Problem Solving Survival Guide for Intermediate Accounting, 15th Edition, Instructor's Manual: Volume II: Chapters 15-24

HOW TO APPROACH A MULTIPLE CHOICE EXAMINATION

1. Work questions in the order in which they appear on the exam. If a question looks too long or difficult and you choose to skip over it, put a big question mark in the margin to remind yourself to return to that question after others are completed. Also put a mark in the margin for any question meriting additional review at the end of the exam period.
2. Do not look at the answer choices until you have thoroughly processed the question stem (see 3 and 4 below). The wrong answers are called “distracters”. The manner in which these “distractors” are developed causes them to likely mislead you or cause you to misinterpret the question if you read them too early in the process.
3. Read each question very carefully. Start with the requirement or essence of the question first (this is usually the last sentence or last phrase of the stem of the question) so that you immediately focus on the question's intent. Now as you read through the rest of the stem and encounter data, you can tell which data are relevant. Underline keywords and important facts. Be especially careful to note exception words such as not. Prepare intermediary solutions as you read the question. Identify pertinent information with notations in the margin of the exam. If a set of data is the basis for two or more questions, read the requirements of each of the questions before reading the data and before beginning to work on the first question (sometimes the questions can be worked ...