Plan of Action ideas

For those of you who are writing a "plan of action" in order to retake the biology test, keep the following in mind:

1. Use the information from your test analysis worksheet to identify those areas where your test performance was week. This way, you can specifically address those weaknesses. There's no need to waste your time studying what you already know.
2. You will need to have some way of documenting your work. If you are re-reading textbook sections, you will need to be able to turn in something that "proves" you did that. If you don't hold yourself accountable to actually producing something tangible, then you aren't likely to follow through with actually doing it.
3. Try something different. Sure, it's always helpful to review notes and textbook passages, but don't be afraid to be creative when writing your "plan of action". Your brain tends to get bored from looking at the same stuff over and over again. By exposing it the same information in a new way, you'll increase the likelihood of remembering the information.
4. Set a goal for the retake test and subtract your score on the original test. This will tell you how many points you need to improve. For instance, if you scored 65% on the first test but want to get an 80% of the retest, then you need to improve your score by (80-65) 15 points. Since each question is worth 2 points, then you will need to answer 8 more questions correctly on the retest. Look at your test analysis graph to help you identify what topic(s) would most efficiently help you get those points.
5. Try one or more of the following as part of your plan of action:
-Research 5-10 websites that deal with the topic(s) you are reviewing. Summarize the content of each and how it relates to what you are studying.
-There are many other types of biology textbooks in the classroom. Read and summarize the section(s) from one or more of these that deal with your topic(s).
-Get copies of the reading guides for the section(s) from your teacher and complete them
-Re-do the chapter assessment or section assessment questions. Try to complete them
without looking at the original assignment. Don't just try to rush to get them done...use
them as a thoughtful review.
-Write your own sample test questions and then answer them. This would be especially
helpful to practice working genetics problems.
-Use one of the alternative textbook resources available in the classroom. The study guides,
reading guides, and assessments from other textbooks can be great reviews.

Try to remember here that that idea is not to "get it done", but to "get it right". Take this opportunity to use your test score to help yourself learn.