Do you make use of the pen and boards in exams?

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I wonder if anyone finds using the boards in an exam a great help ?

I have'nt used mine so far.

But i wonder if many people make use of the tool effectively????

 

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I do when I have had questions about Harry and Sally who are in different OU's etc etc.

Helps me write down exactly what containers they are in so I focus on the question rather than all the other blurb.

The exam I have used it most on was the 70-291, in that I had a questions which was over a page and half on the PC screen. Had to make notes, otherwise by the end of it I had forgotten what they asked!

 

I use it before starting the test sometimes but rarely during. For example, I might write down OSI layers or IRQs or reproduce some other kind of chart I've memorized just to use as a quick reference to speed things up, but that's about it.

 

I didn't think you were allowed to do that before you start

 

That's the problem i have reading a lot of the MS questions that are over 10+ lines

I am thinking of using the board but worried about running out of time.

 

It's meant for notes, not for re-writing the questions!

In addition - You always have to wade through the waffle when it comes to exam questions

Qs

 

Thanks

I'll remember not to end up writing my first award winning novel

 

I memorised a subnetting table, and other bits of potentially tricky bits of info, and then wrote it down as soon as I got in there, whilst 'reading' the Ts and Cs. Pretty handy, I guess. I probably would have remember the table without having to write it down then and there though, so I don't know if it was that helpful or not really.

 

I do.

I find it useful to use the pen and board in the simplest way. Let's say the question has 5 possible answers, and you are asked to identify which is the correct course of action...

On the board I will write:

A
B
C
D
E

Then re-read the question, crossing off the answers which do not fit the objective. I find this helps me narrow down the correct answer when more than one sound feasible on first read-through.

 

I also keep a tally on my answers as follows:

Tick - For answers I know I have answered correctly.

? - For answers I'm 80% or above on.

X - For answers I'm using best guess or have no idea on.

With this I work out the number of Ticks over the number Questions to see if I have a passing score and add a bit on for the ? marks.

It just reinforces to me, whether I feel I will pass or not. It's a winning concept I tell you

 

I randomly make notes about questions, in case I need to go back to them.

 

when i did the A+ I wrote down the IRQs and things like transfer speeds of SATA etc

 

Absolutely, particularly with Cisco exams. You're not allowed to go back and forth in Cisco exams - once you hit Next, you cannot go back to that question. Information in one question can absolutely help you in later questions. Plus, it's helpful to draw out scenarios and diagrams. And it's always good to double check your subnetting, even if you can do it in your head... provided you have enough time on the clock.

Yes, it's allowed. You can't copy information from a book or a paper to the board, but you can pull any info from your brain and write it on the board before you start.

 

I also do something quite similar to this. If I'm absolutely certain on 75-80% of my answers, I won't usually go back and double-check them (on exams that allow me to do so). If I'm not certain, I'll go back and revisit items that I marked for review (which are those I'm not 100% certain of the answer).

 

I do the same - worked so far (I prefer this method to marking for review)

 

Thanks that's given me some ideas to try with practice tests.