LEA - Test Taking Tips
Step 1: Get
Information
Knowledge is power. The first step is finding out everything you can about
your exam. Once you have your information, the next steps listed below will
show you what to do about it.
Step 2: Conquer Test Anxiety
Having complete information about the exam is the first step in getting
control of the exam. Next, you have to overcome one of the biggest obstacles
to test success: test anxiety. Test anxiety can not only impair your
performance on the exam itself; it can even keep you from preparing! Stress
management techniques will help you succeed on your exam. Learn some
strategies now, and practice them as you work through practice exams, so
they'll be second nature to you by exam day.
Step 3: Make a Study Plan
Maybe the most important thing you can do to get control of yourself and
your exam is to make a study plan. Too many people fail to prepare simply
because they fail to plan. Spending hours on the day before the exam poring
over sample test questions not only raises your level of test anxiety, it
also is simply no substitute for careful preparation and practice over time.
Step 4: Learn to Manage Your Time
Steps 4, 5, and 6 put you in charge of your exam by showing you test-taking
strategies that work. Practice these strategies as you take some sample
tests, and then you'll be ready to use them on test day.
Step 5: Learn to Use the Process of Elimination
After time management, your next most important tool for taking control of
your exam is using the process of elimination wisely. It's standard
test-taking wisdom that you should always read all the answer choices before
choosing your answer. This helps you find the right answer by eliminating
wrong answer choices. And, sure enough, that standard wisdom applies to your
exam, too.
Step 6: Know When to Guess
Armed with the process of elimination, you're ready to take control of one
of the big questions in test taking: Should I guess? The first and main
answer is Yes. Some exams have what's called a "guessing penalty," in which
a fraction of your wrong answers is subtracted from your right answers-but
Law Enforcement exams don't tend to work like that. The number of questions
you answer correctly yields your raw score. So you have nothing to lose and
everything to gain by guessing.
Step 7: Reach Your Peak Performance Zone
To get ready for a challenge like a big exam, you have to take control of
your physical, as well as your mental, state. Exercise, proper diet, and
rest will ensure that your body works with, rather than against, your mind
on test day, as well as during your preparation.
Step 8: Get Your Act Together
You're in control of your mind and body; you're in charge of test anxiety,
your preparation, and your test-taking strategies. Now it's time to take
charge of external factors, like the testing site and materials you need to
take the exam.
Step 9: Do It!
You're ready. You made a study plan and followed through. You practiced your
test-taking strategies. You're in control of your physical, mental, and
emotional state. You know when and where to show up and what to bring with
you. In other words, you're better prepared than most of the other people
taking the Law Enforcement exam with you. You're psyched.
