The majority of SBI PO aspirants hold the opinion that speed and accuracy go against each other in such a way that higher speed equals more mistakes and better accuracy leads to time shortage.
This opinion is the one that actually prevents the students from having a good performance in SBI PO Prelims.
In fact, there is nothing that makes speed and accuracy work against each other — they are two skills that go hand in hand with proper training. The SBI PO Mock Test is exactly what allows developing those skills simultaneously and effectively. Here is a detailed guide to doing this.
Why Speed and Accuracy Should Be Improved Together
As we know, the SBI PO Prelims involve 100 questions solved during 60 minutes and 20 minutes per each of the three sections. To make matters worse, every wrong answer brings the penalty of -0.25 marks.
Thus, both high speed and accuracy are required in order to get high score in SBI PO Exam, because speed without accuracy equals wasted efforts and low scores, while accuracy without speed means leaving the majority of the questions unanswered.
Both accuracy and speed are learnable skills. As the modern teaching methodology changes its focus from memorizing information to developing skills, the same happens with exams that become the skill test. Thus, a mock test is exactly what will help you develop your skills in this respect.
How to Develop Both Speed and Accuracy with SBI PO Mock Tests
There are three advantages that a mock provides, which are impossible to provide by textbooks:
- It creates realistic testing conditions (timed, sectioned, scored according to the pattern of the exam).
- It reveals weak areas in your performance that you need to strengthen.
- It helps you track your progress.
To begin with, it is advisable to start with a diagnostic SBI PO mock test. It will show you your current level of development and help decide which skill needs improving now.
Tips to Increase Speed
Speed depends on your preparations and selecting appropriate questions to solve and not on hurry.
- Calculation drills: spend 15 minutes on solving tables, squares, cubes and fractions converted into percents. Majority of cases when the candidate is not able to perform quickly enough in the Quant section refer to arithmetic problems.
- First, deal with the topics that give you advantage. Simplification, Approximation and Number Series will give you some time left to solve other questions.
- Spend 30–40 seconds scanning all DI sets or puzzles and then attempting the easiest one.
- Use a stopwatch from the very beginning of your preparation because speed under the condition of time pressure is developed in advance.
Tips to Increase Accuracy
Accuracy depends on discipline and the ability to eliminate the options properly.
- Try to reach 85% or even higher accuracy rate before attempting more questions.
- Only attempt the question when you are able to eliminate at least two of the proposed options. Never guess because of the penalty of -0.25 for each wrong answer.
- Read the last line of the question two times. “Not”, “except” and misread conditions cause more mistakes than hard topics themselves.
- Maintain the error log where you note down your mistakes and categorize them as gaps in concepts, misreading and carelessness.
The True Lever – Question Selection
The ability to select right questions is exactly what increases speed and accuracy at once.
The rule is simple: if you do not see the method of solving the question during 10–15 seconds, then you need to leave this question.
The right candidates are not necessarily the fastest, but they are good at understanding when it is worth leaving the question unfinished.
Approach to Different Sections
Every section requires a slightly different balance between speed and accuracy.
English Language
- Start your test with Fill in the Blanks, Error Spotting and Cloze Test.
- Leave some time for Reading Comprehension instead of rushing into it.
- Try to solve about 20–24 questions with high accuracy rate.
Quantitative Aptitude
- First, bank Simplification and Approximation.
- Scan the sets of DI; then solve the light one and leave the difficult one.
- Increase speed with regular daily arithmetic drills.
Reasoning Ability
- Start from Inequalities, Syllogisms and Coding-Decoding.
- Scan all the puzzles and seating sets and solve the easiest of them.
- Do not spend eight minutes on the puzzle, if it is difficult, when easier questions wait for you.
Analysis of Your Mocks’ Results
The score improves in the review process and not during the test itself. After every mock try to analyze your results:
- Divide the mistakes into category: conceptual gaps, misreads and being too slow.
- Analyze the accuracy rate topic by topic and set the minimum accuracy rate for each.
- Evaluate yourself on the basis of a 3-mocks average and not one mock.
The habit of analysis is exactly what helps develop both speed and accuracy. It is the same discipline that timed paper solving develops in any serious exam, but done under the ticking clock.
Calibration with Previous Year Papers
While fresh mocks teach you proper performance techniques, SBI PO Previous Year Question Paper and memory based sets make sure your goals are real. Solving the questions every two weeks will tell you about the true difficulty and language of the board, so your speed and accuracy rate targets will be realistic.
Mistakes to Avoid in SBI PO Mock Preparation
- Focusing on increasing number of attempted questions, but ignoring decreasing accuracy rate.
- Taking plenty of mocks without analyzing them.
- Practicing without time limit and panicking in the examination room.
- Blind guessing in the last minute.
- Using only one source of mocks, thus limiting question variation.
Benefits of Simultaneous Training of Speed and Accuracy
- Higher total score: less wrong answers mean lower negative scoring.
- Better time management: you will solve the whole section without hurrying.
- Improved question selection: you will select the questions instinctively.
- Less stress in the exam: familiarity with the test format will give you confidence.
- Consistency: your average score for 3-mocks will constantly rise.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are speed and accuracy opposites in SBI PO?
No. They are two skills that can be improved together in a right way.
How to increase speed in Quant?
Perform 15 minutes of daily calculation drills and master the topics that give advantage before DI.
What accuracy rate should I achieve?
Try to reach 85% or higher on the attempted questions before attempting new questions.
What influence does the negative scoring have on your strategy?
Each wrong answer gives you -0.25, so proper skipping and elimination save your score.
What is 10–15 seconds rule?
If you do not see the way to solve the question during 10–15 seconds, you should leave it.
How many questions should I attempt?
It depends on difficulty, but the normal number is about 20–24 in English and 22–26 in Reasoning with high accuracy rate.
Should I take more mocks or analyze them more?
Analyze more. Several well-analyzed mocks work much better than many unread ones.
When should I use previous years’ papers?
Every two weeks.
Conclusion
Speed and accuracy are not mutually exclusive, but two aspects of one skill. The SBI PO mock test is the place to develop them. Increase your speed with drills and proper selection, protect your accuracy with discipline and elimination and make your analysis of every mock an opportunity to improve your skills.
Doing it consistently, you will not have to choose between speed and accuracy. You will just be fast and accurate