Study Skills and Tips From the Psychologist

So, a lot of the theory behind this site beginning is to advocate for the use of used testing materials for test preparation, etc. The testing companied have to resort to scare tactics in their ads many times, however the fact is you’ll have a great chance to pass with gently used materials and practice test questions, especially since if you buy lots of new, retail priced study materials as well as all your other expenses they will quickly ad up. Heres a little recommended strategy I like (and of course you could do well to become an affiliate of one of these sites like I am with some of them and earn a wee slice of the pie when someone buys- full disclosure, however you can’t argue the merits of the advice on this one).

First off, Joining eBay will give you access  to the world’s greatest auction site with lots of auctions for all kinds of different study guides, etc.  Feel free to look around eBay and search for great products you’re interested in such as perhaps “GRE study guides” (or LSAT, SAT, ACT, GMAT, EPPP, USMLE, MCAT, etc.) and put down a bid or start “watching them,” and keep an eye on them through your “My eBay” page. If you join eBay you’ll find some of the best deals, or you can also use some of the search boxes from various discount sites listed at http://www.usedstudyguides.com
Upromise - Turn your everyday spending into college savings

Next, go to Upromise and Register your grocery card, or a credit card or simply shop online through their links and save when you shop! Upromise is a loyalty program and companies will basically rebate/refund back your money under the pretense that you’re going to spend it on your or a child (or future unanmed child’s) educational expenses such as a 529 or student loan. Honestly, they’ll cut you a check every quarter if its over a certain amount with no questions asked where it’s being spent- so you’d be a fool not to join and earn moeny back on your Coca Cola and whatever else you’re buying.  The neat thing about this is that lots of online merchants will give you a discount if you shop by going through Upromise’s site, and eBay is no exception, at the time of this post you get 1% cash back (which is better than 0%).

Now, it certainly is very important to be cautious with spending in general, but of course theres lots of talk now about being more likely to spend a larger amount when using a credit card. If you are sane about it and don’t make late payments (of course paying the balance in full is best), you can get credit caards that offer you cash back. There seems to be a proliferation of 1% cash back cards out there, but I’ve seen as muc has 5% from cards like American Express where you can  Earn straight cash back—5% for buying automobile gas, 3% for eating out, 2% for traveling, 1% virtually everywhere else, including at Costco

I have a Simply Cash card from them and its also fantastic for keeping track of expenses when tax time comes around, but its also nice in breaking down spending and seeing where I could cut back on (like chocolate donuts ;). Chocolate donuts are nice and a little cashback is handy for making room in the budget for them or perhaps a weekly pizza delivered to your door

Interestingly, this month’s American Psychologist (from the American Psychological Association ) showed up at my door today with a relevant article, though I must admit I was a tad disappointed since it could have been so much more Perhaps its because of my possibly but who knows flawed assumption that a lot of tests are poor predictors of future success or failure for many groups. The article examines a number of studies related to how tests such as the SAT and GRE predict performance, as well as looking at some of the possible variables like socioeconomic status and membership in a minority group (and whether the test is “biased” based on race, ethnicity, gender, etc.). I can’t really suggest the article to you since it was really more of a ‘heres why this is the best approach to look at the stats” and “here’s why the studies we looked at are better than others, etc.” However, the short answer on this article that just came out is that it supports the continued use of tests commonly used to screen people for admission in to educational programs. While I can’t say I think testing is really all that predictive of future success in school or after school, I suppose what will continue to be the result and reality is test scores are going to likely continue to be a factor in getting   in   to school. The article title and abstract follow, with more available from the APA:

High stakes testing in higher education and employment: Appraising the evidence for validity and fairness.
Sackett, Paul R.; Borneman, Matthew J.; Connelly, Brian S.
American Psychologist. 2008 May-Jun Vol 63(4) 215-227

The authors review criticisms commonly leveled against cognitively loaded tests used for employment and higher education admissions decisions, with a focus on large-scale databases and meta-analytic evidence. They conclude that (a) tests of developed abilities are generally valid for their intended uses in predicting a wide variety of aspects of short-term and long-term academic and job performance, (b) validity is not an artifact of socioeconomic status, (c) coaching is not a major determinant of test performance, (d) tests do not generally exhibit bias by underpredicting the performance of minority group members, and (e) test-taking motivational mechanisms are not major determinants of test performance in these high-stakes settings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2008 APA, all rights reserved)
Follow me to the APA’s page for this article

Since I just started this particular blog in conjunction with the used study guides site at http://www.usedstudyguides.com, I thought it would be best to outline my goald and articles on the upcoming agenda. I plant to offer articles, study skills, tips and point out resources I come across as well as the occasional commentary on the testing industry in general. The post frequency will vary but I intend to offer an article at least weekly to biweekly. Some interesting topics I’m considering for an articlke (and perhaps discussion in the comments if you’re interested) are: state dependent learning ;), studying before bed and the impact of sleep, the impact of caffeine, tips on creating a great study environment, special resources for individuals with disabilities, LD, ADHD, what to consider when thinking about attending a workshop or purchasing expensive study packages, learning styles and amusing tools like the learning styles inventory, and of course my love for finding a good bargain on the internet If you ask me of course I’m going to tell you the first place to look for deals is at eBay

The Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology can be challenging and I’ve put together a site with a number of resources to help you pass at http://www.EPPPstudyguides.com

I’m happy to announce that a new Used Study Guides site has launched at http://www.usedstudyguides.com, with a growing collection of resources for people studying for various tests, specialized pages will be going up soon an already exist for the GRE, EPPP and USMLE.