I'm writing this in the middle of a class! Don't I feel naughty! ; )
Don't shake your finger at me, sir or madame, my students are currently taking an exam. The beautiful silence is so relaxing. And, well, 99% of them already finished. Like, an hour ago. So I'm left to ponder the fact that no matter how short the exam is, and no matter how much time is allotted, there is always a student that takes the whole time. I don't think I've ever had an exam where I didn't have to stay to the very end for at least one student.
Don't get me wrong; I don't care that they do. I usually just sit here and grade papers or return e-mails or doodle or daydream about food (pizza or chocolate, usually, if you're curious). It's more like I'm sort of amazed. I think a lot of them are actually the good students who are super anal retentive and have to go back over their exam ad nauseum until they're certain they haven't made a single mistake. Some of them are just slow test-takers. Some of them are just slow.
Hey! Molasses-girl must be finished, because she's getting up to... no, never mind. She just asked a question I wasn't able to comment on ("is 'b' the right answer?" Has she ever actually had success with that tactic? I hope not). Oh, well. Half an hour more with Molasses and then I can hit the Scantron... hope you're all having a good Thursday!
Cal
They do eventually leave. I don't impose time limits on my exams at all unless forced to for logistical reasons. The last person typically leaves after 4 hours for a test that's "officially" 2 1/2 to 3 hours, designed such that I expect most to finish in 2 hours and can be done without rushing in about 45 minutes by the brightest students.
ReplyDeleteSometimes the late leavers are the bright ones meticulously checking all their work 3 times (though it's very likely they earned their A with the first attempt) Other times I've had people who appeared to be working the whole way through but then handed in a paper that was less than half completed.
I'm fairly sure, contrary to research I've seen that claims otherwise, that the extra time makes next to no difference. If they don't remember how to do the problem first time through, then the crazy or desperate inspiration that eventually strikes them is usually no better than a blank answer. On the other hand, it does help to alleviate the pressure on those most heavily struck by test anxiety. Also, it means I don't have to bother making special accommodations very often, since most of these apparently translate into extra time for tests.
Once I mentioned to my department chair that a certain student flunked the final. He made mention of the student's disability and asked me if I had given him extra time on the (3 hour) exam. I said that he used one hour to take the exam and another hour to convert it into PDF as I don't take .doc files (one of his accomodations was using a computer).
ReplyDeleteIn writing classes, it's the majority who leave early who make me crazy. I'd much rather read an essay that a good student labored over, using all the time allotted and then pushing for as much extra as possible, than I would some half gestated preemie: sickly, unformed, and, well, kinda ugly.
ReplyDeleteI impose a time limit on multiple choice tests. Otherwise, the ankle biters will wait for divine intervention.
ReplyDeleteRegardless of exam format, I tell students not dawdle over questions.
Of course, I eliminated most of these problems by eliminating exams. That story, though, should be reserved for a post.
I gave exams today also, mostly without incident or odd occurrence. However, in my last class of the day, an 80 minute class, one of my special snowflake-athletes showed up 55 minutes late. Needless to say he didn't finish the exam until . . . 15 minutes later. WTF!!!!!! I figure if I have enough booze before I look at it, his score, like my sight, might double.
ReplyDeleteHahaha... Pat, I wish you worked at my school so we could go out for drinks after faculty meetings.
ReplyDelete