Tips for The Praxis Test

►       I would highly suggest purchasing the ETS e-book Speech Pathology practice test, to take after you have read and reviewed the information for the test.  I think it is good to have because it provides you with good study tips and tips for when you get stuck on a question.  Also the format of the questions on that practice test was very similar to the questions on the actual test.

►    Determine which environment you study best in and the setup that works best for you. Example: I work best in a space that is uncluttered and I enjoy listening to instrumental music.

►       I would suggest taking it easy two days before the test and not looking at test related information two days prior to taking the test, just make sure you rest up.

►       The day of the test do not forget to have your admission ticket, be there early, bring two #2 pencils, maybe even an extra pencil (sometimes they do not have extra pencils) and dress warm (it can be very cool in a lot of the testing classrooms).

• Do not become overwhelmed with this test because this can happen very easily.
• Do not get discouraged if you have to take the test more than once, as long as you pass it one of the times :)
• Do not keep track of how many times you may have to take the test or how others did on the test, instead keep track of what you could do differently next time, take the time to figure out what areas you could improve on, ETS provides you with the number of questions you got right in each section.
• Tell yourself everyday that you are going to pass the test.
• Go into the test only thinking positive thoughts, with a clear mind and be sure you are rested.
• Make a study calendar and stick to the schedule.
• Determine your best studying setting (i.e. library, coffee shop, home) and learning style (i.e. visual, writing everything down, flashcards).
• It helps to get with a study group, not everyday, but maybe a day or two out of the week, it depends on the individual's learning style.
• Find inspirational quotes or motivational videos for encouragement if that is what you need prior to the test, that works for some.
• Read some articles relating to test anxiety, ways to stay calm during the test, ways to approach the test.
• Do not change your answer once you have marked it!!!!!
• Try not to spend too much time on one question.
• Pay attention when you are marking answers on your test answer sheet to ensure that the question number corresponds to the question you are answering.  It is very easy to mark the right answer for the wrong question number, especially if you skip a question to come back to it later.
• Try not to over analyze questions too much, do not be too technical and over think answers.
• Trust your instincts.
• You may not know every question, so just make an educated guess on the questions that you are unsure of the answer.
• Do not study the night before or the day of, it tends to make you feel overwhelmed.
• Leave at least a month for studying, so that you do not have to cram!
• Make a calendar of the topics that you will cover on each day and be sure to leave a day or two off, days for you to breathe, it really helps!
• Do not be afraid to go back and use all of those great handouts and class notes that you accumulated over the years from all of your classes :)

Some of the ways that I studied for the test: 

• Writing down everything
• Drawing diagrams
• Songs and Mnemonic devices
• Games with some of the content
• Study groups
• Listening to cassette tapes (I know so old but it was helpful) with Speech Language Pathology study material on them.
• Recording information on a CD that I recorded, so that I could play it in the car.
• Talking about the information that I was studying for with my parents, this was helpful because it allowed me to condense the information in an organized manner to ensure that I understood the information that I studied.

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