This is the content of the pop-over!
  
Exam Edge Dark Logo Exam Edge Dark Logo
Business
Healthcare
Education
World


Recent Searches
Try searching for


Test Prep and Practice Tests: Your Pathway to Test Readiness

Whether you are getting ready for an academic entrance exam or preparing for a professional certification in teaching, healthcare, HR, or another field, test preparation is essential for test readiness. Effective test prep can help you not only improve your test readiness but also help you achieve your educational and professional goals

What is Test Prep?

Test prep, short for test preparation, is the practice of preparing yourself for an assessment. Distinct from learning or studying, test prep entails a wide range of strategies, activities, and tools such as practice tests and flashcards that help prepare you to take a test and earn a successful score.

Why is Test Preparation Important?

Test prep is critical for any exam you are preparing for. It goes beyond re-reading lesson material or creating detailed notes (although this tactic can be helpful when you need to review testing material). Instead, test prep is a broader strategy that aims to solidify your knowledge and strengthen your recall skills so you can perform at your best on exam day.

While it is important to understand the material to pass an exam, one of the most critical reasons to do test prep is to determine your strengths and weaknesses. Fortunately, there are several test-prep tools that can help you to do so. Utilizing realistic practice tests and flashcards, for example, can help you pinpoint your greatest subject-area weaknesses. This then enables you to focus on improving your comprehension and recall in time for the real test.

How Does Test Prep Improve Your Chances When Taking a Test?

Test preparation can improve your chances of earning a passing score on exam day in several ways. For example, test prep can help you become familiar with the exam format and types of questions that you will encounter on the real exam. This not only helps you to develop effective time management skills and identify areas for improvement, but it can also reduce anxiety and boost confidence.

This is especially the case with our practice exams! After all, Exam Edge practice exams are hyper-realistic and purposefully made to mimic the real thing – so if you prepared with us, what you encounter on test day will not be anything new to you!

Plus, if you are exploring test prep strategies and are crafting a plan to earn a credential in your industry or to pass a school exam, chances are that you already possess some skills that are needed to be an effective test taker. Skills such as time management, critical thinking, and the ability to stay dedicated are just a few of the ones you need for effective test prep, and these skills will make all the difference when it comes time to sit down at your test station for the real deal.

Remember - test prep is like, but also very different from, learning and studying in the traditional sense. On the kind of exam that you plan to take, simply memorizing the relevant material will only get you so far! At the end of the day, an effective test prep strategy places much more emphasis on deliberate practice to increase your content mastery, competence, and confidence for test day, and much less on simply memorizing or re-reading material.

Think of it like this - regular and deliberate practice enhances knowledge recall and understanding, while test prep strategies contribute to more efficient and accurate answering, leading to better overall performance in exams. And by combining effective test prep with useful test-taking strategies, you will drastically improve your chances of passing on the first try!

What Are The Benefits of Test Prep?

Effective test prep can have powerful and lasting benefits like improved comprehension, faster recall, and improved self-confidence. Additionally, there are other benefits like:

  • Getting to know the exam: Knowledge is power! By researching the format of the exam, the types of questions you will be asked, and the content you will be tested on, you can avoid being surprised on test day.
  • Dealing with test anxiety: The fear of the unknown and performance anxiety can powerfully and negatively affect you on test day. Through thorough and effective exam preparation, you can solidify both your skills and your self-assuredness, thereby reducing your test anxiety and preparing you to walk into the test with calm nerves and a focused mind.
  • Building test-taking skills: Your subject matter expertise is not the only factor that determines your final test score. Aside from helping you to learn the material, effective and thorough test prep must also enable you to practice your pacing, improve your stamina, and strengthen your test-taking mindset so you can perform at your best on test day.

Who Can Benefit From Test Prep?

Anyone - whether you have just joined the labor force, are a seasoned professional, or are seeking a promotion or raise - can benefit from test prep. After all, effective test prep has more to do with learning how to properly prepare for and successfully pass highly stressful exams, than with simply learning information. The benefits of regularly engaging in such practices can be immensely beneficial no matter who the test-taker is.

Read on to learn more about creating a winning test prep strategy, including the importance of using practice tests efficiently, employing test-taking strategies, and reducing testing anxiety.

What Does Effective Test Prep Look Like?

