Strategizing TOO much on a question?

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I was wondering something...I found, the more Kaplan questions I did, the more time I spent looking for the truly "out of the box" answer. You know, the one where the rationale was two steps deeper into the situation than you went. Where you had to stretch your knowledge into a finer strategy.

I found on questions from the last few days that I got a few wrong simply because I overthought the question; the answer I chose was based on a too-involved rationale. The question wanted the simpler, more obvious choice and I was running around the other side of the world to answer it! For what it's worth, the answers I chose wouldn't have been wrong, based on my rationale....but they were still wrong based on what the test wanted.

For those who took the NCLEX: did you find the questions and answer choices straightforward enough that you didn't feel you were overstretching for the best answer? Or did you feel that the question was tricky enough that you were reading alot into the answers?

I realize you don't have your Answer Sheet back, lol, so you might never know if you chose right. But I'd love some feedback on this, if you can :)

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Specializes in Step-Down NICU/PICU.

well actually...the questions to me seemed extremely SIMPLE!....lol...the saundes questions were harder thant the questions on the actual exam!...i mean you couldn't even tell if the question was getting easier or mor difficult...thats how scary it was for me...but some of the choices were bogus...you had no choice but to answer the most simple direct one...i tend to read too much into my questins too but i was definatley forwarned NOT to do that on the exam...just read the question and answer it as best you can and keep on keepin' on...this is my favorite quote that i have been using all year in my nursing program through the successful pass of the s=exam!.. " WITH ALOT OF THE LITTLES THAT I KNOW!!!!....I"LL DO JUST FINE!!...lol...this is my MANTRA!!....haha

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well actually...the questions to me seemed extremely SIMPLE!....lol...the saundes questions were harder thant the questions on the actual exam!...i mean you couldn't even tell if the question was getting easier or mor difficult...thats how scary it was for me...but some of the choices were bogus...you had no choice but to answer the most simple direct one...i tend to read too much into my questins too but i was definatley forwarned NOT to do that on the exam...just read the question and answer it as best you can and keep on keepin' on...this is my favorite quote that i have been using all year in my nursing program through the successful pass of the s=exam!.. " WITH ALOT OF THE LITTLES THAT I KNOW!!!!....I"LL DO JUST FINE!!...lol...this is my MANTRA!!....haha

Thanks, that's kinda what I needed to know :) Kaplan questions can be quite convoluted, very "twisty" in what they're really asking. Or, sometimes it seems like a reasonably straight question, until you read the answers and you realize the simple answer you were looking for wasn't even there! So you had to dig a little deeper to find what they REALLY wanted to know.

If the question seems straightup AND there's a simple answer I'm a happy woman :)

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Specializes in Step-Down NICU/PICU.

exactly!...well. peeps goodnite...i will be back tomorrow afternoon to see if my fellow LPNs 2 B or RNs 2 B PASSED!...lol...im sure they did...

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