With finals week upon us, it is always a time to reflect back on the semester, freak out about the current position you’re in, and get excited for the break that is in the close, but ever so distant future. This is also a time that many professors and instructors turn to the classic method of administering exams that are longer than an hour and cover every single bit of material from the first day to the last.
As students, we express our displeasure with these in a variety of ways, some of which cannot be repeated in public. This raises the question of whether or not this is the best practice of testing knowledge or if there should even be a specified week where all this knowledge rapidly enters and leaves students’ brains.
The simple answer is that, yes, this is the best practice. Time has proven this to be effective and it is part of the college experience. It teaches you more than the material, it forces you to be prepared and tackle the responsibility of a large project. The logical answer is, no, this is not the best way to test students.
I have had a wide variety of final exam set ups that include projects, exams that are not cumulative, exams that are cumulative, exams that are open note and open book, and even online exams. I have had varying success in each of these types of exams with my best performances coming in those classes with open notes and open book, for obvious reasons.
Each professor has his or her own opinion on the topic and I don’t think either one is totally, 100%, absolutely correct. There are certain scenarios that require a cumulative exam and there are those that are better suited for a different setup. If I were a professor, I would use a final exam that is very similar to the previous exams in terms of amount of material and types of questions asked, etc with a small portion that includes the primary concepts from the earlier part of the semester. There is no reason to ask minute details about something from a chapter that was covered 12 weeks ago as long as the concept is comprehended and understood.
No matter what your situation or role may be this finals week, I encourage you to accept the challenges presented in front of you and make it an opportunity to showcase your skills. Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor.
As students, we express our displeasure with these in a variety of ways, some of which cannot be repeated in public. This raises the question of whether or not this is the best practice of testing knowledge or if there should even be a specified week where all this knowledge rapidly enters and leaves students’ brains.
The simple answer is that, yes, this is the best practice. Time has proven this to be effective and it is part of the college experience. It teaches you more than the material, it forces you to be prepared and tackle the responsibility of a large project. The logical answer is, no, this is not the best way to test students.
I have had a wide variety of final exam set ups that include projects, exams that are not cumulative, exams that are cumulative, exams that are open note and open book, and even online exams. I have had varying success in each of these types of exams with my best performances coming in those classes with open notes and open book, for obvious reasons.
Each professor has his or her own opinion on the topic and I don’t think either one is totally, 100%, absolutely correct. There are certain scenarios that require a cumulative exam and there are those that are better suited for a different setup. If I were a professor, I would use a final exam that is very similar to the previous exams in terms of amount of material and types of questions asked, etc with a small portion that includes the primary concepts from the earlier part of the semester. There is no reason to ask minute details about something from a chapter that was covered 12 weeks ago as long as the concept is comprehended and understood.
No matter what your situation or role may be this finals week, I encourage you to accept the challenges presented in front of you and make it an opportunity to showcase your skills. Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor.