It’s bright and early on a Saturday morning. Students are nervous. They’ve brought their IDs, their admission tickets, their number 2 pencils, their calculators, their water bottles, their snacks. Test day comes with its own set of challenges beyond just sitting down and filling in bubbles. Students need to worry about waking up on time, eating well, bringing everything they need and staying focused.
Experiencing the stressors of test day definitely contributes to a student’s performance and it can be a challenge to prepare for these outside factors.Taking proctored practice exams is an effective way to simulate these stressors and give students the opportunity to adapt to them.
There are numerous benefits to taking proctored practice exams in preparation for the ACT/SAT and below we’ve highlighted a few of the best.
Knowing the test
The more practice tests a student takes, the better s/he is going to understand how the test is structured. This takes the element of surprise out of testing. Not only will students be used to the way the test is run but they’ll also start to recognize patterns in the test materials. Students will more easily identify the approaches they need to take to solve problems and understand how to interrogate answer choices.
Endurance
You wouldn’t ask someone to run a marathon without training! Taking a four hour test needs some extensive preparation as well. Testing for that long can be tough on the brain and students often get burnt out by the end. Taking multiple practice tests will help students build up the mental endurance to stay strong up to the very end.
Implementing strategies
Proctored practice tests give students the opportunity to practice new strategies. It’s hard to tell if a strategy is working and will work on test day if a student doesn’t try it out during testing conditions. Proctored practice tests are especially vital to those students who are working on timing strategies. Students need to work under properly timed conditions to most effectively learn how to manage their time.
Confidence
Taking multiple practice tests demystifies the testing process for students. The more they understand a test, the more confident they feel in their ability to “beat” it. Getting rid of some of that test-taking anxiety allows students to focus better on the task at hand and spend less time second-guessing themselves.
After much preparation and practice, students will be ready for test day. They’ll know what to do the morning of, what strategies they’ll be using during the test, when they’ll get a break and what they’ll do if they run into any road blocks. Taking proctored practice test helps students figure out the details of test taking that might not be learned any other way.
