It occurred to me this morning when I woke up in my normal "I'm stupid and am going to fail the Bar" panic, that there were several reasons that I didn't do so hot on the practice MBE:
A) I knew it was fake. That can do a lot to your ability to concentrate or take things very seriously. Like, for instance, I know in the real MBE I won't skim over a question, annoyed that the fact pattern is one and a half columns long, and think to myself, "Oh, I don't know. B." I did that more than a few times on Friday.
B) I read really fast and I know that and am pretty good at getting myself to slow down for the actual test. For instance, with the MPRE I think I finished maybe 10 minutes early. If I had read at my normal reading rate, not only would I have missed a lot more, but I would have been out of there at least 45 minutes early. Same with the MBE on Friday: I finished both sections 30 minutes early. I will be taking my time on the real test.
C) I was very easily distracted, especially since they had us set up so that there were four of us to a table, two facing two, with no room between the chairs really so any time someone got up to go to the bathroom it was this big production of "Excuse Me's" and scooting chairs. The set up will be different for the actual test.
Also, in an effort to not pay attention to what my roommate was doing in her room as I tried to study in the dining room on the other side of the wall, I wore earplugs while studying today. WORLD OF DIFFERENCE. I am definitely taking earplugs to the real Bar. I can block out the birds and the kids playing outside and my roommate's music, and just exist in my own little MBE world. That seems prudent for the actual test.
I've gone back today and redone the questions I missed for Con Law, Contracts, Property, and Crim Law. Guess what? With more careful reading and the earplugs in for minimal distraction, I got 23 more questions right. I still have Torts to do, and Evidence, but Evidence is a wash considering we just covered it last week and I haven't reviewed it yet. So it's not that I don't know the law, it's that I was reading and jumping to conclusions too quickly, which is seriously the story of my life when it comes to standardized tests. And that, my friends, is something I have control over.
Now I am off to a Bar-B-Q. Happy Fourth of July!
5 comments:
Congratulations on an excellent and logical forensic analysis of your exam. I totally agree with the earplug deal. I wish I had them for the MPRE and for the LSAT for that matter. Talk about zen exam taking ~ just get into your zone and know what you know and then pass the freakin' thing!
Hang tough, girlfriend. I passed the SBExam eighteen years ago after taking 2 1/2 months of the BARBRI, the Lewis/Davis Review, and having to work through BARBRI. Good job on the review of your exam.You CAN do this. Stick to YOUR study pattern, and it will all come together.
"And Justice for All."
Metalica
oops. I'm anonymous above. (sorry)
I worship at the alter of the earplug.
I've really got to try the earplug thing. I know people who swear by them.
And, I know what you mean about it being fake. I did that alot during the simulated essay/pt exam. I'd think, "fuck this, i'm not writing a conclusion, no one's going to read it anyway." So I finished those pretty early. Also, my hand was killing me. I think after three days of this I'm going to have a permanent claw-deformity.
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