"PREPARING FOR A TEST" WORKSHOP - MTH1265

How do you prepare for a test?
What do you do (or not do) the night before a test?
What has helped you in the past?
What should be avoided before a test?
Here are some excellent comments and suggestions from students in my MTH1265 (math) class - good job guys!

Link to MTH1130 Students' Suggestions
Back to Greg's Homepage

WHAT WORKS?

• get a good night's sleep before the test
• review the day before
• don't get hung up on one question
• leave question you don't know till the end
• get tutoring if you need it
• take lots of notes
• have a good breakfast
• have your own space
• have a wider variety of practice questions
• motivate yourself - buy yourself ice cream if you get over 80%
• equations and formula are provided - no need to memorize
• quiet atmosphere
• enough space - not crowded
• stay relaxed
• have a pre-test

WHAT DOESN'T WORK?

• cramming before a test
• waiting until the last minute
• too many trick questions
• copying others' work
• memorizing questions, try to memorize formulae if you have to memorize anything
• rushing
• not enough room to write on paper
• complicated questions at the beginning of the test
• typed test preferred - not handwritten
• not enough time
• not starting right away - no talking before test
• not enough time to prepare

SPECIFICALLY, FOR MATH TESTS?

• make reviews similar to test
• have shorter and more frequent tests (less material per test) - this way, more content is fresh in the mind
• more hands-on
• relate concepts to real-life applications
• simple explanations - get to the point
• avoid repetition
• avoid going off topic
• more practice problems

Link to MTH1130 Students' Suggestions
Back to Greg's Homepage