Thread: ... I had to make midterm examinations for the first time.

OK... I do pretty well in school and get decent enough grades on my exams usually. But now that I am doing some practicum thing I am getting credit for being a teacher. In any case I got to make and administer my first set of midterm examinations recently. Two classes with 103 people or so in each one.

I made one fifty question multiple choice exam for one class and the other class had forty multiple choice and four short answer questions.

Writing 50 multiple choice questions sucks. Half drawn from the book (which did not have a question battery) and the other half from lecture. Trying to come up with not only the question but four potential answers was a pain in my ass.

Writing 40 other multiple choice questions was also lame, especially right on top of the first 50... But this book had a test question battery (whew!).

But GRADING 400 total short answer questions is excruciating.

Seriously the worst reading experience I have ever had.

ouch that really sucks dude. I think I am going to be one of those people with real interesting answers on the short answer thats going to make reading it.....interesting.

hell if its multiple choice use a scantron?

Originally Posted by THATriggerHappy

hell if its multiple choice use a scantron?

Im assuming he did because he said that grading the short answers was a pain in the ass, not the MC

oh yea i misread.

Some people just generally have bad handwriting though, so that isn't really fair.

I know my hand writing isn't the best, but it is legible. I also know that when I am in a hurry on long, timed exams, I write faster and therefore get sloppy and sometimes it does get hard to read.

It's just the way I learned to write, I hate being punished for that.

I made all my tests, even midterms and finals, open notes. Only thing they couldn't use was the text book itself.

Of course....they all thought that meant it would be EASIER. Open notes = no mercy. Either you pay attnetion, keep up with the work, and keep clear notes....or you fail.

Originally Posted by Keiron

Some people just generally have bad handwriting though, so that isn't really fair.

I know my hand writing isn't the best, but it is legible. I also know that when I am in a hurry on long, timed exams, I write faster and therefore get sloppy and sometimes it does get hard to read.

It's just the way I learned to write, I hate being punished for that.

+1 my handwriting is not that great and i hated when teachers had a problem with that. its just not fair. its a good thing im not in school now cuz my thumb is still pretty fucked up and it hurts to hold a pen

I have pretty turrble handwriting too...gets worse when I'm rushed.