Practical Issues That Students Frequently Want to Know about the 2 Parts of the Unit Exam

Tips: What Helps Learning? from the FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

 

If you have questions about any of this webpage, please ask. I will expand these answers based on your questions. Tip: the password is at the bottom.

 

What Are the Two Parts of the Exams?

·         The objective part means methods that are machine gradable, such as multiple choice, true/false, ordering items, and matching items.

 

·         The written part means a good, competent factual explanation of something in the history covered in the Chapters within the Unit. There is no written part for Unit 3.

How All of the questions Are Done As Sets and What’s a Set?

A set in Blackboard’s exam tool is a group of questions that the instructor has placed together. Blackboard then displays to the student the number of questions the instructor specifies.

 

·         The objective part consists of 25 questions at 4 points each. I made 25 sets with each containing 3 to 5 or more possible questions, and I specify that Blackboard asks you 1 of them.
In other words, there are approximately 100 questions in the test that Blackboard could display for you to answer.

·         The written part displays 1 question worth 20 points for its contents. (A separate grade of 20 is for whether you follow the 5 Good Habits for Evidence with that content). I made 1 set with at least 6 questions, and I specify that Blackboard asks you 1 of them.

In other words, there are a minimum of about 6 possible written questions that Blackboard could display for you to answer.

What’s Different About the Written Part of the Unit Exams That Lets You Have Choices

Tip: If you have a test where I let you see all possible questions ahead of time, then you be sure that you prepare very well for each of the possible questions, but you only have to prepare for one of those choices.

 

The written part is different from the objective part. The written part expects you to know something about the major issues, but not everything about those issues.

 

The test does that by using questions where you have a choice, but you must write on only 1 of the choices.
Example if you were writing about Unit 1 for U.S. History I:

o   If Blackboard displays a question about some issue related to colonial regions, the question also lists that you may answer about New England OR the Middle Colonies OR the South.

o   If you got that question and you felt you understood New England best, you would answer the question only about New England.

Example if you were writing about Unit 1 for U.S. History II:

o   If Blackboard displays a question about some issue related to regions in the Gilded Age, the question also lists that you may answer about the North OR the South OR the West.

o   If you got that question and you felt you understood the West best, you would answer the question only about the West.

 

Time You Have for Each Part of the Test

·         You have thirty minutes for the objective part of the test

·         You have forty-five minutes for the written part of the test because of the general requirements for citation covered in Evidence Matters. These links may help you:

o   Specific requirements for Unit Writing Exams

o   Why Endnotes Should Be Part of Your Lifetime Skills Plus Student Example

 

Practical Issues About Content That Students Frequently Want To Know

What Is the Source of Objective Exam Questions?

·         The textbook

·         The required primary sources in the course itself

What Is the Source to Use in Answering Written Exams?

·         You must be specific and answer the question asked and use evidence appropriate for the question asked.

·         You must only use facts from the textbook or primary sources in the course.

What Is the Goal for Answering Written Exams?

·         It follows the 5 Good Habits for Evidence.

·         It helps you learn history and the best way to learn history is to try to teach it in a common sense but truthful and brief way.
Think of it as teaching your smart cousin something he or she must learn quickly but well. He or she would not want a lot of words or a lot of fluff.

 

The password – This is also on the Study Guide page.

You may take exams only 1 time; therefore, the password is


onetimeonly – no spaces and no capital letters.

 

 

 

Copyright C. J. Bibus, Ed.D. 2003-2016

 

WCJC Department:

History – Dr. Bibus

Contact Information:

281.239.1577 or bibusc@wcjc.edu

Last Updated:

2016

WCJC Home:

http://www.wcjc.edu/