5 tricks to pass a test type test (no need to know the lesson)
Go ahead that from Psychology and Mind we do not want to promote laziness. The best way to pass an exam, be it a test or not, is to study seriously, learn the lesson well, take the exam and enjoy answering. Note how all the effort invested in studying a subject materializes on a good note is always a very good feeling.
However, you will have noticed that there are people who are very good at test type exams and other people who tremble when they have to face a test of these characteristics. The test type tests have the peculiarity that tend to be more favorable to those people who enjoy good intuition . In contrast, people who tend to get nervous during exams often get ratings below expectations. And all this despite the fact that, in fact, there is no difference in the knowledge that both have acquired.
Why do some people love test exams and others hate them?
The key, apart from the more or less developed intuition of each person, is in some tricks that some people know and allows them to be more effective in the multiple answers of the test type test. These tricks are not only part of the smart learner's repertoire of resources, but also they have a scientific basis .
In fact, he was the writer William Poundstone with your book Rock Breaks Scissors, A practical guide to Outguessing and Outwitting Almost Everybody ("Scissors breaks rocks: A practical guide to guess and make fun of everyone") who detected some important trends that teachers make when preparing the happy type exams t .
Once these tricks are known (based on heuristics and other psychological tendencies about how teachers write tests and tests) we can say that there are a series of tips that can help you decisively to pass these multiple-choice exams ... even if you have not been able to study enough!
1. Suspicion of categorical answers
As a general rule, answers on test-type exams that include words such as "never", "always", "all" and "none" are usually wrong options . Why? Well, because the normal thing is that there may be some exception to the rule that invalidates the categorical assertion. The teacher will rarely risk a correct option that leaves so little room for maneuver.
But be careful: the response options that contain the expressions "none of the above", "all of the above are correct" ... are the right choice in 52% of cases . If you do not have more elements to decide because you completely ignore what is being talked about in the statement, you should opt for this type of response, since it offers you much more probabilities of guessing than if you answer randomly. It is not life insurance, but statistics will be in your favor.
2. The exam as a whole can give you answers to specific questions
It is important that you read the entire exam from beginning to end before answering any questions. The reason: it is likely that "hidden" answers (or not so hidden) in other exam questions. Poundstone detected that it is quite common for answer options to appear in several different questions throughout the exam .
In fact, a well-developed examination by teachers should not have this blunder. That is to say, that there are hidden or deductible answers through the writing of the questions is a serious failure in the writing of the examination on the part of the professor in question. In a pure exercise of logic, you can get to solve several questions thanks to the information that gives you the rest of the exam, taking advantage of these lapses that sometimes make the people who design the exam.
3. The longest answers are usually the correct ones
In general terms, you must take into account that the longest answers are usually the right options . This is because "the teachers who create the exam must make sure that the correct answers are unquestionably correct. Usually, this requires a longer and more rigorous enunciation, "explains the author of the research. Is that clear, right?
Therefore, you already know: if you do not have the remotest idea of what is the right answer and there is an option that stands out for its length ... that is the one that has more ballots to be correct.
4. Inconsistent answers are often incorrect
Some test-type exams are generated with computer programs that generate some answers automatically, and therefore at random and without following any kind of logical pattern . These answers tend to be very incongruent with respect to the others, and obviously they are erroneous choices.
When you detect this type of incongruous response, not only will you be more likely to guess the question in question (since you have discarded one of the answer options), but you will also take into account that, Throughout the exam, there may be more response options generated automatically and, therefore, incorrect . Take all the game you can.
5. The test type tests are for cold minds
If you're of those people who get nervous during the tests , you must change this bad dynamic. The more relaxed and lucid you are as you answer the exam questions, the more likely you are to be able to use all of your resources (knowledge and tricks) to succeed in the test.
Regarding this, I recommend you read this article :
"5 tricks to avoid nerves before (and during) an exam"
