For most first-year college students, test-taking is a huge catalyst for stress. Not only is test-taking in college a different kind of beast from that in high school, it also accounts for a much larger portion of a final grade, and in many cases makes that class's entire grade. By taking necessary precautions and learning to properly identify important information; test-taking in college can be tamed. How are tests different from in high school? What would make someone need to prepare differently than in high school?
One of the most important aspects of reviewing course material is taking effective notes. According to Edgar Dale's "Cone of Learning," we can only retain 20 percent of what we have heard accurately, so it is important that the information encountered in class is recorded so that later it may be able to be reviewed. Research that was done by M.J. Howe for the Journal of Educational Research concluded that students are seven times more likely to recall the information a week after being presented if they documented it in their notes. So, it seems that all signs point to note-taking having a large correlation to effectively taking a test.
A popular form of note-taking is outlining. In the outline form, you start with a main idea and have sub points that represent the details and parts of that main idea. After learning the main ideas, you then can review the sub points to further specify all the concepts of your main idea. In college, the content covered is much more specific and the information is not as general as high school, so the number of sub points can make or break you. Of course the real challenge is being able to distinguish between what is important information and what is irrelevant, something that is completely dependent on your critical learning skills.
However, note-taking will not single-handedly make up your test-taking prowess; studying is an extremely important tool in the learning process. In college, tests are typically more comprehensive than high school, and the content covered on exams will cover multiple chapters. The question may not be to study or not, but when? With the change to a fast paced free lifestyle in college it may be hard to find time to review when your friends are trying to drag you out to have fun. Try to assign a time to study, rather it be right after class where you can isolate yourself in the library, or before bed when you know you won't have any distractions.
