How to Study

Test Preparation
The key to proper test preparation is knowing what material will 
be covered and what form the test will take. Weekly quizzes or
unit/chapter exams usually cover the most recent material. Midterms
and finals cover a much broader area—usually all the subject matter
to date. Multiple-choice tests, essays, lists of math problems, and 
science lab tests all require different preparation and apply different
test-taking skills. Knowing the kind of test you’re facing will make your
preparation much easier.
So will creating a list of questions you think your teacher will most
likely ask. By periodically reviewing your text and class notes, you’ll
begin to identify the areas in which your teacher appears most inter-
ested … and on which he or she is most likely to test you. As a final
trick, prepare a list of 10 or more questions you would ask if you were
the teacher.
How to Study
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Score: If you are able to construct tests that are harder than the ones
your teacher gives you—and score well on his or hers—give yourself
an A. If you feel you know the material, but somehow don’t perform
as well as you think you should at test time, give yourself a B. If you
didn’t pass your driver’s test, let alone algebra, give yourself a C.
Your Overall Score
Once again, after you’ve rated yourself in each area, give yourself two
points for every A, one point for every B, and zero points for every
C. If your overall rating is 18 or more, excellent (give yourself an A);
13 to 17, good (give yourself a B); 12 or less, fair (give yourself a C).
Put your new score in the line “Overall study skill level” in the “Your
Starting Point” chart on page 5.
How closely did this more detailed evaluation compare with the score
you gave yourself before reading the rest of this chapter? If the latter
was wildly off the mark, it just means you aren’t as ready to toss this
book as you wanted to be! If your initial evaluation wasn’t as positive
as the more detailed one you just completed, you’re in better shape
than you thought!