Effective test session behaviours - Numerical Reasoning Test Guide

Test behaviours

1. Listen very carefully:

The test administrator may say things only once so you need to attend fully to the instructions you are given. Typically the person delivering the test will read the instructions aloud while you read along at the same time from your test booklet. Do not allow yourself to read ahead or you are likely to miss a critical detail that the test administrator emphasises as they read it out. You will have opportunities to ask questions during this part of the test session - make sure you ask them if you have even the slightest worry or lack of clarity about the test and its instructions. It's better to ask an easily answered question than reduce your test score by making a stupid mistake based on a misunderstanding of the test instructions. You will not have the opportunity to ask questions once the test has begun, so during the instructions it is critical that you listen with care and ask questions when necessary.

2. Getting the most from example questions:

Before taking the test itself you will generally get the chance to complete some example questions. These form part of the instructions stage of the test session and are designed to ensure that you understand the format for attempting the test questions and giving your answers. The example questions are not timed, they do not contribute to your final test score and you are told what the correct answers are before you begin the test itself. You are also allowed to ask questions about these examples. Black belt test-takers use the example questions section of the test session effectively by making sure they take the opportunity to ask any questions that they have about the test and its format. They are also careful not to panic if they are asked to have another go at any of the example questions.

3. Don't worry about other people:

The only person you are really competing with during a test session is yourself. The only test performance that matters is your own. Do not worry about how quickly or slowly other people are completing the test. Don't worry what other people might think of any questions you ask during the instructions part of the test session. Focus on your own performance not that of others.

4.Don't get stuck:

If you have trouble with a test question you should avoid spending too long over trying to work it out. Getting one question wrong will have less impact on your overall performance than devoting too much time to it and answering fewer questions correctly overall. If you get stuck it is better to move on to the remaining questions in the test. You can return to the question you skipped if you have any time left at the end of the test.

5. Don't guess:

There may be questions in the numerical test that you simply can't answer. You should always give an answer (you might get it correct by chance) but you should never simply guess - you should use the multiple-choice format of numerical tests to your advantage. Most numerical tests give you a choice of 5 answers for each question to choose from. In an ideal world you calculate your answer and find it matches one of the multiple-choice options. But if you can't work it out then you need to take an educated guess, which is different from simply guessing.

If you simply guess you have a one-in-five chance of getting the right answer (that's a 20% chance of scoring a mark or an 80% probability of getting it wrong!). What you need to do is boost your chances by eliminating any of the multiple-choice answers that you can see are obviously wrong. Test developers design the incorrect multiple-choice options to be distracting in order to camouflage the identity of the correct answer. These incorrect answers are called 'distracters' for this reason. Some distracters are fairly obviously wrong while others are closer to the right answer.

For most numerical questions there will be two or three distracters that are more obviously wrong; try to identify these first so you can focus on the remaining couple of answers. One of these is the correct one. You have increased your changes from one-in-five to one-in-two of picking the right answer. You should pick the answer from the two (or sometimes three) that are not obviously wrong on the basis of which one looks most likely. You can use some estimation or a sense from the numerical information on which the question is based of which answer looks correct.

It may still ultimately be a guess but it is an educated guess. And sometimes at work as in tests that's what we are required to take, which makes it a valuable element of your numerical ability.

Timing and pacing - when to race and when to pause:

The general advice for pacing yourself when completing tests is to work quickly and accurately and not to dwell too long on any single question. Test-taking black belts deploy a more sophisticated range of strategies in terms of timing and pacing.

With a high-level numerical critical-reasoning test the rule of thumb is 1 minute per question. Some questions will not take as long as this while others will; but on average this 1 minute per question is broadly appropriate for most numerical tests. A word of warning though; don't distract yourself by focusing on timing yourself at the expense of concentrating on your answers.

A more sophisticated strategy is to vary your pace rather than time your answers. This requires you to identify what type of numerical test you are completing. There are two types:

Speed tests - these tests have more questions than you could possibly answer in the time available. If the total number of questions is greater than the time limit then the test breaks the 1 minute per question rule. This makes it a speed test - it is designed to put you under time pressure and candidates are not generally expected to have time to attempt all the questions within the time limit.

Power tests - these tests have a generous time limit, more than 1 minute per question. This means that candidates are generally expected to attempt all the questions in the test within the time allowed. Sometimes power tests do not have a time limit at all.

To pace yourself effectively you should vary your approach depending on whether you are completing a speed test or a power test.

Completing a speed test - you do need to work quickly and not spend an undue amount of time on any single question. The questions themselves will not vary too much in terms of difficulty. You should not rush the test by trying to complete all the questions. It is better to work steadily through the majority of questions (half to two-thirds) and get lots of correct answers than answer all the questions but make lots of mistakes.

Completing a power test - you do not need to race but need to maintain a steady pace. You will have time to attempt all the questions if you stick to the general 1 minute per question rule but watch-out; the questions will get progressively more difficult as you complete the test. You will find yourself gradually slowing down as you get nearer the end of the test as the complexity of the questions increase.

Avoiding stupid mistakes:

To really give yourself an edge when taking a numerical test you must be on guard for the type of stupid mistakes that drag down your total test score and leave your real numerical ability being grossly misrepresented. Often these mistakes are caused by nerves or a lack of test-taking experience. As a test-taking black belt you should watch out for these common stupid mistakes.

Being a sucker - all of the incorrect multiple-choice options are designed to be distracting, but some are more distracting than others. The test publisher will include distracters that are common wrong answers - they are almost there to tempt you into making a wrong choice. Avoid being suckered into picking these wrong answers by making sure that your calculations fully answer the question; check you haven't missed out a vital last step in your working-out.

Losing your way - a fair number of candidates lose their place on the answer sheet (or even on-screen for computer based tests) and put their answers against the wrong question. This sometimes means that many of the questions end up being scored as incorrect if the candidate does not notice the mistake; if they do notice a significant amount of valuable test-taking time can be wasted correcting the error. Always make sure that the place where you are giving your answer corresponds with the number of the question you are answering.

Sausage fingers - slips on the calculator cause errors, delays and incorrect answers. These sorts of errors are avoidable if you take care with the calculator and don't miss-key the buttons.

Check your answers:

Even test-taking black belts can make mistakes. If you have some time left over at the end of the test (before the time limit is up) you should use it to good effect. Using extra time to check your answers is a powerful test taking strategy, especially with numerical tests where a simple error leads to a wrong answer. You can start with questions you find difficult or perhaps weren't able to answer earlier in the test session (sometimes the tight lid on a jar becomes looser if you leave it and try again later). But you should also take time to check your answers to the questions you found easy - sometimes the easy answer is the wrong answer.

Assessment Day

Part 2.4: Effective test session behaviours

Test behaviours