How to Pass Every Test

The Techniques

Whether it's a final exam, a pop quiz, or even your driver's test, the following techniques will help you pass with flying colors:

Scan and Focus
Write Your Own Test
Use Memory Tricks
Explain It to Someone Else

Let's examine these techniques one-by-one:

Scan and Focus

You don't want to waste time learning things you already know, so scan the text quickly for new information. Stop and focus on anything unfamiliar.

For example, you may know a lot about pyramids, but not much about Pharaoh Ramses II. To prepare for a test on ancient Egypt, quickly scan through the familiar stuff and then focus on Ramses and any other unfamiliar information.

Read new ideas carefully. Repeat them to yourself aloud. Imagine that each new bit of information is a puzzle piece. How does it fit into the bigger picture? Try to see connections between the new material and things you already know.

Once you've familiarized yourself with the chapter, it's time for a practice test . . .

Write Your Own Test

As you read a chapter in your textbook, make your own questions and write them in a notebook. Try to write questions that focus on the main points of each paragraph. This technique is more challenging than it sounds and really sharpens you mentally.

Once you've finished the chapter, use your questions as a practice test. If you can't remember some answers, check your book again. Keep taking your practice test until you can easily get a perfect score. If you can score 100% on your own quiz, you're sure to do pretty well on the test your teacher gives.

Use Memory Tricks

There are dozens of memory tricks to help you to memorize volumes of information. In a future article we will examine this technique in more detail.

But to get you started, here's one here's one of my favorite tricks:

Race Against Time. Repetition leads to memorization; but unfortunately, repeating facts over and over again tends to be boring. Trying to beat the clock however, adds an element of excitement.

For example, imagine that you are trying to memorize the following chart:

Give yourself a time limit and read the entire chart aloud as many times as you can within that limit. For example, how many times can you read it aloud in 30 seconds? Three times? Four times? Five times?

Getting a timer that beeps adds to the excitement, but any clock will suffice. As you try to break your previous records, you will soon have the entire chart memorized.

Explain It to Someone Else

Ask a friend, sibling, or parent, to help you for a few minutes by letting you explain the main points of the chapter to him. Let him know that he doesn't need to remember what you say, but that explaining it will help you remember it better.

This technique will help you to truly internalize the information you are studying. If you understand it well enough to explain it, you are sure to pass the test with high marks.