Are there people who are naturally better at test-taking?
Absolutely.
Is test-taking an ability that you’re born with?
Well, like all other skills, you fall on a spectrum. You have certain attributes you are born with. Then over time, you develop some skills while letting others fall by the wayside.
Am I a terrible test-taker?
Maybe. Test-taking is a skill like any other. There is a certain amount of innate ability and then there’s practice and refinement. Lebron James isn’t Lebron James just because he was born with amazing basketball talent. That helps course, but it isn’t enough. You may not be good at taking tests simply because you’ve never practiced test-taking; you may never have learned test-taking methods or strategies.
Wait, there’s more to it than just memorizing a bunch of information and then taking the test?
Absolutely. I knew from a young age that test-taking was a skill I was good at, and that one day, it would pay huge dividends for me. And it did. It got me into college when my grades weren’t very good. I chose a career path based on the fact that I could pass tests, so I went into the sciences to avoid writing papers. Bring on the exams! Since I knew this was a skill that would help me excel, I practiced and spent time on it. Most people just work harder. Nope. Working more at the wrong thing can be worse than being lazy and not working.
Like all other skills, there’s a spectrum for test-taking. Let’s say it’s 0-100. Where are you on that scale currently? Are there important tests you’re going to have to pass coming up? Are there lots of tests you’re going to have to pass?
I’d like a chance to move you that ability score up a few notches. How much would it be worth to be twice as good at test-taking? What if you could move from a 40 to a 60 on that scale?
That’s exactly what we’re going to do in February. Move you up the test-taking scale. You’re going tear into the February issue of PAES. By the time you put that thing down you’ll be up 10 points on the scale, just from having a better understanding of how things work. Practice what’s in this issue even a little, and you can shoot up 20-30 points. Use the exercises routinely for 6 months or a year for all of your exams, and you’ll go from being the Eeyore of exam day to being the Tigger of Testing.
I know this may sound like a revolutionary shift for some of you, but it isn’t even that hard. You do need to buy into what I’m teaching and practice, but it’s yours for the taking. You can do this.
Physician Assistant Exam Scholar’s Newsletter
Brian Wallace