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Philosophy and exams
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As a man who suspects he's about to be mugged of a few marks in the next
couple of days, as results are due, what do people think of philosophy
exams?
I can see pros and cons.
On the 'con' side: Most (time) of the course I'm on involves writing essay
papers over a few days, with a known question and some reference books.
It's a good mode of operating, can be stressful when you don't leave
enough time, but there's a fairly reliable correlation of effort and
result. I am then examined at the end, using *a completely different
skill*. One that I haven't practised during the year, have not had
feedback on my technique for, and which I am poorly prepared for by the
longer, more involved essays that are required for good marks during
continuous assessment. There's really not much you can do in an hour,
especially when you don't know what you're going to be asked. Furthermore,
it doesn't seem to resemble professional philosophy life very much, which
*is* about writing papers over several days or weeks from MA onwards, at
least on most courses I've heard described. So what on Earth is the point
of the philosophy exam?
Pro side: Continuous assessment essays can be bought off the internet or
copied. Exams are definitely your own work. You only write on 8-9 topics
per module on continuous assessment. By not telling you what's in the
exam, you are being forced to learn more than you will write on - extra
coverage without extra marking load. The marking load for assessing
everybody fully, with prepared, carefully worked-out papers on all topics
in a module, would be too much for most departments. It is difficult
enough to get all the one-hour exam essay scripts marked.
So, any important points here? Is the exam a pragmatic response and
compromise that helps departments not students? Or are these just the
suspicions and embittered ramblings of a scared and under-prepared man?
Rab.
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