

 + 23. What expression is used to denote the square root of x?
      A) $\sum x$
      B) $\int x$
      C) $\neq x$
      D) $\pi x$
    - E) $\sqrt x$

Be sure you mark lightly enough to erase later as many instructors do not like it when you mark the test paper. If you answer directly on the test paper, or the instructor does not care about marks, mark it as hard as you want. However, ensure you can quickly read it later.

It is important to note now that you do not want to mark anything on your ScanTron until the very end of the test. For one, it is more efficient; and, second, it allows you to change your answer quickly if you need to.

Once you have gone through all the questions with the five-second test, go back to the beginning of the test and find any questions you did not mark with a plus sign. Prioritize the least certain ones, but go through the test sequentially. Reread the question and the choices and give the question a minute or two before you move on again. You have other questions you need to think about, after all. If you can answer the question, mark it based on your certainty. If your exam is open-book or open-notes, this is time you use the book or notes. If you use the book, try to use the index to find your answer. If the book has a decent index, you will find your answer much faster than flipping through pages. Keep repeating this step until either you run out of time or you have a plus mark beside each question. 

If you cannot answer directly, start eliminating choices. If a choice cannot be the answer, you are not dealing with five choices, you have four to pick from—much better odds if it comes down to guessing. Put a slash through that choice so you can visualize the elimination. If can dismiss all except one of them... you have found your answer; however, if you remove them all, you must start over and re-examine your logic. Maybe come back to the question if that happens.

"All of the above" is a really easy choice to eliminate. When this option is present, dismissing any of the other choices automatically dismisses "All of the above." Choosing "All of the above" might seem to require validating all the answers, but only two true answers are required to make this choice the correct one. "None of the above" is for when you remove all of the other choices; it is the choice of last resort.

For questions like:
 + 23. What expressions can used to take the square root of x?
       I) $\sum x$
      II) $\int x$
   - III) $x^\frac{1}{2}$
      IV) $x^{-1}$
   -   V) $\sqrt x$
    A) I and III
    B) I, II, and IV
  - C) III and V

You only have to eliminate one of the requirements to dismiss a choice. For choice A, both I and III have to be true; if either I or III is not true, A can be removed from your choosing. For this question, since I is not true, you can eliminate both A and B because they both require I. Because we have thrown out all choices except C, we can conclude C is the correct answer.

If you absolutely do not know the answer to a question... guess! There is the chance you might get lucky and that chance is better than no chance.

Once you have answered all questions to your satisfaction (use all the time the instructor gives you if need be), you will need to start marking your ScanTron. Start at question one and re-read the questions to make sure you marked the correct choice. You are under a lot of pressure and there is good chance you messed up and marked "B" when you meant "C." I do it, I know many people who do it, and you are going to do it, as well. This last check is somewhat optional, especially if you are running close to the time limit, as the reward vs. time is not great for this test. Only use it if you can spare the time as it is quite time intensive. Of course, you still need to mark the ScanTron.

Last, erase the marks if your instructor does not want you to write anything on the paper. Even if the instructor explicitly says "to not write on the paper," ignore her: if you mark lightly, she will not know the difference. If you are really short on time, you can skip erasing the plus marks, as those do not tell what the answers are and cannot be construed to attempting to help out whoever uses that particular exam paper next (as if you could predict who that might be.)

Marking a ScanTron and erasing all your marks takes quite a bit of time. Expect a 50 question test to take several minutes, especially if you re-read each question like I prefer to do.

Remember, you are going for the most correct answers; how hard those questions are does not matter. It is better to give 48 good answers and guess for 2 questions than get stuck on a really hard question and have to turn in a hurried test. Of course, none of what you just read will help without studying. Without studying, no method of taking tests will help.