The Importance of Practice Tests

An effective test preparation journey includes regular practice tests, flashcards, and study guides, to name a few. You should also incorporate regular pit stops to check your skills, note where you have improved and where you still need improvement, and determine where to focus on next. Practice exams are especially useful for this purpose since you can easily see if your overall exam score is improving across practice tests.

Practice exams can also help you to pinpoint specific subject areas or question types you may be having trouble with. Imagine the confidence boost you will feel after seeing how much you improved in a subject area that previously gave you trouble!

Additionally, while practice exams assess your knowledge of the subject matter, they also present opportunities to practice your information-retrieval abilities. Studies in educational and cognitive science have consistently supported the value and impact of robust practice testing. Just like doing repetitions will build the muscles required for a particular exercise, taking practice tests will build your recall muscles and ensure they are in top shape for the real exam.

Did you know: According to recent research from the National Institute of Health, several key factors play significant roles in predicting which test-takers succeed on professional credentialing exams:

  • Deliberate practice: A specific, substantial effort towards improving skills through structured, intentional practice.
  • Periodic testing: Regularly test your capabilities and gauge your improvement. Periodically testing yourself using a comprehensive mock exam or practice test will enable you to assess how well you do under pressure, how you can reduce test anxiety, and let you know where you need to focus your deliberate practice efforts.

The Importance of Flashcards

Though practice tests are powerful test-prep tools, finding enough time to complete one and review your results can be a daunting task. In situations where you do not have enough time to fully finish a practice test, flashcards can be a very effective way to study however much you can, whenever you can.

Aside from flexibility, here are a few more reasons why flashcards are excellent test-prep tools that you can use to supplement your test-prep tool chest:

female holding cell phone with digital flash card

  1. Flashcards promote active recall.
    Whether they exist physically or digitally, flashcards all feature a "front" side with a question and a "back" side with an answer. When you read the question and try to remember the answer then, you are engaging in a cognitive act called "active recall." Active recall is the process by which you "dig" in your memory banks for a specific piece of information, and studies have shown that repeatedly engaging in active recall strongly promotes learning.

  2. Flashcards promote metacognition
    Generally described as your knowledge of what you know and how your thought processes work, metacognition, and metacognitive strategies have an obvious role in test prep. After all, a major reason why practice tests are so effective is that they help you pinpoint your weaknesses and enable you to get a better understanding of what you know versus what you do not. Then with that information, you can tailor your test-prep journey accordingly.

  3. Flashcards promote engagement.
    Studies show that the gamification of learning can have positive effects on learner engagement and that highly engaged learners tend to be successful learners. If you just finished your second practice test of the day for instance and would like to study more but do not have the time or the energy for another practice test, maybe it is time for a lightning round!

Other Test Prep Strategies

Follow these 6 steps for effective test prep:

  1. Plan
    • Take a practice test to get your baseline, or something to measure growth against. This will help you to get a sense of where your strengths and weaknesses already lie.
    • Register for your test - choose a time of day when you tend to be the most alert and choose a date that allows enough time to study without losing steam.
  2. Organize
    • Gather your study materials and make a timeline for your test prep journey.
    • Consider study techniques that best suit your learning style and incorporate practice tests at regular intervals to check your progress.
    • Avoid cramming! Instead, set aside the time each week to chip away at your study plan. Research shows that spacing your studies is ultimately more beneficial for information retention than cramming all at once.
  3. Rehearse
    • Consistently use practice tests to simulate the experience of test day. Use your scores to chart your areas of improvement and to target areas for improvement.
  4. Practice
    • Spend extra time on the topics or question types that need more attention. Review the practice questions you answered incorrectly and the explanations of each answer. Remember - be deliberate!
  5. Evaluate
    • Assess how your test prep strategy is working and adjust as needed.
    • Take a final practice exam and compare your performance against your initial benchmark and your target score.
  6. Make it Fun!
    • Compete with other test-preppers to see who can answer the most questions correctly.
    • Create incentives around gamification. For example, if you answer the most questions correctly, your opponent buys you a delicious pastry!
    • Create incentives for yourself. For instance, for every 20 flashcards you answer correctly, you award yourself with five minutes of playtime with your pet, or each time you complete two practice tests, you treat yourself to your favorite meal.

What Are Some Test-Taking Strategies?

Some important test-taking strategies to set yourself up for success include being prepared, working at your own pace, and trying to answer every question.

