Test Taking Techniques for Nursing Students


Test Taking Techniques for Nursing Students

  1. Identify and recall eight(8) components of nursing test questions and answers:
    • Priority Words
    • False Words
    • Hints
    • Absolute Words
    • Central Person
    • Client Focused Care
    • Opposites in the Answers
    • Two Answers are Similar
  2. Identify effective test taking techniques within nursing education.
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of strategies necessary to breakdown of question and answer patterns.
  4. Apply learned test taking tips in an effort to accurately answer test-based questions, and decrease test taking response time.
  5. Review test questions and answers.
  6. Identify medical-/nursing-based idioms.

Part 1 may be of interest to all nursing students, while Parts 2 and 3 may be of primary interest for students whose first language is not English.

In the medical setting, there are some challenging words that you are likely to encounter. They are not medical words, but they are common in the medical setting. Here is a short introduction to some of these verbs.

to consult to seek advice or information
to cope to tolerate or endure
to disperse to distribute something evenly
to hinder to obstruct, block or delay progress
to implement to put into practical effect to carry out
to indicate to demonstrate the necessity, or advisability of something
to ingest to to take (food, liquid, medicine or poison) into the body
to instill to put something into something else; often slowly
to knead to squeeze, press, or roll with the hands, as in massaging
to pass out to lose conciousness; to faint
to ramble to speak or write in a confused style
to reflect to show the characteristics or qualities of someone or something
to reminisce to talk or write about old times or past experiences
to secure (an order) to make certain; to ensure; to get
to undergo to experience, to endure, or to sustain
to word something to explain something
to yield to get something in return for effort or investment; to give

English has a variety of ways to express feeling sick, being close the death, actually dying, and recovering. Although you may not use these when speaking medically about a client’s situation, you may hear them (and many others) in the clinical setting. These special expressions are called idioms. Here are ten idioms that are somehow related to health. Try to guess the meaning from context. Break a leg!

Click here to take the practice quiz for Part 3.

When you are finished reviewing all 3 parts above, click here to take the final quiz.

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