Test Taking Tips-Mulitple Choice

At some point in time, we all struggle with the best way to study for and actually take a test.  In order to reduce as much anxiety as you can before a test, try the following.

Multiple Choice Test Taking Tips

1.    Ask the teacher ahead of time if there is a penalty for guessing. It is uncommon for a penalty to be given on a classroom test.  This means that you should guess if you absolutely don't know the answer as you could get it correct.

2.    Read the question completely and carefully and think of an answer before you see your choices. If you see your answer, you are most likely correct in your choice.

3.    If your answer is not one of the choices,  read all the choices carefully and start to eliminate choices. The process of elimination is an incredibly viable method to reach an answer on a test.

4.    Cross out any answers that are obviously wrong. Be especially aware of words such as "always" and "never" as these usually are answers that can be eliminated.

5.    When you narrow your choices to two, try each answer with the question to see if they both make sense. You may find a clue when you input a response into the test question.

6.    If you are confused by "all of the above" and "none of the above" questions and they tend to take up too much time, leave all of those blank and go back to them. These often take longer to answer as they usually require problem solving.

7.    Mark any questions that you leave blank so you don't forget them completely.  Go back and answer them.

8.    If you are stumped about a word, dissect it for clues. Think about the meanings of the prefix or suffix.  For example, the prefix "epi" is found in the word epidermis, which refers to the top layer of the skin.  The suffix "ology" is found in many words such as "biology," and means "the study of."

9.    Unless you are 100% sure your first answer is incorrect, don't change it.  Rarely are first instincts incorrect, especially if the first answer was not just a random guess.

10.  Be sure you watch your time so you an finish any questions you may have left blank.  If you run out of time, and guessing is not penalized, by all means go back and fill in the ovals randomnly.  You don't want to leave anything blank and automatically get it wrong.  Take a chance.

11.  As an extra tip, note that most teacher constructed tests use the letter B or C more than other letters.  If you are totally unsure or out of time, guess B or C.