Arrive Prepared on Test Day

Before test day, check with the testing agency and confirm what materials you are required to bring, such as a government-issued ID. Also be sure to check if there are items you are prohibited from bringing. For example, if you are taking the ANCC Family Nurse Practitioner exam, review the testing handbook from the ANCC.

Take A Steady Pace

After taking several practice tests, you should already know the length and format of the exam. Keep these in mind and tackle the test at a steady pace. You can always come back later to answer tricky questions and letting them percolate in the back of your mind while you proceed with the rest of test might allow an answer to bubble up.

Answer Every Question

Most certification tests do not penalize incorrect answers. Some tests even offer partial credit for attempted answers, so do your homework and find out if this is the case for your exam! You can usually find information like this on the website of the relevant testing agency. If this applies to you, do your best to answer every question to increase your chances of a higher score!

How Exam Edge's Practice Tests Can Help You

practice test performance Exam Edge offers a large selection of practice tests for exams offered by numerous professional organizations and certifying bodies, such as the AANP and ANCC. Our tests come in both timed and untimed formats to suit a variety of study strategies: you can take a timed test to simulate the environment of test day, or an untimed test to get comfortable with the exam's format.

Plus, our exams are available at a fraction of the cost of typical test prep courses. So, in addition to being effective, test-prepping with us will not break the bank either!

Realistic Practice Questions

Our practice certification exams feature realistic questions based on the difficulty, format, and subject matter of the actual exams to give you the most authentic test-taking experience you can have outside of the real thing.

If you do not have time for one of our hyper-realistic practice tests right now though, our flashcards enable you to answer questions and study on the go. We put just as much effort into crafting our flashcard questions as we do for our practice test questions, so you can be certain that you are getting Exam Edge-quality questions when you use our test-prep flashcards!

Each question on an Exam Edge practice test and flashcard comes with a detailed explanation of the correct answer in addition to explanations of why the other options are incorrect. This lets you use our practice tests and flashcards as not just evaluation methods, but as high-quality study materials. Each question on an Exam Edge practice test comes with a detailed explanation of the correct answer in addition to explanations of why the other options are incorrect. This lets you use our practice tests as not just evaluation methods, but as high-quality study materials.

Sample Exam Edge Practice Questions



Business - SHRM Exam

card spacer

At the end of the year meeting with all department heads, the Call Center Manager was singled out for having long call wait times. The Call Center Manager responded by claiming that his employees took excessively long breaks and were generally unmotivated. As the HR Director, you were then asked to research and resolve this issue at the Call Center. After the meeting, you decided to review the performance appraisals to gather more information, but the appraisals showed all call center employees were “meeting or exceeding standards” in all of the topics covered on the appraisals.

You speak to the Call Center Manager directly about the discrepancy between what he said in the meeting and the actual performance appraisals. He responds that all of his employees spoke professionally to the customers so he gave them good ratings in all of the subjects on the appraisal. What is the term for giving good ratings on all criteria because an employee performed well in one area?
card spacer

Correct Answer:
halo effect
the halo effect is a cognitive bias that occurs when a positive impression in one area influences a person's opinion or feelings in another area. in the context of workplace performance appraisals, this bias can lead to a manager rating an employee highly across all performance categories due to excelling in one specific area.

in the scenario described, the call center manager noted that his employees were professional in their interactions with customers. this single aspect of their performance led him to rate them positively across all other areas of their jobs, despite there being issues such as long call wait times and excessive break times. this discrepancy between the manager's general perception and specific performance metrics illustrates the halo effect in action.

the implications of the halo effect in performance evaluations can be significant. it often masks underlying problems, such as lack of motivation or inefficiencies, which can adversely affect service delivery and overall productivity. if employees are consistently rated as 'meeting or exceeding standards' without a factual basis, it becomes challenging for the organization to identify and address areas needing improvement.

moreover, relying on the halo effect in appraisals can demotivate employees who genuinely excel across all areas, as it diminishes the value of their efforts when compared to those who are perceived as excellent due to a single strength. to mitigate the halo effect, organizations can train managers on unbiased evaluation techniques, implement more structured appraisal systems that focus on specific competencies, and use multiple raters to balance subjective judgments.

in summary, while the halo effect can lead to overly positive performance reviews based on limited criteria, recognizing and correcting this bias is crucial for accurate employee assessments and organizational development. addressing the halo effect involves acknowledging its presence, understanding its impact, and employing strategies that promote a more balanced and comprehensive evaluation process.



