Monday, March 3, 2008

Exam Preparation

Fulfilling the requirement of the state, I will be taking the Praxis Exam on the ides of March. Though I have been a fairly good test taker in the past with SATs, etc, I am genuinely nervous about this test. Maybe because it really hasn't been brought up in my classes, as how to attack it. I hope that everything turns out alright, but even with my practice book in hand, I don't feel confident.
I'm sure that many students, regardless of age feel this way without a proper review. Perhaps I'll devise some flash cards to help myself review. For this exam, it's all on me, but in the classroom, a great deal of the review has to do with the teacher. Do I want to pass out a review sheet, do a jeopardy game, leave my students to their own devises? This can often be a challenge for teachers because they don't want to spoon feed their students, but they also do not want them to fail their exam.
Since most of my exams will be literature based, most of the questions that they will see will come from class notes, class discussion and reading questions. Using the knowledge they have from these, I will (hopefully) ask a question that requires application.
When it comes to reviews for vocabulary... sometimes a good old fashion game of pictionary/charades can be exactly what they need to have the meaning burned into their memory. For me, it will always be one of my male classmates awkwardly moving at the front of the class, attempting to mime carrying something "unwieldy" that makes that word a part of my vocabulary to this day.

6 comments:

Chrissy said...

I just want to wish you good luck on your test, and try not to worry. I did take my praxis test for math, and I thought it was very challenging. I am not a good standardized test taker so this was extremely difficult for me to study and take the test because I just get too nervous. But I am sure you will do fine! Good Luck!!!

Will said...

you'll be fine..

really.

it's not bad at all.

Susan Mascolo said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Susan Mascolo said...

Wow,that's soon. I take mine in April-I'm nervous, too. But you'll do great-I think we know more than we think. Honestly, think about some of the people who are teachers, and how they must have passed the PRAXIS test to get where they are...

lol

Sara O'Brien said...

I am sure you did a great job!

mfatouros said...

im nervous about the praxis too...how did the test go? im sure you did fine...but yeah i know what u mean. the SAT was cool bc there was so much preparation...the praxis seems foreign and scary lol. either way, we have to take it..