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OUR EXPERTS... My son’s school suggested that he use The Key Study Guides to help him prepare for his Diploma exams this year. What are these guides and how are they used? By Terry Hansen of Genius By Choice In grade twelve, the provincial government requires that students take Diploma exams. In most cases, these exams count for 50 percent of the final marks, and are therefore extremely important. Your son’s school is referring to educational supplements published by Castle Rock Research Corp who produce The Key Study Guides to help organize course material, and to give students practice with the types of questions they can generally expect to encounter on the real exams. Included are up to two full previous Diploma exams, complete with answers and explanations. They produce supplements for both pure and applied courses and are available through our Genius by Choice office, schools, Chapters and the Learning Resources Center. While I recommend that students have copies of the Key Study Guides, I do not recommend that they actually take the tests as a method of exam preparation; I suggest the exact opposite strategy. It is better to focus on the correct answers and explanations, than to make multiple mistakes. Testing should be reserved for determining marks and not used as a teaching or learning strategy. This creates confusion for the student, and therefore should be avoided. The Key Study Guides are divided into units. Within these units are sections. Each section has a heading, followed by text and then questions related to that section. I prefer that students review the text until they come to the related questions. Then they go to the related question and rather than trying to figure out the answer, I have them go directly to the correct answer (found in the back) and focus on the right information plus the explanation. This process is continued until all material is covered and all related questions are finished. At the end of each unit is a unit test. Again the student will go directly to the solution and the correct explanation. All units should be completed by the last day of school classes. In the time remaining prior to the exam, the student will then move to the previous Diploma exams and follow the same procedure, reading the questions, and then focussing on the correct information. Students who use the Key Study Guides in this way to prepare for their Diplomas will be much more familiar with the language, presentation, question types and correct material that they will see come exam day. For advice on helping your child with exam preparation, contact Terry Hansen, MSc. BAHon, RETec of Genius by Choice Inc. at 403.267.2400. www.geniusbychoice.com |