Exam timings, give away the answers?

I know this is a ridiculous suggestion, but I want to know if anyone else considered/dismissed this: I’ve noticed in the schwerser exams if you have ‘correct/incorrect explain why if incorrect’ that if a question is correct it has a 1 minute allocation, and incorrect has 3 minutes (along with the marks. So if you have 13 minutes for 5 statments, one is correct and 4 are wrong and so on. Before you think this is crazy and dismiss it out of hand, consider that as an examiner you have to allow the right amount of time, its takes longer for an ‘incorrect’. Its not an easy one to get around.

I did a Schweser review and the guy dismissed that thought. He said they allow the same amount of time to a correct as they do to an incorrect. BUT, I do wonder about this: I had a Schweser question that said “agree or disagree and comment . . .” When I was grading it, I saw that the agree/disagree was worth 1 point and the comment was worth 5! I just put one thought in my “comment” but the model answer had 3 or 4 different thoughts in its “comment”. I guess the takeaway is to look at the minutes allowed and if it just says “comment” or explain" and it is worth 5 or 6 minutes, then you should have 5 or 6 thoughts?!? Thoughts?

Schweser addressed this in a seminar… this wont work on the CFAI test. An answer will have 3 min - If you answer Incorrect and provide an answer and it should be correct, you will lose 3 points. If you answer Correct and it was iNcorrect, you will lose 3 points. If you answer Incorrect (and its right) but you provide a wrong assumption, you will only get partial points. So this theory wont work…

I thought the same thing actually. Couldn’t think why it wouldn’t work although I haven’t spent a lot of time pondering it. I’m surprised that if it works none of the test prep companies have pointed it out yet. Perhaps there is a catch?

Interesting. But even with this, they simply CANNOT have too many ‘corrects’ because the 3 marks for 1 word is too easy and while they can murk the timigns by making it 3 points/3 minutes for all, realistically they cant do this much because it would make the exam easier. Right? if in doubt definitely write ‘incorrect’?

Only way that wouldn’t work that I can think of is if they then said that question is 1 min because it is corect and then later they gave 6 minutes for a question which should really take you 8 mins to sort of make up the time difference. Then it would even itself out over exam. However, I think I agree with you elem100. Can’t see why not? Perhaps this will appear as another “myth” on the CFAI website in the future. I know I’m not going to answer “C” for any that I’m guessing on :-).

My thought process is that if I really have ZERO IDEA about the right answer, I’m going to guess ‘CORRECT’ because if I guess “INCORRECT”, I not only have to get that part right, but I also have to get the explanation right. If I guess “CORRECT” then my explanation is automatically right. Make sense to me. Though I don’t really plan on using it because I think I’ll have some clue (or inclination) of any question.

bad exam strategy: just work under best effforts under all scenarios… i wouldn’t waste your time on this…