Police Now Assessment Online Assessment and Cognitive Ability Tests Syllabus

In critical reasoning, define 'bias' in a written source.

Bias is a one-sided slant where a source emphasises information that supports a particular view while downplaying or omitting opposing evidence, often shown through emotive or loaded language.

What is the difference between a fact and an opinion when analysing a policing-style passage?

A fact can be verified or measured objectively (e.g. 'crime fell by 5%'), whereas an opinion expresses a judgement, belief or value ('the policy was a success') that cannot be directly proven from data alone.

What is an 'inference' in reading comprehension?

A conclusion drawn from evidence and reasoning in the text rather than from an explicit statement — what the passage implies but does not directly say.

What reading technique helps you answer comprehension questions fastest under time pressure?

Skim the passage for structure/gist first, read the question to know what you are looking for, then scan back to the relevant lines to locate the precise supporting detail — avoid reading every word deeply upfront.

Convert the fraction $\frac{3}{5}$ to a percentage.

$\frac{3}{5} = \frac{3 \times 20}{5 \times 20} = \frac{60}{100} = 60\%$.

What is the formula to find a percentage of a quantity?

$\text{Part} = \frac{\text{percentage}}{100} \times \text{whole}$. For example, $15\%$ of $200$ is $\frac{15}{100} \times 200 = 30$.

How do you calculate a percentage change between an old and new value?

$\text{Percentage change} = \frac{\text{new} - \text{old}}{\text{old}} \times 100\%$. A positive result is an increase, a negative one a decrease.

Crime in an area fell from 250 incidents to 200. What is the percentage decrease?

$\frac{200 - 250}{250} \times 100\% = \frac{-50}{250} \times 100\% = -20\%$, i.e. a $20\%$ decrease.

A team has 3 sergeants for every 12 constables. Express this ratio in its simplest form.

$3:12 = 1:4$ (divide both sides by their greatest common factor, 3).

How do you share a quantity in a given ratio, e.g. divide 60 hours in the ratio $2:3$?

Add the parts ($2+3=5$), divide the total by the number of parts ($60 \div 5 = 12$), then multiply: $2 \times 12 = 24$ and $3 \times 12 = 36$ hours.

Define a 'rate' and give a policing example.

A rate compares two quantities with different units, e.g. crime rate $= \frac{\text{number of crimes}}{\text{population}}$, often expressed per 1,000 people: $\text{rate} = \frac{\text{crimes}}{\text{population}} \times 1000$.

A region has 450 burglaries among a population of 90,000. What is the burglary rate per 1,000 residents?

$\frac{450}{90000} \times 1000 = 5$ burglaries per 1,000 residents.

When reading a data table, what should you check FIRST before doing any calculation?

The row and column headings and the units (e.g. thousands, %, per year) — misreading units or which row/column applies is the most common avoidable error.

On a line graph, what does a steeper slope between two points indicate?

A faster rate of change — the value is increasing (or decreasing) more rapidly per unit of time than where the line is shallower.

In a pie chart, how do you convert a sector's angle into a quantity?

The fraction of the whole is $\frac{\text{sector angle}}{360^{\circ}}$; multiply this by the total to get the quantity. E.g. a $90^{\circ}$ sector is $\frac{90}{360} = \frac{1}{4}$ of the total.

What is the formula for the average (arithmetic mean) of a set of values?

$\text{mean} = \frac{\text{sum of all values}}{\text{number of values}}$.

Quickly estimate $19.8 \times 4.9$ using rounding, then state why estimation helps in timed tests.

Round to $20 \times 5 = 100$ (actual $\approx 97$). Estimation lets you eliminate implausible multiple-choice options instantly and check that a precise answer is in the right ballpark.

What is a fast mental strategy to find $10\%$, $5\%$ and $1\%$ of any number?

$10\%$ = move the decimal one place left (divide by 10); $5\%$ = half of $10\%$; $1\%$ = divide by 100. Combine these to build other percentages (e.g. $15\% = 10\% + 5\%$).

State the relationship between speed, distance and time.

$\text{speed} = \frac{\text{distance}}{\text{time}}$, which rearranges to $\text{distance} = \text{speed} \times \text{time}$ and $\text{time} = \frac{\text{distance}}{\text{speed}}$.

A patrol car travels 36 km in 45 minutes. What is its average speed in km/h?

45 minutes $= 0.75$ h, so $\text{speed} = \frac{36}{0.75} = 48$ km/h.

In a resource-allocation problem, if 4 officers can search a building in 6 hours, how long would 8 officers take (assuming work scales evenly)?

Total work $= 4 \times 6 = 24$ officer-hours; with 8 officers, time $= \frac{24}{8} = 3$ hours (inverse proportion: more officers, less time).

In a number-sequence test, what should you calculate first to identify the pattern?

The differences between consecutive terms; if the differences are constant the sequence is arithmetic, if the ratio between terms is constant it is geometric (multiplicative).

Identify the next term: $2, 6, 18, 54, \ldots$

$162$ — each term is multiplied by 3 (a geometric sequence with common ratio $\times 3$).

Identify the next term: $1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, \ldots$

$13$ — it is the Fibonacci sequence, where each term is the sum of the previous two ($5 + 8 = 13$).

In an 'odd one out' question, what is the recommended approach to find the answer?

Identify the single rule or shared property that the majority of items obey (shape, colour, count, rotation, category), then select the one item that breaks that rule.

Define deductive reasoning and contrast it with inductive reasoning.

Deductive reasoning applies general rules to reach a guaranteed conclusion (if premises are true, the conclusion must be true). Inductive reasoning infers a probable general rule from specific observations, so its conclusion is likely but not certain.

Given the rule 'All squares in this set are shaded' and 'Shape X is a square', what can you deduce about Shape X?

Shape X is shaded — this is a valid deduction (syllogism) because X falls under the category to which the rule applies.

What is a sound pacing strategy when a cognitive test has, say, 30 questions in 20 minutes?

Budget the time per question ($\frac{20}{30} \approx 40$ seconds each), flag and skip anything taking too long, and return to skipped items only after securing all the quick marks.

In timed aptitude tests, why is it usually better to make an educated guess than to leave a question blank (when there is no negative marking)?

With no penalty for wrong answers, a guess gives a non-zero chance of a mark whereas a blank guarantees zero; always answer every question before time runs out.

Why is practising under realistic timed conditions more valuable than untimed practice?

It builds the pacing, stamina and pressure-management you need on the day, exposes your speed weaknesses, and trains you to make accurate judgements quickly rather than just whether you 'can' answer.

List three practical steps to manage test-day technical and environment issues for an online assessment.

(1) Test your internet, browser, webcam and device in advance and have a backup connection; (2) sit in a quiet, well-lit, distraction-free room with the door closed; and (3) know the support/contact procedure so you can report any malfunction immediately and calmly rather than panicking.