Around midterms this year I posted checklists for writing online exams, and put the question about why open book exams might be more challenging than closed book exams.

Here’s what I’ve heard:

“Steve, I ran out of time!”

And “I knew the answers were in my notes or the text, but I ran out of time!”

Also, “I couldn’t find what I was looking for–it took too long and we only had 3 hours”

Or, “I didn’t start soon enough and ran out of time!” [This happens even with untimed exams with days to write and submit.]

There are two themes here (a) too much material, and (b) not enough time.

The good news is that you have control over both the material, and the time it takes to prepare. So just in case some of you have one of these coming up this week as your grand finale for the term, here are two tips.

1. Having enough time:
   1. You know my mantra by now–write out the tasks and schedule when you are going to do them. 
   2. Allow at least three times as long as you think you will need to prepare and to write.
   3. Schedule material preparation separately from writing the exam.
2. Accessing the material quickly once you open the exam:
   1. The key here is preparing the material for easy access. 
   2. Underlining and flashcards are tools for learning the material–they do not provide quick realtime access during the exam.
   3. Get ½ inch x 1 ½  inch page markers that you can write on.
   4. Flag your notes and texts by key sections and key words so that you can find concepts at a glance as they show up on the exam.

These two tips are the best insurance for not falling into the open book exam trap of too much material, and not enough time.

I work with students on organizing their course material for study during the term, and especially at the end of term preparing for exams. Contact me this term or next and let’s see how we can improve your winning exam-writing strategy [email protected] 

Exam Day:

1. Ground yourself when you get up. Breathe. Stretch. Meditate. Just 10 minutes is all it takes.
2. Eat a light breakfast or lunch.
3. Hydrate.
4. Don’t overhydrate.
5. Pee.
6. Pick up your exam kit and head off.

The Exam:

1. Arrive on time, but not too early–make yourself scarce–avoid the panic triggers of other students’ “Did you study this?”
2. Take your seat. Place your ID on your desk. Take a breath.
3. Fill in your name, ID, and date. That gets your brain rolling. 
4. Open the exam. Read the whole exam. See if there is a question on the back of the exam booklet.
5. Mark the easy questions.
6. Allocate your time, allowing a cushion factor.
7. Answer multiple choice first, then short answer questions next.
8. Mark any items you are unsure of. And GUESS!!! Your chances of getting a guess right are usually 1 in 4 or 5, unless the scoring is right minus wrong.
9. Your chances of getting a question right if you leave it blank are zero.
10. For essay questions, do a very quick outline on scrap.
11. Keep your eye on the clock or (better) your watch on the corner of your desk. Leave time to revisit questions you may have marked for returning to.
12. Check to make sure you have answered all questions, guessing where necessary.
13. DO NOT LEAVE EARLY UNLESS YOU ENJOY LEAVING DOLLAR BILLS ON THE TABLE. Who are you trying to impress by leaving early–the person who grades your paper? Who cares if you leave last? You have paid for this time . . .
14. As you leave, look around you. Avoid stressful rehashing with others. Just quietly leave. Reward yourself–have your music ready! The purpose here is to keep stress down–which is part of preparing for the next exam!

You wrote the exam!!  Next blog we’ll look at some post-exam clean-up; in the meantime, you will likely be getting ready for the next exam, or how you are going to celebrate end of term!

Please don’t hesitate to contact me at [email protected]