After 15 strenuous weeks, we are in the final stretch as only one week of final exams stands between us and winter break, Hoosiers.
Exams, for most of us, will count up to 20 to 40 percent of our final grade. A semester full of homework, presentations, projects, essays, pop quizzes and tests comes down to a two-hour exam that measures our knowledge of the material.
But do final exams really measure how much we’ve learned, or do they measure how good our rote memorization skills are and our ability to cram information?
The bottom line is final exams are not an accurate representation of the work a student puts in during the semester, and they certainly are not representative of a student’s learning and retention.
So why do they have the potential to make or break someone’s grade?
My freshman year, I took a course where my final exam was worth 46 percent of my final grade. If that doesn’t have the potential to make or break a grade, I don’t know what does. I’m no math wiz, but I don’t think two hours is proportionate to 15 weeks of work.
Needless to say, I spent the weeks leading up to the exam in a frantic state of studying, crying and consuming my weight in coffee. I finished the class with a B.
Fast forward one year and I can confidently tell you that I remember nothing about the subject. What will I remember about the class? Stress.
No IU, this was not something that could be fixed by a cuddle session with puppies, no matter how cute they are.
I spent an entire semester too worried about the weight of exams to actually learn anything in the class. Valuable learning time and money was wasted all because of an exam worth half my grade.
I’m not saying we should do away with finals completely, as we need some form of assessment of our knowledge.
I’m saying that instead, these finals should be in the form of a project, presentation or paper where students can show their ability to apply concepts rather than spit out information like a robot.
These alternative forms of finals give students the opportunity to apply their knowledge in a way that pertains to them personally, which is much more meaningful than any test could ever be.
Tests may be a useful tool in determining what students have learned in some cases, but when the test is worth such a significant portion of the final grade and covers 15 weeks worth of material, it isn’t a conducive learning environment for anyone.
tatadams@indiana.edu
@TatianaDeWitt
