How to pass the NBCE Parts 2 & 3
Tip # 1 - Have a study plan
Time sure appears to fly at times and before you know it .... the Boards will be fast approaching. It is therefore imperative that you have a study plan and that you work your plan, daily.
As part of your plan, commit to studying at least 2 hours every day specifically for the Boards. Consistent preparation is key to passing the Boards. Realize that this does not mean that the entire 2 hours (120 minutes) needs to be done as one block. Turn any down time that you may have into productive study time by taking an ISL practise exam. Each exam is timed to take just 15 mins.
Stay focused and work your study plan. The time spent now using the iSuperLearn system will pay huge dividends and ensure your continued success on the Boards.
Tip # 2 - Build strong memory pegs
You have attended lectures and clinics, made notes and reviewed your textbooks. It is time to enhance those memory pegs by taking the iSuperlearn MCQ (multiple choice questions) practise exams. These exams were specifically designed to build visual and kinesthetic memory pegs, develop your critical understanding and mastery of the core information and prepare you for the Board's environment where time is a crucial element.
Select an iSuperLearn MCQ practise exam and begin. Each exam is timed to allow about 30 seconds per question. Read each question and choose an answer. Do not leave any question blank. If you do not know the answer, make an educated guess. More on guessing later. When you go forward, the e-learning platform will display the correct choice. Take a few seconds to study the question and the correct answer and then quickly move on to the next question. Upon completion you will receive a score and the amount of time elapsed. Please make a note of your performance.
Take this same iSuperLearn MCQ practise exam again and this time have a notepad ready to jot a few notes. You have been exposed to the questions and the correct answers so this time thru you can slow down and take you time. Though the exam questions remain the same, each time you access this exam the questions are randomized and in addition the choices for each question are also randomly presented. This is to challenge and reinforce your memory pegs. If you are unsure of any answer, make a note on your notepad and after completion, review your textbook and/or study notes to fully understand why that choice is correct.. This rapidly builds your understanding and eventual mastery of the information covered. This step is vital. Do not short change yourself and this process by simply memorizing the correct answer. Once you master this information, it would not matter how the questions on the Boards are presented ... you will know the correct choice.
When you can consistently score over 85% on this iSuperLearn MCQ practise exam, you are ready to move on to another iSuperLean practise exam and repeat this process.
Keep focused. Work your study plan. Take each iSuperLearn practise exam repeatedly.
Tip # 3 – Proven Exam Strategies
A. Effective time management. At the Boards your task is to answer 90 questions in 75 minutes. This translates to 50 seconds per question. You should plan to use 40 seconds per question so that this will leave you with 15 minutes “extra” to mop up and ensure that all questions are answered.
Realize that leaving a question BLANK assures that you have ZERO % chance of being correct. Play to make the odds in your favour by ANSWERING ALL QUESTIONS. Leave no questions blank!
Start using the iSuperLearning MCQ practise exams to hone your internal time clock. Each iSuperLearn exam consists of 25 questions and you are allowed only 15 minutes to complete. This translates to about 30 seconds per question. As you become more and more familiar with the material you should be completing each iSuperLearn exam in under 12 minutes. By training at 30 seconds per questions on the iSuperLearn practise exams, the 50 seconds per question at the Boards will seem a luxury. Your stress levels will be way down during the environment of the Boards and thus you will dramatically increase your success.
B. Pick the low hanging fruit first. When you allocate 30 seconds per question, you will quickly learn to recognize and separate the easy questions from the more difficult ones. Read the question carefully and completely to understand what is being asked. Most times the correct information will pop in to your mind. With that information fresh and unpolluted in your mind, scan the 4 choices that are available to see which one matches your initial thoughts. When you find that one answer, make a note, read the question once more and ensure that this choice answers what is being asked. Mark your selection and move on.
If on the other hand, when you scan the 4 choices and none matches your original thoughts, recognize that this is not a low hanging fruit and that you will have to spend more time to arrive at the correct choice. Move on. You are picking the low hanging fruit first. You will have time to come back as you have allocated time for this. Move on.
This strategy makes effective and efficient use of your time. It also primes your subconscious mind to look for the answers and clues as you progress through the rest of the Board questions. Other questions would relate and jog your memory pegs. So keep moving and picking the low hanging fruit.
The iSuperLearn exams do not allow you to navigate backwards. Chose an answer and move forward. This further develops your ability to trust your instincts at recognizing correct choices.
