Educational Online Testing:Tips on How to Do Your Best
Introduction
In today’s world, the old pencil and paper testing methods are being replaced by online testing programs. More than ever, instructors and students alike are harnessing the power and convenience of taking test online. So here, we discuss the 5 top educational online testing tips to help you succeed on your next online evaluation.
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Before You Take The Online Test
There are few things that you should be doing before you take your online test. One of the first things that you should do is to make sure that you understand as much about the test as possible before you sit down to take your test. If you don’t understand your instructor’s instructions, you should immediately contact him/her for clarification. Additionally, you can find insightful information on the course website by clicking on the section titled, “Student Tools” or “Student FAQS”. Moreover, if you are given the link to your online test site before hand, DO NOT enter the site until test time. Why? Because many sites will only allow you to access once- and will disallow you further access to the site. Also, make sure you:
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Have a private and quiet place to take the test. Although you are not in a traditional classroom setting, you should behave as though you are. Meaning, seek out a place where you are able to concentrate in a quite and private location. Make sure you have access to this location for the entire duration of the test, and cut-off all sources of interruptions. Interruptions such as conversations with friends/family and answering cell phone calls, can destroy your concentration and thought-process rather quickly.
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Close all other website pages, such as Facebook, email,etc. When taking your online test it is important that you close all other web pages to avoid online interruptions. Close all email, instant chat messengers, and Facebook sites.
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5 Tips to Educational Online Testing
During your test taking session, there are 5 educational online testing tips that will aid in successful completion of your exam. Knowing how to complete an online exam is different from paper exams and should be approached differently. Therefore below there are 5 tips to good online testing, and they are:
- Quickly observe and familiarize yourself with the site modules. Most likely, you will only have a limited amount of time in which you can complete your exam. Therefore before beginning the test, quickly observe all modules and completely read all directions before beginning. Doing this will save you a lot of time and energy of aimlessly wondering around the site.
2. Quickly asses how many minutes you will have to answer each question. Time will “fly-by” more quickly than you realize on a timed-exam. Therefore you should quickly calculate how many minutes you will have per question. Make sure that you allow approximately 15-20 minutes for a final review of your exam and include them in your calculations. For instance, if you have 100 questions with a 3 hour time limit, you will have about 1.5 minutes to answer each question. This will allow you approximately 20 minutes of extra time to review your test answers.
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3. Review the test questions before beginning. If there is no time limit on the test or you know you will have enough time to complete the test, review the questions on the exam before starting the online exam. This is an important tip that successful online students have learned and use frequently to “ace” their online test. The reason behind this strategy is that they are able to go back and answer the easiest questions first. Also, usually the online exam is not grouped according to subject matter; and by reviewing the questions, you can answer all questions in order of the subject matter. This is especially beneficial if you have an “open-book test” where notes or the course textbook can be used during the online exam.
4. After you click on an answer verify it before proceeding. With online test, it is not uncommon for people to accidentally click on the wrong answer. It becomes a real problem if you proceed to the next answer and did not know that your pointer landed on the wrong answer. Of course you can easily find this mistake upon your review, however what happens when the test will not allow you to go back to review you previous answers? There are some online test that will only allow you to proceed forward. Not to mention, you might not have enough time to go back and fix your answers after completion. Therefore you should make it a habit to verify your answers before proceeding to the next question.
5. Don’t close out of the browser until you’ve submitted your finalized answers. After you are completely finished with your online exam, make sure to click the submit button before exiting out of the site. If you fail to perform this simple step, your online test may not have been submitted. Most importantly, if you lost your online connection, contact your professor immediately and ask how you can proceed.
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Conclusion
Successful test takers are proficient in educational online testing tips, and thus are able to complete their online exams successfully. By using these simple tips, you can also become proficient in online evaluations.
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