Study and Exam Prep Tips

This element of the book provides you with some general guidelines for preparing for any certification exam, including Exam 70-291, "Implementing, Managing, and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure." It is organized into four sections. The first section addresses learning styles and how they affect preparation for the exam. The second section covers exam preparation activities and general study tips. This is followed by an extended look at the Microsoft certification exams, including a number of specific tips that apply to the various Microsoft exam formats and question types. Finally, changes in Microsoft's testing policies and how they might affect you are discussed.

Learning Styles

To best understand the nature of preparation for the test, it is important to understand learning as a process. You are probably aware of how you best learn new material. You might find that outlining works best for you, or, as a visual learner, you might need to see things. Or you might need practices or examples, or maybe you just like exploring the product. Whatever your learning style, test preparation takes place over time. Obviously, you shouldn't start studying for a certification exam the night before you take it; it is very important to understand that learning is a developmental process. Understanding learning as a process helps you focus on what you know and what you have yet to learn.

Thinking about how you learn should help you recognize that learning takes place when you are able to match new information to old. You have some previous experience with computers and networking. Now you are preparing for this certification exam. Using this book, software, and supplementary materials will not just add incrementally to what you know; as you study, the organization of your knowledge actually restructures as you integrate new information into your existing knowledge base. This leads you to a more comprehensive understanding of the tasks and concepts outlined in the objectives for this exam and of computing in general. Again, this happens as a result of a repetitive process rather than a singular event. If you keep this model of learning in mind as you prepare for the exam, you will make better decisions concerning what to study and how much more studying you need to do.

Study Tips

There are many ways to approach studying. However, the tips that follow should work well for the type of material covered on Microsoft certification exams.

Study Strategies

Although individuals vary in the ways they learn information, some basic principles of learning apply to everyone. You should adopt some study strategies that take advantage of these principles. One of these principles is that learning can be broken into various depths. Recognition (of terms, for example) exemplifies a rather surface level of learning in which you rely on a prompt of some sort to elicit recall. Comprehension or understanding (of the concepts behind the terms, for example) represents a deeper level of learning than recognition. The ability to analyze a concept and apply your understanding of it in a new way represents further depth of learning.

Your learning strategy should enable you to know the material at a level or two deeper than mere recognition. This will help you perform well on the exams. You will know the material so thoroughly that you can go beyond the recognition-level types of questions commonly used in fact-based, multiple-choice testing. You will be able to apply your knowledge to solve new problems.

Macro and Micro Study Strategies

One strategy that can lead to deep learning includes preparing an outline that covers all the objectives and subobjectives for the particular exam on which you are working. You should delve a bit further into the material and include a level or two of detail beyond the stated objectives and subobjectives for the exam. Then you should expand the outline by coming up with a statement of definition or a summary for each point in the outline.

An outline provides two approaches to studying. First, you can study the outline by focusing on the organization of the material. You can work your way through the points and subpoints of your outline, with the goal of learning how they relate to one another. For example, you should be sure that you understand how each of the main objective areas for Exam 70-291 is similar to and different from the others. Then, you should do the same thing with the sub-objectives; you should be sure you know which sub-objectives pertain to each objective area and how they relate to one another.

Next, you can work through the outline, focusing on learning the details. You should memorize and understand terms and their definitions, facts, rules and tactics, advantages and disadvantages, and so on. In this pass through the outline, you should attempt to learn detail rather than the big picture (the organizational information that you worked on in the first pass through the outline).

Research has shown that attempting to assimilate both types of information at the same time interferes with the overall learning process. If you separate your studying into these two approaches, you will perform better on the exam.

Active Study Strategies

The process of writing down and defining objectives, sub-objectives, terms, facts, and definitions promotes a more active learning strategy than merely reading the material does. In human information-processing terms, writing forces you to engage in more active encoding of the information. Simply reading over the information leads to more passive processing.

You need to determine whether you can apply the information you have learned. You can do this by attempting to create examples and scenarios on your own. You should think about how or where you could apply the concepts you are learning. Again, you should write down this information to process the facts and concepts in an active fashion.

The hands-on nature of the exercises at the end of each chapter provides further active learning opportunities that will reinforce concepts as well.

Common-Sense Strategies

You should follow common-sense practices when studying: You study during the time of day you are most alert and thus, most productive. In addition, you should reduce or eliminate distractions by turning off email and not answering the phone. Lastly, it's always a good practice to refresh and recharge by taking a 5-10 minute break every hour or so.

Pretesting Yourself

Pretesting allows you to assess how well you are learning. One of the most important aspects of learning is what has been called meta-learning. Meta-learning has to do with realizing when you know something well or when you need to study some more. In other words, you recognize how well or how poorly you have learned the material you are studying.

For most people, this can be difficult to assess. Review questions, practice questions, and practice tests are useful in that they reveal objectively what you have learned and what you have not learned. You should use this information to guide further studying. Developmental learning takes place as you cycle through studying. After studying, you assess how well you learned, then you review, and start the cycle over by assessing again until you feel you are ready to take the exam.

