Four experiments with 263 undergraduates and 57 seventh-graders examined the "testing phenomenon" in relation to students' memory for brief passages and labels for parts of flowers. The phenomenon, which involves the positive effects of previous testing on final test performance, appears to depend on several complete retrieval events. (TJH)

With a predominantly Black student body, Grambling State University has prevailed against the nationwide trend of low minority passing rates on teacher certification tests. This was accomplished by a determination to train students for certification and by development of specific test-taking skills. (MSE)

Students who are prepared for tests (possessing content knowledge, test-taking strategies, and effective study plans) perform better in test situations than unprepared or unskilled students. This article presents strategies teachers can use to help students develop test-taking skills and discusses differences between the Scholastic Aptitude Test…

Test-wiseness strategies used by 11 general chemistry students as they answered a 15-item multiple choice examination were investigated using a think-aloud technique. The most common strategies were those that did not compromise the validity of the examination: error avoidance, elimination of incorrect responses, checking responses, and optimal…

Examines students' ability to judge comprehension of text material (before actually taking a test) as well as ability to judge comprehension performance on text material (after taking a test). Finds that although students' self-assessment ability was not related to their actual calibration skills, self-image presentation was related to students'…

The purpose of this study was to obtain information on both the number of individuals who retest and their patterns of score gain (or decrement) by sex and ability. Individuals who retested only once were found to gain about 26-27 points on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) verbal test and about 23 points on the GRE quantitative test. This…

The guide was developed by the Health Careers Opportunity Program, the principal Federal program focused on increasing the numbers of disadvantaged individuals who train for and enter the health professions. The guide is intended to help institutional grantees working with such students in the areas of: (1) diagnostic testing in cognitive and…

This paper outlines recommended test-taking strategies for the self-sufficient learner based on research in cognitive psychology. The theoretical model used is the information-processing approach involving the three essential steps of paying attention, encoding, and framing associative linkages for the new material. Preparing for examinations is…

The hypothesis that a major cause of college students' low scores on standardized tests is underpreparedness was supported by data collected at Alabama State University where a freshman survey revealed that approximately 89% of the sample had not taken the college preparation program in high school. Four sessions of test-taking skills were…

A study examined the effect of headings and adjunct questions embedded in an expository test on the delayed multiple-choice test performance of 88 undergraduate students enrolled in psychology courses. The subject of the passage read by the students was the settling of Anglo America; the subheadings in the passage listed names of major subtopics…

The impact of providing assistance to develop test-taking skills of 19 minority medical students was studied. The intervention program consisted of 15 hours of test-taking instruction and participation in learning teams that used practice tests to reinforce test-taking skills. For two sets of second-year minority students, intervention was…

This Academic Skills Mini-Module is one of the first documented efforts designed for encouraging students to prevent themselves from dropping out of college. It is also a reflection of research findings which maintain that any methods used to help students to improve their academic performance will also minimize attrition rates. Academic…

A total of 50 college students enrolled in different sections of a language arts methodology course served as treatment and control groups to investigate the effects of student-generated questions on test performance. Periodically throughout the course, students in the treatment group received instruction in effective questioning techniques by…

Test-taking intervention procedures were implemented for minority premedical students. The intent of the intervention was to modify expected performances on the science subtest of the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). The group used to determine the effectiveness of the test intervention procedures consisted of 11 students who had previously…

Seventeen medical school students who participated in a commercial test preparation course were matched with 17 other students judged to be of equal ability. These two groups were compared on the basis of their scores on Part I of the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). The two groups were matched closely on both the grade point average…