The following questions and answers may be useful to
test takers as they answer a performance based question
within the exam.
Question: The instructions window in the practice performance based question covers part of the workspace.
If I close this window in the real exam to answer the question, can I reopen it if needed?
Answer: The instructions are in a separate window, but this window cannot be closed during testing. It can,
however, be moved around to allow you to see the entire environment as needed.
Question: What does the Reset button do? Does it restart the question, or the entire exam—and will it delete
any work that I have already completed?
Answer: The Reset button inside a performance based question will reset that question only. It will remove
any work you have completed for that question, but nothing else. Selecting the Reset button allows
you to begin the question again.
Question: If I select the Done button in a question, does it end the exam? Or does it mean that I am done with
that question, even if I haven’t finished my answer? If I select the Done button and have completed
some work in the question, is my work saved?
Answer: The Done button means that you want to move on from that performance based question to the next
question in the exam.
- If you select the Done button and have completed any work toward your answer, your work will
be saved.
- Once you have clicked the Done button, whether or not you have performed any work toward your
answer, you can mark the question for review. If there is time left on the clock at the end of the
exam, you can return to the flagged question and continue working.
Question: I don’t see a timer in the practice question. Isn’t there a timer in the exam, so I know how much time
I have left?
Answer: There is a timer in all CompTIA exams, so that you know how much time you have left to complete
the exam. However, when you are inside a performance based question, which is an environment
simulated by software, the timer is not visible. You are advised to use your time wisely, marking the
question for review if you do not feel confident to provide the correct answer in a short timeframe.
The timer is visible for all parts of the exam except the performance based questions.
Question: If there is more than one way to get to a correct answer on a particular question, does the exam
scoring address that?
Answer: There may be questions for which there is more than one way to get to a correct answer. In that case,
the test taker will receive a correct score as long as the correct solution to the problem is achieved.
Question: Is partial credit given if I answer part of a performance based question correctly?
Answer: There may occasionally be a question for which partial credit is offered. However, exam questions are
confidential to CompTIA, so no further information can be provided regarding which questions may
offer partial credit.