Answering Exam Questions

Sometimes students feel too pressed for time to review anything. Generally, teachers will tell you that you're better served by writing the more important responses clearly and completely than by finishing every last question. So take some time to re-read and revise parts of your responses. (Teachers are generally willing to follow arrows to inserted points or read sentences in a certain order if you number them; these revision strategies can help you fill in detail and order the sentences in your responses for maximum clarity.)

However, it's a tactical mistake to re-read responses just after you write them. Sometimes, the ideas are still too fresh in your mind to see if the response is clear. Finishing the test and coming back to re-read gives you several advantages:

• If you've misunderstood the question, you're more likely to see that after you work through the entire test because the test questions as a whole typically have a logic that connects them in some way.
• Re-reading the questions carefully will help you see if you've misinterpreted the question and, thus, misdirected your response.
• Re-reading the questions carefully will remind you of other points you might need to include in the response.

Re-reading your responses carefully will help you see

• where you need to include points or details to answer the question thoroughly,
• where you need to add transitions and other connectors to make your ideas coherent,
• where you might have left out words that make sentences unclear or confusing.