On this page, we'll look at a few common mistakes that students make on assessments and give you some tips to avoid them.
Lack of proofreading
We often make spelling or grammatical mistakes or do not express ourselves clearly the first time we write something. This could lead to answers being marked as unsatisfactory.
What to do
Reread your answers:
Before you hit submit, give yourself some time to reread your answers and make sure what you have written is clear and free from spelling and grammatical mistakes.
Know your common errors:
Do you often leave the "s" off plurals? Sometimes forget to put "ed" on past tense verbs? Do you occasionally forget to capitalise? Look out for these mistakes in your answers.
Read your answers out loud:
This is a technique that is commonly used which helps you catch mistakes that you may miss when you read the text in your head. If you are doing the assessment under exam conditions, you could try mouthing the words without making any noise.
Read your writing backwards:
This is a great way to catch spelling errors because you are not concentrating on meaning or grammar. It allows you to look at each word in isolation. So, if you sometimes have issues with spelling, this is a great technique.
Try this quiz to test your proofreading skills.
developmen: the correct spelling of this word is 'development'.
provide: this should be 'provides' because the subject of the sentence is 'it'.
listens: the subject of the sentence (businesses) is plural, so this should be 'listen'.
qualty: the correct spelling for this word is 'quality'.
building: after 'to', the verb should be infinitive form 'build', not gerund form 'building'.
concedering: the correct spelling of this word is 'considering'.
promply: the correct spelling of this word is 'promptly'.
Misinterpreting the task
If you don't read assessment questions and instructions carefully before answering, you could accidentally answer the question in the wrong way.
Let's explore an example:
Diego needs to answer the following:
"Explain the process of installing a sink trap and its function in plumbing."
He answers:
"A sink trap is a U-shaped section of pipe located beneath the sink. Its primary function is to prevent sewer gases from entering the building by trapping a small amount of water in the bend of the pipe. This water acts as a barrier to block gases from coming back through the drain."
In this answer, Diego has misinterpreted the question. He has answered what a sink trap is, not how it can be installed. Therefore, his answer is not satisfactory.
What to do
Here are some tips for understanding questions and prompts:
work through the other pages in this section to understand assessment instructions, beginning with VE assessments
read the questions or prompts carefully, and underline the key words that tell you what you need to do
after you have written your answer, reread the question or prompt to check if you have answered it correctly.
Not allocating enough time
In timed assessments, using your time wisely is very important. If you spend too long on some questions, you might rush others or not finish.
What to do
Here are some steps you can take to use your time effectively:
read your assessment carefully before you begin so that you understand each question
identify questions that need longer answers and those that need short answers
even when a longer answer is needed, choose your words carefully. Writing unnecessarily long answers may take up a lot of time.
For more information, check the Understanding instruction words page which explains when to provide simple answers and when to give more details.
Test your knowledge
Joanna is a construction student. She is taking an assessment that she has one hour to complete. Decide if her answers are appropriate for the following assessment questions.
