I have two versions of the exam. The questions are the same, but their order is different, as is the order of the answers for each question. I arrange the exams in one stack, alternating the versions, so that when they are passed out no student has the same version as the students on his left or right. I don't tell the students there are two different versions.
During the exam I noticed one student who kept 'casually' glancing around, lingering just a bit too long on his neighbor's exam. I didn't say anything, but noted his name. When I graded the exams his answers were a very close match to his neighbor's answers, who scored a 92.
The student with the wandering eyes got a 44.
Karma can be a bitch...
I once gave an exam that consisted solely of true/false questions. A blonde stared at the exam for a few minutes, then sighed and took a coin out of her pocket. She began tossing it in the air, and then marking her answer sheet after each toss - "Yes" for Heads and "No" for Tails. Within half-an-hour she was all done while the rest of the class was still sweating it out.
Then she starting tossing the coin again, muttering and swearing.
I walked over to her and asked "What are you doing?"
Her answer: "I finished the exam already. Now I'm rechecking my answers."
* * * * * * * * * *
Exams are like wives:
1. Too Many Questions.
2. Difficult to Understand.
3. More Explanation is Needed.
4. Result is always FAIL!
* * * * * * * * * *
The not necessarily well-prepared student sat in his life science classroom staring at a question on the final exam paper. The question said "Give four advantages of breast milk."
What to write? He sighed, and began to scribble whatever came into his head, hoping for the best:
1. No need to boil.
2. Cats can't steal it.
3. Available whenever necessary.
4. Available in attractive containers.
6 comments:
Great ones, and I've seen that first example used before! :-) And the last one... It's true too!
I guess they don't use "Blue Books" anymore; always tried to stay away from Prof's who expected you to fill up more than one Blue Book per-exam. I learned "The Art of Circular Thinking and Writing" taking Blue Book exams. I guess they don't use "Blue books" anymore; always tried to stay aways from Prof's who expected you to fill up more than one Blue Book per exam. I learned "The... ;-)
NFO - good humor always has an element of truth in it.
Pascvaks - I give blue book exams in my advanced classes. Students still fill up space by restating the question and engaging in circular thinking and restating the question and...
Don't it though...LOL
When I taught 9th graders in Mission, TX, I did the same thing on tests - two tests in reverse order. I actually had a student come to my desk and slap her test down and ask why she failed and her neighbor got an A. When I told her that she had copied off the wrong test, she got mad at me! No remorse what so ever!
Love the humor.
Yeah, I've had that reaction before. I've even had a student's parents complain that I caught their kid cheating. What a world...
We laugh to keep from crying.
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