Quinlan Murray

GED Exam: The Top Four Most Important Test-Taking Tips

Some of the most common questions asked are: “What is to be expected on the GED test?” “Is the test harder than High School tests?”Without a doubt, there is a lot of work that is involved to prepare for the GED test, but unlike most high school exams, the GED test relies more on practical knowledge and thinking skills.

There are many questions that both students and adult learners have before pursuing a GED program. Some of the most common questions asked are: “What is to be expected on the GED test?” “Is the test harder than High School tests?”
Without a doubt, there is a lot of work that is involved to prepare for the GED test, but unlike most high school exams, the GED test relies more on practical knowledge and thinking skills. In this article we will give you four invaluable GED test-taking tips that will help de-mystify the GED test.

Use Your Time Wisely - Each section of the test is timed, and when the time is up, you must hand in your test, regardless of whether or not you are finished. Any questions not answered at the end of the test will automatically be marked as incorrect. The majority of students do not finish at least one of the five sections of the exam because they do not know how to pace themselves correctly. This is unfortunate, because it can severely reduce their overall score, and can easily be prevented.
The following list should serve as a guideline to help you succeed in staying within the exam's strict time constraints:
Wear a watch to the exam. Check your watch when each section begins, and after each passage or group of questions to make sure that you are keeping up with a time schedule.
If you fall behind, don't panic - you can easily catch up. Generally, one or more of the answers are obviously wrong and can be easily eliminated, making it more likely that you will guess correctly.
If you manage to get ahead of schedule, SLOW DOWN! If you are moving quickly through the questions, it is a good idea to slow down and take your time. You will be more likely to catch careless mistakes. Many students' mistakes are made in this manner ; by rushing ahead and not taking the time to carefully read the question and double-check their work.

Never Leave a Question Blank - Because each of the questions on the test gives you five possible multiple choice answers, there is a 20% chance that your answer will be correct, even if you are simply guessing with no background information. If you can first eliminate a few answers that are obviously wrong, your chances of guessing the right answer are even better. However, if you leave a question blank, that question will automatically be marked as incorrect.

Learn to Eliminate Options Quickly, and Don't Be Fooled By "Trick" Answers - The GED test writers deliberately include answers that "appear" correct, though they are merely decoys planted by the writers of the test to trick you and should be avoided. The decoy answers are often easy to spot - they are frequently overly complex and sometimes will completely contradict another answer that has already been listed. The test-writers do this on purpose to add confusion. When there are two possible answers listed that directly oppose one another, often one of these opposing answers is correct. The two contradicting answers should catch your eye and are a good place to start.

Have a Positive Outlook Going Into the Exam - It is very important to approach the test with a positive attitude. Feeling optimistic and self-assured about the task ahead of you will decrease your stress level and will help you concentrate and answer questions more efficiently and correctly. If you go into the test feeling negative about the outcome, many of the more difficult questions will just seem overwhelming. Often though, if you are just patient and read through the questions thoroughly, you will realize that what they are asking is not as complex as it may seem at first.
Studying, familiarizing yourself with the test's layout, and following a few simple guidelines and tips will help build your confidence and allow you to move quickly through the exam.

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