WCT
WCT West Coast Training Ltd
Fast or Slow?
0Do you like to study fast or slow? When I say study fast, do you like to quickly review material many times quickly or once or twice slowly?
In either case, you are really wasting your time unless you first understand the course material. Understanding is always the first step in learning new information. Once information is understood, then you work on your recall ability for examination preparation.
I am a believer in studying material many times quickly when the examination is a recall based examination. Recall exams ask questions like “List three things” or “Identify and briefly explain”. With this exam format I believe studying material over and over again helps preparation. But remember, understanding must occur first.
Tomorrow I will review tactics to prepare for application based examinations.
CAIB Synopsis
0CAIB Synopsis
I am often asked by people new to the industry, “What do CAIB Courses cover?” I thought a quick rundown of the subjects in the CAIB Program may be a useful blog post. So here we go.
CAIB I
Introduction to General Insurance
Habitational Insurance
Liability Insurance
Personal Automobile Insurance
Professionalism and Ethics
Travel Insurance
CAIB II
Introduction to Commercial Property Insurance
Underwriting Commercial Property Insurance
Commercial Property Insurance Policy Forms
Additional Commercial Property Policy Forms
Transportation and Contractors Policy Forms
Crime Insurance
Business Interruption Insurance
CAIB III
Canadian Law
Commercial General Liability Review
Commercial Automobile Insurance
Ocean Marine Insurance
Surety Bonds
Risk Management
CAIB IV
Planning
Organizing
Human Resource
Leadership
Insurer Relationships
Marketing
Client Relationships
Technology
Finance
Monitoring
These are the main topics in each CAIB Course. I hope this outline helps you develop your personal educational goals.
Hot, Hot, Hot…
0Remember when your parents told you, “Don’t touch the stove, it’s hot!” What did most children do, touch the stove of course. Mistakes are made throughout our lives. We all make mistakes. The key is to learn from them.
I tell students all the time that getting questions wrong is fine, as long as you know why you were wrong. Making mistakes is one of the best ways to learn.
After you got burned, you learned.
Open Book or Closed Book?
0Which would you prefer, open book difficult exams or simpler closed book exams?
I often wonder how long handwritten exams will be around. We are handwriting less and less in our automated lives. In fact, some local school divisions are not even teaching cursive handwriting. I know that penmanship is getting worse and worse among our population. Most people can keystroke much faster than they can write, so why not allow computer based exams? The primary reason is the integrity of the exam. Well, if the exam is open book, this fear is alleviated and computers can be used to attempt examinations.
Can open book exams be a fair test of knowledge? Well, many professions use open book exams in their post secondary and licensing processes. With open book exams more application style questions can be incorporated instead of just recall questions. Now, this would require a very extensive exam bank in order to keep challenging exam participants. Building exam banks costs money.
So, which would you prefer? Open or closed book?
CAIB Study Schedule
1Many CAIB students tell me they lack the discipline to study at home. They say there are too many distractions, they have personal and professional commitments and there simply is not enough time in the day. I empathize with all of those concerns. Many self study courses I have attempted over the past 30 years ended with a failing grade because I too have lacked the discipline to prepare on my own.
Here are a few self study tips to help you succeed. First, take the time. Many students tell me that writing down a study schedule and placing it in a visible location (taped to refrigerator door) helps them buckle down. Other students tell me that having a study buddy helps as well.
Another useful tip is simply having a quite study room. No television, no music playing and good lighting are key to building an effective study environment. Taking regular breaks is also important. When you find yourself asking “What did I just read?” it’s time to take a break. Some students have told me a five minute break is needed every twenty minutes or so.
This does not mean that there is no available help when preparing for a CAIB exam. First of all West Coast Training offers CAIB Preparation classroom sessions several times a year during the week leading up to your exam date. Next, ilscorp.com has CAIB Preparation on-line videos complete with study tool downloads.
But, when it is all said and done it is up to you to study.
Comparing your way to Failure
0Over and over again when students are preparing for their CAIB exams they compare one concept with another. This is a dangerous activity. CAIB exams ask specific questions on specific topics. I urge all CAIB students to learn the topics addressed in the CAIB program on a stand alone basis.
Trying to see the big picture is valuable, but taking that larger view should wait until after the examination date. Too often when trying to see the big picture through connecting topics in the CAIB program, confusion ensues. “Why does it say this here when in the last chapter it said that”… This comparing of concepts can lead to failure.
Work, Work, Work…
0I know, I know, it has been some time since my last blog. I know I am suppossed to blog regularly, if not daily. Well, that was and is still the plan, but over the past few weeks, work got in the way. I have finished a long string of courses both in and outside BC. But here is the good news. For the next month I am writing several projects and chained to the computer. As a nice break, I will be able to get back in the saddle and blog, hopefully, daily.
I have to mention in this blog that I am so happy with the series of video short segments that ilscorp.com has produced. If you visit ilstv.com and look for the Ask the Expert link you will see the first two of these segments. In the meantime, here are some links that I hope works.
http://www.ilstv.com/handling-sales-objections-common-objections/
http://www.ilstv.com/handling-sales-objections-build-value/
Enjoy!
CAIB By the Numbers
0I often get asked by people, “Do I have to take CAIB courses in order?” The answer is a simple no. All CAIB courses are stand alone in their subject matter. They do not build on the previous course so you can challenge them in any order you wish.
CAIB I is a study of personal lines. CAIB II is mainly a commercial property course. CAIB III is a commercial casualty course. CAIB IV is a brokerage management course.
Challenge CAIB courses in any order you like. Just make sure you are on track to challenge them all.
CAIB IV Exams
0Many CAIB students challenge CAIB IV exams in the same way they challenged other CAIB exams. This will usually result in a failed attempt. CAIB IV is described as an “Application” style examination. This requires students to apply the knowledge they learned in the text. This requires more than a simple list of information. In fact, I always instruct my CAIB IV students to never use a bullet list when attempting to answer a CAIB IV exam question.
Applying knowledge requires proper english. Many students don’t write what they are thinking. This is a sign of going too quickly when attempting an answer. CAIB exams are based on 100 marks. Students are given 210 minutes to challenge a CAIB exam. This means that the time budget per mark is about 2 minutes. So, for a five mark question you have only 10 minutes to craft your answer. Budget your time.
Last time I checked the national average for a CAIB IV exam attempt is a failing grade. This tells me that students need to change the way they prepare.
Preparation is the key. There are no shortcuts.