ok so this is how i prepare/take a test and have gotten a's so far. this is something i have done for the past 2 years and it seems to work for me, maybe it will help someone form their own "skills for success" or whatever!
[color=#a0522d]-our professors hand out or post powerpoint presentations about lectures each day. i go to our school lab and print out a copy (it is free there)
[color=#a0522d]-during class i take notes directly on the printouts - some are about the material, some are page numbers in the text, some are just notes to myself to look up a word or a topic for more information
[color=#a0522d]-the next day or that night if i have time ( i show up to class 2 hours early when possible because i have kids and can't always do work at home) i print out color copies of the presentation at home(or take an extra from class) then i read/skim the chapters covered in lecture yesterday and rewrite my notes from class neatly and organized adding information from the chapters that i think will help me understand the material.
[color=#a0522d]_also is there something i just don't get? i then talk to classmates or a professor and get an explaination asap so all the "i don't knows don't keep adding up"
[color=#a0522d]-for me it is the painstaking task of writing all of this down that helps me remember
[color=#a0522d]- the week before an exam i begin my review (again either in the hours before class, between classes, or at night) i go throught the chapters that will be covered on the exam and write notes on the information that will be covered, even if i already have it written, rewriting it helps me remember. i save say 3 pages in the begining for terms that i am not familiar with that i define, then a page for math conversions, then a section for acronyms that i find helpful (adpie for assessment, diagnosis, plan, implement, evaluate and a short blurb about what each means to me) etc. again for me the writing of the material helps me retain the information and i avoid memorizing and try to focus on understanding the information and how to apply it. i write down anything that seems important and that i am unsure of as well as anything that is multi-step because during a test you can forget the order
[color=#a0522d]-then i do the study guides and cd activities that came with our book. i do not spend more than 2 hours in any given day on studying nor weekends-thats family time
[color=#a0522d]-the night before the exam i go to bed early without studying and just relax.
[color=#a0522d]- i arrive to the school at least an hour before the exam so if there is traffic or whatever i am not rushing
[color=#a0522d]- sometimes i look over my notes briefly one last time but always relax and try to have a laugh before the exam begins
[color=#a0522d]-now here is where people really think i am crazy. i never leave an exam before the time is up but i have a deal with myself regarding answer changing. as i go through the exam i read each question carefully and underline the verbs and important terms in the question, which helps me focus on what the question is asking. i read all answers even if the first one sounds correct - sometimes there might be 2 correct answers but 1 is better. if i am unsure i circle the question number. i see how many of the choices i can eliminate (sometimes 1 sometimes none) if i am still unsure i circle my first guess and move on.
[color=#a0522d]-once i finish all of the questions i do one of two things, if i have plenty of time i look over the entire exam again from the first question to the last to be sure that i filled in all of the answers on the bubble sheet correctly, if i don't have a ton of time i first focus on the questions that i circled, these are the only questions that i can change my answers on. this is the most important part of the test for me, i do not focus on the questions i am unsure on until i have answered all of the questions i do know. this helps me because for a few reasons, 1 i usually do not feel rushed because i spent 10 minutes on question 10 when there are 100 questions and now i worry i wont finish so i don't spend enough time on the rest of the exam, 2 worrying and stressing about the answer can distract you and get your brain sidetracked 3. sometimes other questions will stir your memory and help you to remember or realize what the answer is.
[color=#a0522d]-ok so then i look at the question i don't know and try to pick it apart here are some strategies professor have given me and that i have picked up along the way. 1. identify key words or phases (like i said i underline them) which options are focused on that key word and which one doesn't answer the question at all. sometimes you can knock at least one response out that doesn't even answer the question. are any of the choices not correct statements or leave out steps that you know are involved? 2. prioritize - try to relate the question to a real life situation or if the question is a real life situation prioritize what action is most important (abc -airway then breathing then circulation) or use maslow's hierarchy of needs. 3. eliminate any answer that is an absolute like never or always - usually those are not correct. 4. eliminate answers with medical rather than nursing interventions. 5. try to rationalize each option as an answer and compare and contrast each option related to the information in the question being asked. 6. is there a word in the question that you don't know th edefinition for? look at the answers are any of them similar, say about the heart, is there a part of the word(prefix, suffix, root, etc) that you know from a different word.
[color=#a0522d]-most question that i have gotten so far in nursing are analysis or apply your knowledge questions and if you recall something similar from class you can sometimes relate the question at hand to something similar from class and pick out the answer like that.
[color=#a0522d]-so once i go through the questions i circled i re-read each question on the exam until the time is up just to be sure that i filled out the correct bubble or didn't completely mis-read the question. if i did not circle it i do not second guess myself and change answers. i simply stay until the time is up because i can not tell myself if i only i re-read the exam i would have realized i mistakenly circled the answer on the wrong line or column.
[color=#a0522d]-after the exam, anything i felt unsure of i have kept a mental picture of in my head and i look up to see if i was right/wrong with my reasoning. then the stress is gone i have a good idea of how i did and where i went wrong so i can relax until the grades are posted. because i save the questions i am unsure of until the end they are usually fresh in my mind so it is easy for me to remember what i want to look up plus then i actually look it up and learn what i missed.
[color=#a0522d]usually i know within one or two questions how i did on an exam, the past exam i felt unsure about 3 questions out of 80 and i looked them up so i didn't need to agonize about it.
[color=#a0522d]anyway this may or may not prove useful to others but it is what i do and it helps me! good luck!
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TessaMae
292 Posts
I think if reading the chapter before class help you then that is what you should do. I find it is more beneficial to me to read the material after class. It makes more sense to me then because the professor has already explained the key concepts so when I read the text and it is something difficult or that I am not familiar with it doesn't seem like a foreign language. When I was in A&P I tried to read the chapter on the urinary system and the kidneys before lecture and it made absolutely no sense to me, the nephrons and glomerulus do what and are where? Loop of Henly who?...lol After my professor put it all into perspective in class I read the chapter and it actually made sense and I still remember it now.
Everyone is different and you need to find what works for you then stick with it, good luck!