You might have noticed the practice exam included in this book. You should use it as part of the learning process. The MeasureUp test simulation software also provides you with an excellent opportunity to assess your knowledge. You should set a goal for your pretesting. A reasonable goal would be to score consistently in the 90 percent range.

See Appendix A, "Accessing Your Free MeasureUp Practice Test Including Networking Simulations!" for further explanation of the test simulation software.

Microsoft Exam Prep Tips

After you have mastered the subject matter, the final preparatory step is to understand how the exam will be presented. Make no mistake: A Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) exam will challenge both your knowledge and your test-taking skills. The following sections describe the basics of exam design, the exam formats, and hints targeted to each of the exam formats.

The Exam

Every Microsoft MCP exam is released in one of two exam basic formats: fixed-form and simulation. Each exam format uses the same types of questions. These types or styles of questions include multiple-rating (or scenario-based) questions, traditional multiple-choice questions, and simulation-based questions. It's important to understand the types of questions you will be asked and the actions required to properly answer them.

Understanding the exam formats is key to good preparation because the format determines the number of questions presented, the difficulty of those questions, and the amount of time allowed to complete the exam.

Exam Format

The basic format for the MCSE exam is the traditional fixed-form exam. As its name implies, the fixed-form exam presents a fixed set of questions during the exam session.

Fixed-Form

A fixed-form computerized exam is based on a fixed set of exam questions and is the most likely form you will encounter for Exam 70-291. The individual questions are presented in random order during a test session. If you take the same exam more than once, you won't necessarily see the exact same questions. The reason is that two or three final forms are typically assembled for every fixed-form exam Microsoft releases. They are usually labeled Forms A, B, and C.

The final forms of a fixed-form exam are identical in terms of content coverage, number of questions, and allotted time, but the questions are different. You may notice, however, that some of the same questions appear on, or rather are shared among, different final forms. When questions are shared among multiple final forms of an exam, the percentage of sharing is generally small. Many final forms share no questions, but some older exams may have a 10-15 percent duplication of exam questions on the final exam forms.

Fixed-form exams also have a fixed time limit in which you must complete the exam. Finally, the score you achieve on a fixed-form exam, which is typically reported for MCSE exams on a scale of 0-1000, is based on the number of questions you answer correctly. The exam's passing score, currently 700, is the same for all final forms of a given fixed-form exam.

The typical format for the fixed-form exam is as follows:

• 50-60 questions.

• 75-90 minute testing time.

• Question review is allowed, including the opportunity to change your answers.

Simulation Questions

A variety of question types can appear on MCSE exams. Examples of multiple-choice questions and scenario-based questions appear throughout this book and the MeasureUp software. Simulation-based questions are new to the MCSE exam series.

Simulation-based questions reproduce the look and feel of key Microsoft product features for the purpose of testing. The simulation software used in MCSE exams has been designed to look and act, as much as possible, just like the actual product. Consequently, answering simulation questions in an MCSE exam entails completing one or more tasks just as if you were using the product itself.

The format of a typical Microsoft simulation question consists of a brief scenario or problem statement along with one or more tasks that must be completed to solve the problem.

This advice sounds obvious, but your first step when you encounter a simulation is to carefully read the question. Do not go straight to the simulation application! You must assess the problem being presented and identify the conditions that make up the problem scenario. Note the tasks that must be performed or outcomes that must be achieved to answer the question and review any instructions on how to proceed.

The next step is to launch the simulator by using the button provided. After clicking the Show Simulation button, you will see a feature of the product presented in a dialog box. The window of the simulation application will partially cover the question text on many test center machines. Feel free to reposition the simulation or move between the question text screen and the simulation by using hotkeys, by using point-and-click navigation, or even by clicking the simulation launch button again.

It is important to understand that your answer to the simulation question will not be recorded until you move on to the next exam question. This gives you the added ability to close and reopen the simulation application (using the launch button) on the same question without losing any partial answer you may have made.

The third step is to use the simulator as you would the actual product to solve the problem or perform the defined tasks. Again, the simulation software is designed to function, within reason, just as the product does. But don't expect the simulation to reproduce product behavior perfectly. Most importantly, do not allow yourself to become flustered if the simulation does not look or act exactly like the product.

There are two final points that will help you tackle simulation questions. First, respond only to what is being asked in the question; do not solve problems that you are not asked to solve. Second, accept what is being asked of you. You may not entirely agree with conditions in the problem statement, the quality of the desired solution, or the sufficiency of defined tasks to adequately solve the problem. Always remember that you are being tested on your ability to solve the problem as it is presented. If you make any changes beyond those required by the question, the item will be scored as wrong on an MCSE exam.

Putting It All Together

As you can see, Microsoft is making an effort to utilize question types that go beyond asking you to simply memorize facts. These question types force you to know how to accomplish tasks and understand concepts and relationships. You should study so that you can answer these types of questions rather than those that simply ask you to recall facts.

