Question about the nature of test questions

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kalat

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I see a lot of these random "MCAT question of the day" places and even some posts on this forum about these specific obscure minutiae. It was my impression that these kind of pure rote memorization questions are not really what the MCAT is about, but admittedly, I haven't done tons of studying for it yet. Am I not correct in thinking this? I don't see how pure rote memorization of random names and facts is going to transfer over to a good MCAT score if I'm understanding the principles of the test correctly.

Just to be clear, I'm not talking about something that tests broad knowledge just with specific examples, but something like "Which one of these proteins doesn't regulate another one of these?" or something where there's literally no inferences to make other than to know the answer.

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First off, the MCAT material (according to AAMC) is all covered in your average introductory-level classes of the four subjects tested. I think you have the right thinking, but I'm just going to give you my take.

The MCAT is a test based on reasoning. Having said that, you will fail miserably at this test if you know nothing about the sciences. Heck, you'll even do poorly if you KNOW your sciences well enough to get A's in those introductory classes. Bottom line is this: You must have a great deal of background knowledge to succeed. That is why many of those questions are actually helpful. No, they are not based on a passage of any sort, but they do test your actual knowledge of the subject. Also, don't forget, there are discrete questions on the MCAT. These are mainly all going to be answered correctly from background studying and memorizing (I used the term memorizing lightly).

To give a simple example: A passage may talk about a student conducting an experiment in which a precipitate is formed. Given the reaction and a few other details (possibly boiling point, freezing point, etc.) you must be able to answer some questions regarding background knowledge. You will need to know which elements (when combined) form precipitates and which compounds dissociate (aka strong vs. weak acids). This is done through knowledge gained while studying.

Content review is immensely important; however, practice is equally so. Even these little questions that may not be noticeably relevant to the actual format of the MCAT could prove helpful. The MCAT isn't going to ask you "Which one of these proteins doesn't regulate another one of these?" But it may ask a question in which that knowledge is expected to be known.

Rote memorization can help in the right situation. I did this with cellular respiration and the input/output that is involved with this. Basically, everything can help!

What I'm trying to get at is the MCAT doesn't make it THAT EASY. Treat this beast with respect.

Just to be clear, I don't use the Question of the Day stuff. I find it useless. I mean, I can go answer 1001 questions in my Exam Krackers book if I want to test myself on discretes...
 
First off, the MCAT material (according to AAMC) is all covered in your average introductory-level classes of the four subjects tested. I think you have the right thinking, but I'm just going to give you my take.

The MCAT is a test based on reasoning. Having said that, you will fail miserably at this test if you know nothing about the sciences. Heck, you'll even do poorly if you KNOW your sciences well enough to get A's in those introductory classes. Bottom line is this: You must have a great deal of background knowledge to succeed. That is why many of those questions are actually helpful. No, they are not based on a passage of any sort, but they do test your actual knowledge of the subject. Also, don't forget, there are discrete questions on the MCAT. These are mainly all going to be answered correctly from background studying and memorizing (I used the term memorizing lightly).

To give a simple example: A passage may talk about a student conducting an experiment in which a precipitate is formed. Given the reaction and a few other details (possibly boiling point, freezing point, etc.) you must be able to answer some questions regarding background knowledge. You will need to know which elements (when combined) form precipitates and which compounds dissociate (aka strong vs. weak acids). This is done through knowledge gained while studying.

Content review is immensely important; however, practice is equally so. Even these little questions that may not be noticeably relevant to the actual format of the MCAT could prove helpful. The MCAT isn't going to ask you "Which one of these proteins doesn't regulate another one of these?" But it may ask a question in which that knowledge is expected to be known.

Rote memorization can help in the right situation. I did this with cellular respiration and the input/output that is involved with this. Basically, everything can help!

What I'm trying to get at is the MCAT doesn't make it THAT EASY. Treat this beast with respect.

Just to be clear, I don't use the Question of the Day stuff. I find it useless. I mean, I can go answer 1001 questions in my Exam Krackers book if I want to test myself on discretes...

Good reply. Thanks for taking the time. That's pretty much what I figured... Learn as much discrete knowledge as you can, but don't test yourself over random facts... Find ways to apply that knowledge to your understanding of the subject matter.
 
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