TRAINING TEST-TAKING SKILLS A CRITICAL ANALYSIS‘
VIVIAN
FUEYO
Utiiversity
of
Katisas
Children.
as
well
as
adults, can be handicapped when taking
a
Standardized
test because of an unfamiliarity with the test format
or
with the requirements
of the testing situation. This review presents a critical analysis
of
the skills
required for test-taking, the training of test-taking skills, and the experimental
evidence on the training. Based on the recommendations of psychologists
such
as
Thorndike, Cronbach, and McClelland, practical classroom strategies
for
test-taking are discussed. Cautions
on
the pitfalls of training test-taking
skills on questionable dimensions, such
as
on test item content, are also dis-
cussed. The review concludes with recommendations
for
a task-specific in-
structional unit which trains the necessary skills
for
test-taking to assure
that the score on the test is an accurate measurement of the skill being assessed.
Children, as well
as
adults, can be handicapped when taking
a
standardized
test because of an unfamiliarity with the test format
or
with the requirements
of the testing situation. Thorndike
(1971) states the problem succinctly:
“.
. .
performance on many types of tests is likely to be in some measure a function of the
individual’s ability to understand what he is supposed to do on the test” (p.
364).
A
critical analysis of the skills required for test-taking, the training
of
test-taking
skills, and the experimental evidence on this training will be reviewed. Practical
recommendations based on this analysis will follow.
What
Are Test-Taking Skills?
Test “. . .assessments.
.
.are affected not only by the level and type of concept
tested, but also by the many factors arising from the method of testing and the
subject’s facility in handling it.
.
.”
(Vernon, 1962,
p.
285).
Staats
(1971) adds
that the behavioral skills of a child affect his test performance, and in fact the
child’s skill in taking tests is also a product of past learning. Although Vernon
and Staats recognize that many factors and skills do influence test performance,
identification of specific skills has been the work
of
others.
Ebel
(1965) has identified the essential test-taking skills which he feels are
requisite in the testing situation. He has enumerated those skills and states them
as cautions (e.g., One should be aware of the basis for scoring.) Masha Rudmon
(Raspberry,
1974) has also identified important suggestions for children taking
tests; for example, she advocates teaching children how to
fill
out the answer sheets.
Millman, Bishop, and Ebel
(1965) have identified two general categories of test-
taking strategies
:
time-using and error-avoidance. Their recommendations (labeled
“test-wiseness”) are aimed at helping the test-taker make the least number
of
careless errors and make the most efficient use of the allotted time (Mollenkopf,
1960).
Training Test-Taking Skills
Training the requisite skills
for
test-taking has been
a
topic for much dis-
cussion. Terman was emphasizing the necessity of securing the maximum attention
‘Preparation
of
this review was a partial requirement
for
a
Doctor of Philosophy Degree
from
the Department
of
Human Develo ment
at
the University
of
Kansas. The writing
of
this review
was supported in part by a grant
(8EG-0-8-522422-4433)
to
the University of Kansas Support and
Development Center for Follow Through..
Requests for reprints should be sent
to
Vivian Fueyo, Dept.
of
Human Development,The
University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS
66045.
180