Open Book Exams
My biggest difficulty here is the subject of open book exams. I, for the most part, do not ever use open book exams, except in very few circumstances. One example would be when a professional skills involves using reference materials to complete tasks.
Kimberly,
For me, I doubt open book exams should be the only way a student is assessed, although they may have their place in certain classes. I think looking up answers for information is more aligned with an independent study activity more than an assessment of learning.
Barry Westling
I notice that open book tests do not raise the students grades. If they do not read the book, they will not know where to look for the answers and they cannot complete the entire test in the class time. The students who normally get "A's" study still and know the answers and only need to look up several questions, but they still get an A. Just my obsrvation.
Hi Michelle:
When using an alternate evaluation method, like an open book exam, it is important to be sure the student understands the expectations, and the impact to their grade.
That said, it is completely the call of the instructor as to the value of an open book exam as compared to more traditional examination for determining how well a student has retained the information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Nuance:
When using an alternate evaluation method, like an open book exam, it is important to be sure the student understands the expectations, and the impact to their grade.
That said, it is completely the call of the instructor as to the value of an open book exam as compared to more traditional examination for determining how well a student has retained the information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Laura:
When using an alternate evaluation method, like an open book exam, it is important to be sure the student understands the expectations, and the impact to their grade.
That said, it is completely the call of the instructor as to the value of an open book exam as compared to more traditional examination for determining how well a student has retained the information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Bill:
When using an alternate evaluation method, like an open book exam, it is important to be sure the student understands the expectations, and the impact to their grade.
That said, it is completely the call of the instructor as to the value of an open book exam as compared to more traditional examination for determining how well a student has retained the information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Nathan:
When using an alternate evaluation method, like an open book exam, it is important to be sure the student understands the expectations, and the impact to their grade.
That said, it is completely the call of the instructor as to the value of an open book exam as compared to more traditional examination for determining how well a student has retained the information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Philip:
When using an alternate evaluation method, like an open book exam, it is important to be sure the student understands the expectations, and the impact to their grade. That said, it is completely the call of the instructor as to the value of an open book exam as compared to more traditional examination for determining how well a student has retained the information.
Regards, Barry
Hi Abigail:
Something that may be more effective than the method you've tried is to try to employ as many teaching styles as you can in order to address as many learning styles as possible. Selecting material and presenting it in a visual, audio, and kinesthetic way is considered the most efficient method of delivery.
Regards, Barry
Hi Brian:
You make a good point.
Similarly, the advantage of evaluating and then reviewing a test with the group is that it might allow a student to gain a better understanding of the rationale they need to answer similar questions that will occur on future exams. Also, it might trigger new questions about the subject matter that will help to stimulate a better understanding of the concepts overall.
Regards, Barry
Hi Kari:
Some might suggest the "learning" is the primary concern. So in some ways, as long as that has occurred, the class session was used effectively.
Regards, Barry
I agree. We are preparing these students to run out and get a job and for many it requires they know where to find the information needed. Where would the legal students be if they couldn't use references or guides? We can't expect these students to leave our facilities and know everything about their occupation, but we can expect them to know they have someplace to look if they need a little assistance with a situation.
I believe when the students are bombarded with some much info in so little time the best way to go is an open book test
I like this. The exam I am thinking of has so much memorization in a very short amount of time. I think the one page pre reviewed by me is a good idea. Thanks...I am going to use a version of it.
I tend to use open book exams quite frequently, and I believe it is the nature of the question - certainly not multiple-choice, true-false or short-answer/essay questions that merely asks the student to feed back some content - that determines whether it addresses critical thinking and independnet thought and not whether it is a closed or open-book exam
In the real world, we have access to everything to solve problems and complete projects, and so I think open book tests can be used on occasion, but they probably should be more difficult then a normal test. They should probably also be timed, to force students to think quickly, since in the real world projects have deadlines and they will need to learn to solve problems quickly at times.
Our Director of Education is against open book testing.
I understand the arguments for not having open book exams. In my basic writing classes and composition, I use a combination.
In parts of the exam, students must apply their knowledge; however, my rationale for some open book is that in writing, they often should look up rules of grammar, correct spelling, and word choice--and I want to encourage that.
Another issue I find in many of my classes is that students do not spend much time on the assigned book reading--even when I incorporate a weekly quiz at the starting time of class.
Phil
I teach English Composition at a culinary school and I do give my students a couple of open book grammar quizzes during the course of the term. They are very detailed and help students practice various concepts while preparing for the closed book final. I also view it as an opportunity for them to become better acquainted with their textbook so that they can view it as a resource for future papers and even professional correspondence.
I go back and forth about how I feel about the open book format (I inherited this grading method from a long-term instructor). My biggest concern, is that because it is open book, they don't take the time to study or review the topics covered and I'm surprised at how poorly some students do on these quizzes. It appears that some students don't know how to effectively USE their textbooks. Have other instructors witnessed this? For those of you who have found open book quizzes effective, do you also thoroughly go over how to find information in the textbook and how to use the resource effectively during such a quiz? Do students generally perform quite well on open book quizzes? I'm asking these questions because the last open book quiz I gave my class did quite poorly on. I'm wondering what I could have done differently to help them succeed.
