Dummies Guide to Doing Well on Computer Based Exams

Reading from books all along and now have to appear for computer based exam? Bad news, because your every passing exams will be longer than the previous one.
My last exam was 9 hours longs, and even then I had to cruise at supersonic speeds to barely finish. It takes some effort to convince your brains to remain focused for this long, but it gets worse with the rest of the body feels miserable and fatigued.

To get through these day long exams, you need to be accustomed to incorporating proper ergonomic techniques that would let you sit in the most natural posture, with all your joints flexed within their natural range of motion, your muscles relaxed and your posture relaxed. Here is how you can do so all through your exam prep and then on the actual day!

The Keyboard and the Mouse
If you are using a laptops or tablets to prepare for exams, make sure you know the differences in ergonomics compared to standard desktop you will have on the exam day. Desktop computers make you sit upright while the Laptops can let you recline. Tablets? They even let you roll over

The posture can never be sacrificed during focused and time consuming work. Sitting upright with proper ergonomics is the key to working long-haul, just like proper techniques are for tennis or any other sport.

The biggest issue with laptops is that they bundle together screen position and keyboard/mouse. The screens ideally have to be higher to meet you natural line of sight, while keyboards and mice need to be at your elbow levels. If you are practicing on laptops, use both detachable keyboard and mouse and have your laptop screen set up as high as it have to be for your neck to remain straight and at ease.

My most important improvisation was to keep elbows close to the body and at 90 degrees, and then placing the mouse on thighs.
This makes for the most natural sitting position with all joints within their natural range of movement. Moreover, it removes the uncertainty that the actual exam station would be different from the one that you are used to. When you use your thigh to hover your mouse, you can quickly adjust to any actual table knowing its dimensions does not matter at all. It will also let you freely glide the cursor through the screen with some practice and focus on specific parts of the question stem.
The Back, Feet and the Neck
·         Back should be held straight and flat against the chair back support
·         Feet should be flat on the floor
·         Angles at knee can vary throughout your session, as you wiggle around. You can bring your feet towards you or away from you. But keep them flat on the ground and body weight equally distributed
·         Tilt your screen upwards so that you can see it with your neck straight in alignment with the rest of your spine. Use your eyeballs to look down, not your neck. Your neck is far heavier and would put excessive strain on muscles, leading to aches and tension headaches within a matter of hours.
Take Maximum Breaks
Breaks are not only for your brain, but also to reset your deteriorating posture. Just take them, whether you are tired or not. Use it to move around, improve your circulation and rest your eyes from constant strain.





This entry was posted on Saturday, August 23, 2014 and is filed under . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response.

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