Given all the different pieces of information presented so far, the following sections present a set of tips that will help you successfully tackle the exam.

More Pre-Exam Preparation Tips

Generic exam-preparation advice is always useful. Tips include the following:

• Become familiar with the product. Hands-on experience is one of the keys to success on any MCP exam. Review the exercises and the Step by Steps in the book.

• Review the current exam-preparation guide on the Microsoft Training & Certification Web site. The documentation Microsoft makes available on the Web identifies the skills every exam is intended to test.

• Memorize foundational technical detail, but remember that MCP exams are generally heavier on problem solving and application of knowledge than on questions that require only rote memorization.

• Take any of the available practice tests. We recommend the one included in this book and the ones you can access via the MeasureUp's website. See Appendix A for more information.

• Look on the Microsoft Learning Web site for samples and demonstration items. These items tend to be particularly valuable for one significant reason: They help you become familiar with any new testing technologies before you encounter them on an MCP exam.

During the Exam Session

The following exam-taking advice that you've heard for years applies when you're taking an MCP exam:

• Take a deep breath and try to relax when you first sit down for your exam session. It is very important that you control the pressure you might (naturally) feel when taking exams.

• You will be provided scratch paper. Take a moment to write down any factual information and technical detail that you have committed to short-term memory.

• Carefully read all information and instruction screens. These displays have been put together to give you information relevant to the exam you are taking.

• Accept the nondisclosure agreement and preliminary survey as part of the examination process. Complete them accurately and quickly move on.

• Read the exam questions carefully. Reread each question to identify all relevant detail.

• In fixed-form exams, tackle the questions in the order in which they are presented. Skipping around won't build your confidence; the clock is always counting down.

• Don't rush, but also don't linger on difficult questions. The questions vary in degree of difficulty. Don't let yourself be flustered by a particularly difficult or wordy question.

Besides considering the basic preparation and test-taking advice presented so far, you also need to consider the challenges presented by the different exam designs, as described in the following sections.

Tips for Fixed-Form Exams

Because a fixed-form exam is composed of a fixed, finite set of questions, you should add these tips to your strategy for taking a fixed-form exam:

• Note the time allotted and the number of questions on the exam you are taking. Make a rough calculation of how many minutes you can spend on each question, and use this figure to pace yourself through the exam.

• Take advantage of the fact that you can return to and review skipped or previously answered questions. Record the questions you can't answer confidently on the scratch paper provided, noting the relative difficulty of each question. When you reach the end of the exam, return to the more difficult questions.

• If you have session time remaining after you complete all the questions (and if you aren't too fatigued!), review your answers. Pay particular attention to questions that seem to have a lot of detail or that require graphics.

• As for changing your answers, the general rule of thumb here is don't! If you read the question carefully and completely and felt like you knew the right answer, you probably did. Don't second-guess yourself. If you later find that one of your answers clearly stands out as being incorrect, you should of course change it. But if you are at all unsure, go with your first impression.

Tips for Answering Simulation Questions

Following are tips for answering the simulation questions:

• Avoid changing any simulation settings that don't pertain directly to the problem solution. Solve the problem you are being asked to solve and nothing more.

• Assume default settings when related information has not been provided. If something has not been mentioned or defined, it is a noncritical detail that does not factor into the correct solution.

• Be sure your entries are syntactically correct, paying particular attention to your spelling. Enter relevant information just as the product would require it.

• Close all simulation application windows after completing the simulation tasks. The testing system software is designed to trap errors that could result when using the simulation application, but trust yourself over the testing software.

• If simulations are part of a fixed-form exam, you can return to skipped or previously answered questions and change your answer. However, if you choose to change your answer to a simulation question or even attempt to review the settings you've made in the simulation application, your previous response to that simulation question will be deleted.

Final Considerations

Finally, a number of changes in the MCP program affect how frequently you can repeat an exam and what you will see when you do:

• Microsoft has an exam retake policy. The rule is "two and two, then one and two." That is, you can attempt any exam twice with no restrictions on the time between attempts. But after the second attempt, you must wait two weeks before you can attempt that exam again. After that, you are required to wait two weeks between subsequent attempts. Plan to pass the exam in two attempts or plan to increase your time horizon for receiving the MCP credential.

• New questions are always being seeded into the MCP exams. After performance data is gathered on new questions, the examiners replace older questions on all exam forms. This means that the questions appearing on exams regularly change.

These changes mean that the brute-force strategies for passing MCP exams have lost their viability. So if you don't pass an exam on the first or second attempt, it is likely that the exam's form could change significantly by the next time you take it. It could be updated from fixed-form to adaptive or, even more likely, it could have a different set of questions or question types.

Microsoft's intention is not to make the exams more difficult by introducing unwanted change, but to create and maintain valid measures of the technical skills and knowledge associated with the different MCP credentials. Preparing for an MCP exam has always involved not only studying the subject matter, but also planning for the testing experience itself. With the continuing changes, this is now truer than ever.