C. Once you have completed picking all of the low hanging fruit with your first pass through the questions during the Boards, it is time for the second pass to deal with the more difficult questions. Start back at the top with the first question that you left unanswered in the booklet. Read the question again. This time you have additional clues that you may have gleaned when answering the other questions. Sharpen your focus and start using a process of elimination to stack the odds more in your favour. Read the first choice and see if it relates and answers the question. If it is obviously false, mentally rule it out. You now have a 33% chance of picking the correct choice from the remaining 3 choices. Go through each choice in sequence to see how many you can eliminate to increase your chances of arriving at the correct answer. Measure each choice against the next to see which is the best at answering the question as asked. By this process of elimination, you can usually arrive at the ONE answer that is correct.
When you have done your best to eliminate as many of the possible choices, and there are still two or more choices remaining ... it is time to guess.
D. Never panic. Panic is counter productive. Even if you draw a complete blank, smile and chalk that one question up to the exam Gods, take a deep breath and get ready to guess. At the worse, you have a 25% chance of being correct.
The next tip discusses how to effectively guess. :-)
Stay focused. Continue to work your study plan. Use the iSuperLearn practise exams to hone your internal time clock and to develop your ability to use the process of elimination as a success strategy.
Tip # 4 – Effective Guessing
How to guess your way to success on the Boards.
You have picked all of the low hanging fruits and you are well on our way to passing this subject on the Boards. You have used the process of elimination to deduce correct answers to some of the more difficult questions. You are down to those questions where you have a few possible choices and/or you have drawn a blank. You are down to the last 7 minutes remaining. Stay calm and deploy this last winning strategy. It is time to guess.This is an easy strategy because you will have already decided before the exam how you are going to guess. Statistically, a totally random guess offers you the best outcome. And the best way to make your guess free from false assumptions and be totally random is to decide before hand to select the first choice available, consistently. The test makers have done their best to randomize the choice sequence. There is nothing further you can gain by further randomizing your guess. Simply go with the FIRST choice. Or if you wish, the SECOND choice. Or THIRD choice. Or the FOURTH choice. Either way, stay with the same ONE.
You simply deploy this strategy after you have done your best at elimination. It is either this or leaving the question blank. There is absolutely nothing to be gained by leaving a question BLANK. With the last few remaining minutes counting down, take a deep breath and slowly go over the computerized scan card and ensure that every question has been answered.
Relax. You have done your best. Have a mini celebration to cue your mindset for great success at the next subject scheduled for the Boards.
Stay focused. Continue to work your study plan. Decide how you are going to guess and be ready to effectively deploy this strategy as your last resort.
Tip # 5 – Optimize your brain functions
You have been studying for years to arrive where you are now preparing for the NBCE Parts 2 & 3.Don't mess up by walking into the Boards with your brain neurons misfiring due to the lack of sleep.
As little as one hour lack of sleep measurably impairs cognitive activity. A good night's rest is essential for you to ace the Boards. Don't short change yourself. If you have not been already doing so, start today getting 6 – 8 hours of sleep each and every night.
Stay focused. Continue to work your study plan. Be wise. Get enough sleep.
Tip # 6 – Fuel your brain
Fuel your brain for success at the Boards
As a Chiropractor you know the importance that diet plays in health and well being. Practise what you will be preaching!
On the day of the Boards be sure to eat a good, satisfying breakfast with enough protein and complex carbohydrates to provide sustained fuel during the Boards. Take fresh fruit of choice with you and consume at the start of each session. Glucose is the preferred fuel for the brain.
If you have been accustomed to having a cup of coffee with breakfast by all means continue and do not skip.
If you are looking for a natural kick consider consuming some vitamin B complex.
Stay focused. Work your study plan. Take the iSuperLearn practise exams repeatedly. Sleep well. Fuel your body and brain for success.
Tip # 7 – The Night Before The Boards
'Twas the night before the Boardswhen all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
As a super learning user you are fast asleep
Confident in the success you are soon to reap.
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Be sure to go to bed early tonight to get a great night's sleep. You want all of those brain neurons to be firing optimally.
Get up early tomorrow and enjoy a quick workout to get your metabolism in high gear.
Eat a wonderful breakfast to fuel your brain for the task ahead.
Plan to arrive early at the examination center. Give yourself ample time for traffic and any other delays which can occur. On the way play your favourite tunes loudly and sing along. Get the endorphins rushing. Who cares who is watching. You are on your way to rock the Boards!
Believe in yourself!
All of your hours of hard work and the investments in yourself are about to pay off.