High School Math

card spacer

A discrete random variable R follows the Geometric distribution if

P(R = r) = (1 – p)r – 1p for r = 1, 2, 3 ……

 

where p is the probability of success at each trial and 0 < p < 1

 

What is P(R ≥  4)?
card spacer

the correct answer is:
(1 – p)3


 the question asks for p(r ≥ 4), that is, the probability that the number of independent trials required for a successful trial is greater than or equal to 4. this is equivalent to asking the probability that the number of trials required is less than or equal to three, i.e. p(r=1), p(r=2), or p(r=3).

since the sum of all probabilities must be 1, p(r ≥  4) = 1 – [p(r = 1) + p(r = 2) + p(r = 3)]

 

p(r = 1) = (1 – p)0p = p

p(r = 2) = (1 – p)1p = p – p2

p(r = 3) = (1 – p)2p = (1 - 2p + p2)p = p – 2p2 + p3

∴p(r ≥  4) = 1 – [p(r = 1) + p(r = 2) + p(r = 3)]
1 – [p + p – p2+ p – 2p2 + p3]

= 1 – 3p + 3p2– p3

= (1 – p)3



Nursing - Family Nurse Practitioner

card spacer

In terms of laboratory tests used to assess older adults, which of the following is NOT in the normal range?
card spacer

Correct Answer:
hba1c: 10%
to answer the question regarding which laboratory test result is not within the normal range for older adults, we need to analyze the values provided and compare them with their respective normal ranges.

firstly, the blood urea nitrogen (bun) level is given as 15 mg/dl. the normal range for bun is from 7 to 21 mg/dl. therefore, a bun level of 15 mg/dl falls within this normal range and is considered normal.

the fasting glucose level provided is 95 mg/dl. the normal fasting glucose range is between 70 and 100 mg/dl. with a value of 95 mg/dl, this result is also within the normal range and is not a cause for concern.

the white blood cell (wbc) count is 9,800 cells/mm³. the normal range for wbc count is between 4300 to 10,800 cells/mm³. thus, a wbc count of 9,800 cells/mm³ falls within this normal range.

however, the hemoglobin a1c (hba1c) level is reported to be 10%. the normal range for hba1c is typically between 4% and 5.6%. this test measures the average blood sugar levels over the past two to three months and is a critical marker for the management of diabetes. an hba1c level of 10% is significantly above the upper limit of the normal range, indicating poorly controlled blood sugar levels, often reflective of diabetes.

in conclusion, the laboratory test result that is not within the normal range is the hba1c, which at 10% exceeds the normal upper limit of 5.6%. this result suggests the need for medical intervention to manage high blood sugar levels, which can be detrimental to health if left uncontrolled. the other test results (bun, fasting glucose, and wbc count) are all within their respective normal ranges.



FMCSA Certified Medical Examiner

card spacer

A medical examiner has noted that the results of a driver's hearing test was at a threshold of 27 db. What is the driver's ability to hear speech?
card spacer
Correct Answer:
The driver has difficulty with faint or distant speech.

in this case, the driver's hearing test results were at a threshold of 27 decibels. this falls within the range of 26-40 decibels, which is generally considered to represent a mild degree of hearing loss.

as a result of this level of hearing loss, the driver may have difficulty hearing sounds that are faint or at a distance. this could potentially impact their ability to hear sounds such as distant sirens or horns while driving, which could potentially pose a safety risk.

however, it should be noted that this level of hearing loss would generally not impact the driver's ability to hear normal conversational speech. therefore, the driver would likely not have difficulty communicating with others in most everyday situations.

on the more severe end of the spectrum, if the driver's hearing loss were to worsen to a point where they could only hear speech that is loud and had difficulty with group conversations, this could potentially pose significant challenges in both their personal and professional life.

therefore, regular hearing tests are important for drivers not only to ensure their own safety, but also to ensure the safety of others on the road. if a driver is aware of their hearing limitations, they can take appropriate measures to mitigate any potential risks.



Additional Resources

Learn more about test preparation and test-taking strategies:

Try a Free Practice Test with Exam Edge

Ready to begin your online test prep journey? Work towards professional certification with a FREE sample practice test from Exam Edge!

Watch this video on How To Take A Free Test