Rebecca Soto, ABOC, NCLEC

The American Board of Opticianry NOCE Exam is a two-hour multiple-choice national certifying exam. It consists of six domains, Ophthalmic Optics; Ocular Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology; Ophthalmic Products; Instrumentation; Dispensing Procedures; and Laws, Regulations and Standards.

Over the past two years, I had the pleasure of teaching the American Board of Opticianry basic exam review course at many national and state conferences. The basic exam review course is six hours. I’m not sure about you, but I have a hard time sitting all day and listening to someone lecture. This is why as an educator, I try my best to create an environment that is engaging and interactive. However, I do this not only because I dislike a boring lecture class, I do it because it makes students take ownership of their learning. They become actively engaged in their learning, participating and collaborating with others instead of scrolling Facebook or Instagram.

When teaching these review courses, I help the student connect real-life optical to a written exam. In addition, I give tips for breaking down questions and answering what the exam really is asking. For those who work in the field, many parts of the exam should be familiar. Topics such as lens materials, frame materials, lens characteristics, fitting, adjustments and measurements are all topics most apprentice opticians utilize in their everyday work. However, what about the topics most apprentice opticians utilize in their everyday work, but are unsure of what they are on paper?

This summer I presented an ABO review course for The Professional Opticians of Florida. POF hosted a Summer Showcase & Contact Lens Symposium 2018 in Daytona Beach. The Symposium was filled with an array of amazing courses.

The participants in the review course were a special group and definitely a lot of fun! Most of them were apprentice opticians in Florida. For the most part, they were all familiar with a lensometer and utilized it on a regular basis at work. As part of the course, we worked in a group on formulas for the exam. One included the optical cross. Many were unfamiliar with an optical cross, how to make an optical cross, and, how to break down an optical cross question. Which, let’s face it, could be a question on the exam.
Well, hold on to your seats, folks. Just like a participant said in the course, “OH MY GOD YOU JUST BLEW MY MIND!”

An optical cross is the same thing as a lensometer except on paper. BAM! If you know how to use a lensometer and read lenses, you can break down an optical cross question on paper, and even more mind-blowing, you can break down a lensometer question on paper. Let me give you an example. An optical cross depicts the following powers -2.00 with an axis of 75 and -3.00 with an axis of 165. What is the power of the lens? When I asked this question, only one person knew how to answer. Now, let us make the question relatable. When reading a lensometer your “skinny mires/first reading” is a -2.00 with an axis of 75, the “second reading/thick mires” is a -3.00. What is the power of the lens? The answer to both questions is -2.00-1.00 x075.

At that, many students had an “ah-ha!” moment. It’s the moment I live for as an educator. If the topics are relatable and broken down for students, they will be successful on the exam. When preparing for an exam, contact your state agency and find a local review course that uses the same method.