Practice Tests are a new interactive study support resource from ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) which allow students to identify their strengths and weaknesses and focus final revision before taking a live exam. Practice Tests replicate the exact experience of a real live computer-based exam (CBE) and offer the same flexibility, instant results and convenience as CBEs. As well as giving insight into a live exam experience, Practice Tests will also provide students with a personalised feedback diagram showing how they have performed across the different areas of the syllabus. This instant feedback provided at the end of the test allows students to find out where they need to focus their efforts in revision before they sit their real exam. The tests also provide model answers for each question. Practice Tests are now available to purchase online and are available as a single test, or as a set of three tests for a discounted rate.
Jonathan Patterson, ACCA student in Guyana, said: “Along with classroom study and textbooks at home, I have also used the new Practice Tests. These proved to be very handy when it came to writing my exams. So you can imagine how great it was to have the opportunity to run a crash test of this new syllabus and exam structure before having to do the real thing.”
Alan Hatfield, ACCA’s director of learning, said: “As the saying goes ‘practice makes perfect’, so we want to ensure that our students have the best possible chance to be prepared for their exams, by giving them a test run of the kinds of questions they will get on the day. Through the feedback given on the Practice Tests, students are able to identify their weaker areas that need focus before taking the live exam.“This complements the other resources available for revision and is also another step to ensure our students become complete finance professionals, ready for the world of financial work.”
Practice Tests are one of the many resources ACCA has developed to support students through their studies. Other key resources that should be referred to, in addition to approved study texts and question and answer banks, are: The Syllabus and Study Guide for exams, Examiner Approach articles and interviews. These will help to start studies with a good understanding of the focus of the exam. Technical articles provide in-depth insight into subject areas, question types, exam techniques and practical experience. They are produced throughout the year so students need to make sure they look at the full list and not just the most recent ones. Examiners’ Reports and Analysis interviews are also produced and give constructive feedback on candidates’ performance in the exam, highlighting problem areas such as lack of knowledge or poor examination technique. These reports are full of valuable guidance, and show how to avoid the main pitfalls in exams. Specimen exams, in CBE and paper formats, are available on the website and give an idea of the format of the exam and the question types that students may face.