There are few things under the sun that cause as much fear and trembling as the prospects of having to take a test. But tests are everywhere. And not just in school. You want to drive? You don’t just need to learn how to do it, you also have to pass a test to be allowed to actually do it.
You may also be required to take tests in order to qualify for certain jobs. And, yes, if you want to be a teacher or a doctor or a lawyer, you are going to have to pass plenty of tests in order to arrive at your destination, your goal.
But there are also all those quizzes and essay tests in school, too. And that’s what this article is going to address: how to study for a test. There are really no hard and fast rules here. Each individual has his/her own way of studying.
On a warm spring day you might do it sitting under the shade of a tree in your favorite park. You might do it sitting at your desk at home, or lying on your bed. The place really makes no difference.
What does make a difference is what the test is all about: it’s going to literally test your knowledge. In other words, it’s going to ask you to prove that you have learned what you were supposed to learn. Let’s say you have a test in English 101.
Let’s say it’s your mid-term exam. And let’s say that there is a multiple choice part followed by two essay questions. You know this much in advance.
But you also know that the essay questions may come from anything and everything that has been covered in the course to its half-way point. Did you study, say, something about the history of the English language?
Suppose one of the things covered was the so-called Great Vowel Shift. Would you be able to explain what that was in clear and concise terms? Your answer should be “yes.” But how would you have been able to acquire the knowledge?
To know something is, among other things, to understand it. In case of the Great Vowel Shift, you need to understand what the shift entails and what the results of it were concerning, for example, the English way to spell words.
You need to understand that the Great Vowel Shift came about as a change in pronouncing words by the time their written symbols were already established.
If you understand what the Great Vowel Shift “says,” you are going to be able to write a short essay explaining it and its significance. It’s as simple as that.
So this means that when you study for a test, you are striving for understanding the terms of a given subject matter. Facts build information and knowledge and eventually lead to wisdom.
The fact must be accurate, that way the knowledge will be on solid grounds. And the wisdom, if it is to follow, will be well founded, too.
The interesting thing about studying for a test, then, is this: you need to remember certain facts because they lead to understanding certain principles. So pay attention to what facts lead to what principles. Then remember that to remember the subject matter you need to understand the principles in order to be able to readily recall the facts that establish them in the first place.
In short, if you understand things, you will remember what facts support it. And that’s what you need to strive for while studying for a test: what are the facts that establish principles? And what do the principles mean or signify? This back and forth is the essence of studying for a test.