In a sea of study-related services & products vying for our attention, it’s difficult to tell what’s going to best help any particular one of us get the most out of the test prep experience. Some of us swear by flashcards, while others live by the practice test; some of us think that we learn better visually, others by ear, others yet by mnemonic device.
So what actually works?
First and foremost, realize that you’re already heading into the test-prep battle with an army of facts. “Thinking well requires knowing facts” because memory is the brain’s “first resort” when searching for a solution to a problem (Willingham, 2009, p. 8). You are wielding the power of memory in several ways: your memory of test-taking, your memory of problem-solving, and whatever you happen to know about the circumstances within the question. For instance, when you are deep in the weeds of science-oriented Logical Reasoning questions, you’ll find that you can get pretty far on your general knowledge of what makes for a good scientific experiment.
Metacognition is the awareness and control of the thinking process for the purposes of learning; having strong metacognition means that you can reflect on your own thinking processes in order to think like an expert and learn more efficiently and effectively (Stanton et al., 2021). In other words, metacognition is how you look at a test problem, identify the best problem-solving approach, and utilize your known unknowns. Some of the most effective strategies for strengthening metacognition include self-testing, spacing (learning over time), and “interleaving,” or alternating between different study topics (Stanton et al., 2021).
Self-testing is a common approach for LSAT test prep, and there are many ways to do it. Some ways are better than others. We know that flashcards and practice tests are highly-effective test prep strategies, while reading textbooks and going over class notes are less so (Hooper, 2022). If you’ve been with them for at least a few sessions, your tutor likely knows of self-testing materials that will work for your learning style. Spacing is also important in good LSAT test-prep—that’s why your tutor tries to see you once or twice a week, and why they probably suggest you do some practice sections between sessions. Interleaving is as much a treat as it is a strategy: when you get frustrated with a section, just ask your tutor if you can do something else for a bit and come back fresh.
Test anxiety may result in poorer academic performance (Silaj et al., 2021), though it is yet unclear whether less stress causes higher test grades or if knowing one is capable of higher grades causes less stress (Jerrim, 2023). Some people have more anxiety when tests are taken on the computer, especially if they haven’t previously experienced computer-based testing (Hooper, 2022). You probably can’t get rid of all of your anxiety, but you can explore where it’s coming from, and try converting that knowledge into power.
So will these strategies guarantee you test-taking success? No—there are no guarantees. But you have to start somewhere, and there’s no better place to start conquering logic than the realm of science.
References
Hooper, J. (2022). Mode matters! Undergraduate nursing students’ perceptions of test-preparation and test-taking strategies for computer based testing. Canadian Journal of Nursing Informatics. https://cjni.net/journal/?p=9759
Jerrim, J. (2022). Test anxiety: Is it associated with performance in high-stakes examinations? Oxford Review of Education, 49(3), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2022.2079616
Silaj, K. M., Schwartz, S. T., Siegel, A. L. M., & Castel, A. D. (2021). Test anxiety and metacognitive performance in the classroom. Educational Psychology Review, 33(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-021-09598-6
Stanton, J. D., Sebesta, A. J., & Dunlosky, J. (2021). Fostering metacognition to support student learning and performance. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 20(2). https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.20-12-0289
Willingham, D. T. (2009). Why don’t students like school? Because the mind is not designed for thinking. American Educator, Spring 2009, 4–13. https://www.nottinghamschoolstrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Why-students-dont-like-school-.pdf