Why You Should Take Practice Tests
Practice tests improve retention of subject matter knowledge and ability to recall or retrieve quickly when taking the actual board.
Taking tests is far more effective than passive, random, and direction-less reading of review materials, watching YT videos, and listening to lectures because testing requires your mental effort, your active participation, to retrieve and recall subject and lessons from your mind. Passive reviewing is just like mental spoon-feeding which is easily forgotten. And take note: taking tests is so much more effective than reading past test questions and looking up the answer without exerting real mental effort to solve the problem.
Practice tests assess how well you know the content of your board exam
Your initial test results provide baseline for understanding where you’re starting from. Testing identifies topics/subjects you are weak in. Awareness of your weaknesses can indicate how much time you need to review the subject matter until you gain confidence to deal with them in the actual board.
Practice tests eliminate test anxiety and increase your confidence level.
Nothing can be more disastrous than experiencing a panic attack when you find many questions in the actual board that are unfamiliar, or when you struggle but can’t seem to get an answer that corresponds to any choice in a Multiple Choice test format.
And there’s nothing better for improving confidence by taking very similar tests and passing them. And taking tests under similar time constraints trains you how to pace yourself when you take the board.
Practice tests increase your mental stamina
Just as a marathoner needs physical stamina, an examinee needs mental stamina.
Your board could mean 2 days of testing, and long hours in the morning and afternoon sessions. Taking practice tests often, for at least one hour or more, can increase your mental stamina.
In the US, Europe, India, China, Australia, and other places, people taking professional accreditation tests prepare for their exams by taking online practice tests.