How the CritiCall Spelling test works
You hear a target word spoken inside a sentence through your headset, then type the word. Many items are sound-alikes where the sentence decides the spelling, because a misspelled word in a dispatch note can change its meaning and delay help. Biddle also describes the module as covering commonly misspelled or misused words, so not every item is a sound-alike.
The score is the percentage you spell correctly. CritiCall is an American test, so American spellings are the ones marked right.
How to get the spelling right
Use the sentence, not just the sound:
- Listen to the whole sentence before you type. The meaning tells you which spelling it is.
- Ask what job the word does: a person, an action, a place or a description.
- If it is not a sound-alike, picture the word written down and check the usual traps: double letters, silent letters, ie and ei.
- Use American spelling throughout.
Worked examples
“The car drove past the school at high speed.” The word is a direction, not a verb, so it is PAST, not PASSED.
“The officer will cite the driver for speeding.” To cite is to issue a summons, so it is CITE, not SITE (a place) or SIGHT (seeing).
Tips for the real Spelling test
- Make a list of sound-alikes that turn up in emergency calls (brake and break, past and passed, their and there, site and cite) and learn which is which.
- If you learned British English, practise the American forms of words you use often, as those are what CritiCall marks right.
- TestGenius offers a Spelling sample to check your device and audio. It is not scored.
- Test your headset and, in Safari, allow auto-play for the test site before you begin.
Practise CritiCall Spelling on CogniPrep
Our version reads 25 words with your device’s built-in voice: the word, a sentence using it, then the word again. You type it, capitals are added for you, and you may replay each item once. The replay is ours; Biddle does not say whether the real test allows one. You get the percentage spelled correctly, with sound-alike mix-ups counted apart from misspellings. We leave out words British English spells differently, so a British spelling is never what costs you a mark here.