WITH A week of classes left before the fall semester ends, students are left with the daunting responsibility of studying for all of their final exams within a short amount of time. Unfortunately, due to the way that some tests are scheduled, there are many instances where it is impossible to do so. One way that the students can be given more time to study, and thus can do appropriately well on their exams, is if professors administer more take-home finals. This test-taking alternative is extremely fair to the student, and more teachers ought to consider offering this option to their classes.
Due to the way in which the final exam schedule is arranged, the times at which a University student takes his final exams are based solely on the way that he constructs his class schedule at the beginning of the semester. Given that a University student is required to take certain classes both for his school and his major, scheduling classes in order to have a convenient final exam schedule understandably takes a lower priority than other factors, such as graduating on time and getting requirements out of the way. As a result, many students are often saddled with nightmarish exam schedules that allow no room for compromise. In especially bad situations, students will have one exam from 7-10 p.m. followed by another exam from 9-12 the next morning.
To remedy this, the University has a few rules in place that prevent over-scheduling and allow for exceptions to be made for students under special circumstances. These special circumstances include postponing an exam if the student has three in two days, and postponing two exams if the student has more than three exams in two days. However, these allowances, while suitable to the majority of the University population, is not suitable for everyone. Some classes do not allow students to reschedule their exams, and other students may have personal obligations, such as family functions and work schedules, that would not allow them to take the exams at a later date. Students should not be put in this situation, in which they will increase their chances of getting a bad grade by taking the courses that they need to take.
Professors should be testing a student's ability to synthesize the subjects that they teach. The way that the current system works, this is not being accomplished because finals are presently more about cramming rather than learning. The small time frame that closely-spaced exams create does not allow for a thorough studying session. Students learn the minimum that requires them to do well on the exam, and most will not be expertly versed in the three subjects being tested within a two-day time span.
Thus, it is a good idea if more professors trust the honor system, and give students timed take-home exams that are due on the scheduled date of the final. As long the University has an honor system that it lives under, its constituents ought to demonstrate confidence in the idealism that they strive for. By allowing students this kind of liberty, the University will benefit in two ways. Take-home exams will allow students to work to their fullest potential. Although the test is three hours long regardless of when or where the student takes it, it is the "when" and "where" that can mean the difference to people. Early birds may not function as well at 7 p.m. at night, and likewise, night owls may not function as well at 9 a.m. Location also matters, and some students may feel more comfortable taking an exam in the comfort of their dorm, while others may feel more comfortable taking the test in a hard-backed chair in the library. The freedom to choose when and where to take the exam allows for the student to work at his own optimum conditions, and the grade that they receive on the final will be a better reflection of the student's full potential.
More importantly, take-home exams would allow students to avoid the schedule conflicts that would prevent them from doing well in subjects that they ought to do well in. Students will be able to spread out their exams rather than having them consolidated within a two or three day time span, and they can work by their own clock while loosely adhering to the one set by the University. There is no harm done in giving students a sealed exam several days in advance, and then allowing them to complete it within three hours by the set deadline. No one is slighted by these actions; those who need to take the exam earlier can do so, and those who want to take the exam at its original time also would be able to do so as well. By trusting the student body to take final exams on its own, the University can more effectively bring out its students' fullest potential, and it can shift the objective of finals week from cramming the bare facts to truly applying the material learned throughout the year.
(Kevin James Wong's column appears Tuesdays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at kwong@cavalierdaily.com.)
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