A Problem?
56 courses whose syllabi appear on the Oberlin Online website were surveyed at random. These courses are from the three divisions of the college and represent both introductory and advanced courses. The number and kind of major assignments, examinations and papers, were counted. The results appear below.
|
Total Courses |
Courses with Papers |
Courses with Both |
Courses with Exams |
Courses w/ Papers due at Last Class |
Courses w/ Papers due at end of Reading Period |
Courses with Final Exams |
||
|
56 |
25 |
19 |
12 |
18 |
11 |
29 |
In courses that have exams (about half of the total), an average of 3.0 major exams are given. Almost all of the courses with exams have final exams.
In courses that have papers (about three-quarters of the total), an average of 2.1 major writing assignments are given. Of these assignments, nearly two-thirds are due right at the end of the semester.
Of course, many of the courses also have weekly problem sets/homework, grades for discussion, oral reports, etc. None of this activity was quantitated.
A few practices of note were: developmental deadlines for term papers (This beneficial practice was observed in less than half of the cases.); distribution of essay exam questions at the last class; out-of-class final exams due at the end of reading period or at exam time.
The survey points to the compression of student workload at the tail end of the semester by faculty design. Exacerbating this, of course, is student procrastination. Question: Do faculty see this as a problem? If so, how can it be addressed?
Solutions?
Have final papers due at the last class or earlier with developmental deadlines, if at all possible. Think of the last 10 days of the semester (Few exams are given during this period.) as a time when students complete their term papers.
Do not require the average student to spend more than 8 hours (equivalent to a week's worth of study time during the semester for each course) during Reading Period & Exam Period preparing for a final exam. Think of Reading Period as a time for study and reflection in preparation for exams.
Distribute out-of-class final exams at the start of Exam Period, do not require more than 2 hours of work on the exam, and make the exam due at its scheduled time.
- Rob Thompson (EPPC & COT)