Student Test-Taking Strategies

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Licda Cleopatra Noel D.

The seven chapter of the book Assessing English Language Learners is related to how student can apply test-taking using different strategies that is going to help them achieve their goals in a successful way.

The key to successful test-taking lies in a student's ability to use time wisely and to develop prratical study habits.

Students should make schedules and revise them when necessary and the schedule should be realistic, include a study place, include a daily study time, and allow plenty of preparation time for important assessments.

Students also need to attend classes on a regular basis for the language learning to take place.

There are necessary some good review techniques for students to be prepare for a test and it should include a plan review sessions, take a practice exam, and review with friends. Teachers can help students be more successful on tests by familiarizing them with the language of rubrics or instructions, particularly the cue words or phrases commonly used to give directions for the tasks students encounter; students also need to understand exactly how they are supposed to answer the questions. If they are supposed to select an asnwer, make sure your instructions are lear about how they are to select it.

Teachers should train students in effective strategies for the various skills areas to be tested. Important activities should be demonstrated to students during classroom activities. Spend time analyzing the particular skills that your students will encounter on standardized exams and then build strategies for these skills as part of classroom instruction. When you introduce new vocabulary that includes phrasal verbs, collocations, or idioms, point out that these words occur together and if one is missing, it is important to look at all of the words surrounding the gap before making an answer choice. When the teacher consider the development of good test-taking skills as synonymous with good learning skills, it is easy to integrate them into his/her classes.

Strategize Your Exam Plan

It is said that when teacher plan what will happen on exam day and not leaving anything to chance she or he will build on students' confidence and reduces anxiety. It includes the following:

1. Mechanics: students feel better prepared if they have the mechanical aspects of taking an exam well in hand. They should arrive early at the designated exam room  and find a seat.
2. Procedures: if one section is given first, such as the listening portion of English exams, the students should focus attention on this section.
3. Time Management: an important consideration in effective test-taking is time management. Teachers can assist students with time management by alerting them to time remaining in the exam. If the teacher gives exams with separate timings for each skill, time management may be easier.

Each test should be part of the everall learning experience. If a student experienced a problem as a direct result of a test-taking skill, point that out so it doesn't happen again. Each exam students take should help them do better on the next one.

Teachers can promote learner autonomy through self-assessment. Self-assessment plays a central role in student monitoing of progress in a language program. It refers to the student's evaluation of his or her own performaance at various points in a course. An advantage of self-assessment is that student awareness of outcomes and progress is enhanced.

According to Oscarson (1989) there are five reasons that self-assessment can be beneficial to language learning:

1. Self-assessment truly promotes learning, it gives learners training in evaluation, which results in benefits to the learning process.
2. It gives both students and teachers a raised level of awareness of perceived levels of abilities.
3. It is highly motivating in terms of goal orientation.
4. Through the use of self-assessment methodologies, the range of assessment techniques is expanded in the classroom.
5. Practicing self-assessment, the students partipate in their own evaluation.   

 Self-assessment Techniques and Procedures

There are many ways or techniques to develop a self-assesment such as: students progress cards, rating scales, checklists, and questionnaires, learner diaries and dialogue journals, videotapesstudents-designed test, and learner-centered assessment.

What should a teaccher remember about student test-taking skills:

• Students test-taking skills are really good learning skills.
• Build skill strategies in the classroom.
• Spend time on reading and following instructions.
• Familiarize students with a wide range of formats.
• Promote and reward good planning.
• Discuss and practice timing issues.
• Provide students with helpful feedback. 

GLOSSARY

1. Uneven:

2. Plateaus:

3. Alloted:

4. Bogged:

5. Rate