STA Biology FAQs (frequently asked questions)
	© Stephen T. Abedon
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	last updated on Tuesday, September 2, 1997

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The reading quiz questions are not like the test questions. Why is this?

The reading quiz questions are not intended to be tests of your knowledge or understanding, but instead they serve as a means to force you to read your text. The ideal reading quiz question, consequently, is one which you would have had to have read the assigned material to answer, but to answer you would not have had to have memorized the text. This is often a fine line, and some questions are more successful at walking this line than others. However, since ideally none of these questions probe too deeply your understanding and knowledge of the material, they are essentially by definition not the same as exam questions because exam questions are, in fact, written to test your knowledge and understanding of the material, particularly that presented in lectures.

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Practice questions are often not like the test questions. Why is this?

Practice questions are questions that I have presented on previous exams. Thus, I am not so much supplying you with practice questions as giving away actual exam questions. So what? Well, this means two things: First, the practice questions are not a representative sample of all of the types of questions I might ask on future exams (though, of course, with time they will come to approximate this ideal). Second, the existence of the practice questions would more likely bias me to write questions that differ from the practice questions than to write similar ones, since I should be actively avoiding presenting questions on exams which you have already seen. However, note that in reality I tend to write exam questions on the fly without consulting the practice questions I present to you. In addition, it certainly is not beneath me to recycle practice questions as exam questions. But all of this rambling misses a salient point: So what if the practice questions are not like the test questions? You are not tested on your ability to answer practice questions. Instead you are tested on the degree to which you know and understand the material which the practice questions address.

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I expect memory-intensive questions, but you ask questions on exams which require that I think rather than merely regurgitate information. Why is this?

Yes, I do have a tendency to put a few questions on exams which actually require you to think. Note the following: Biology as a science is not one which has been erected through memorization. Even applied biology is not limited to memorization (e.g., medicine). Therefore, part of your training as a biologist should (must!) involve some requirement of thought. Furthermore, questions which require thinking are often ones which, instead of requiring novel thought, require merely that you link together memorized information from more than one source (e.g., more than one lecture). Thus, far from being true thought questions, more often than not such questions are simply tough memory questions. If you haven't memorized the material as well as the next gal, doesn't it make sense that the next gal should have less trouble with tough memory questions?

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I am responsible for too much material on exams. You can't possibly expect me to learn all of it, can you?

I wouldn't present it in lectures if I didn't expect you to know it on exams. Yes, there is way too much material. Yes, biology is a vast science. Yes, this is all new to you. And, unless I explicitely tell you otherwise, if I say it, you are responsible for it.

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The exams you give are too hard. That's an oversight on your part, right?

Oh come now, the exams are not that hard. The hard part is learning all of the material. Once you have learned all of the material, the exams really aren't all that superlatively difficult. But if they are, then I suggest that it is time that you got used to what biology exams are all about. And if there is anything else that I might do besides supplying you with past exam questions which might help you to increase your experience with biology exams, then please let me know.

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I studied very hard but still didn't do well. Doesn't that mean that your exams are too hard?

If you know all of the material but still can't answer the questions, then let me know. If you can't answer the questions because of your not knowing all of the material, then we need to discuss strategies which will allow you to learn all of the material. However, all of these strategies basically come down to this: Organize and practice your knowledge of the material thoroughly and well before the night prior to the exam. Basically, if you are still learning material for the exam on the night prior to (or day of) the exam, there should be no question as to why you might perform less well on an exam than you think you ought.

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I used your on-line lecture notes only for the practice questions. That makes sense, doesn't it?

While it certainly pleases me that someone (anyone) out there might find my on-line lecture notes useful, please note that I consider the practice questions to be among the least important material presented in these notes. If you are using these notes particularly because for the practice questions, you are not exactly wowing me with an example of your dedication to learning the material. Remember, practice questions are simply a sample of questions which I might put on the exam. If you have studied all of the material I present during lectures and can then successfully answer all of the practice questions, then you are probably ready to take the exam. However, of far greater importance, if the material covered by a practice question was covered during a lecture and you either can't or have trouble answering questions, then you might consider studying a bit more, harder, well, and sooner.

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I ignored suggestions that I take advantage of the resources at the Conard Learning Center. It still isn't my fault that I did poorly on an exam, right?

In deference to my realization that I am certainly not perfect (though I try) and my experience that my pleas for students to work harder and better in their studying often are ineffective, I instead pass on to the skilled individuals of the Conard Learning Center the task of teaching, to those who are willing to learn, how to be better and more effective students/studiers. If you pass up the opportunity and instead rely on me as your sole source of guidance on how to succeed in school, you are being awfully foolish (however, see below).

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The first exam was nothing like the second exam? That's not fair, right?

There is no reason that two different exams, especially which cover two different areas of knowledge, should be identical or even similar. If I have in some way violated your expectations by not making each of my exams more similar to the rest, then try to think of it this way: Your job is to learn biology, not necessarily to learn how to take one of my exams. I am, therefore, under no obligation to be consistent from exam to exam, only to fairly test you on your knowledge and understanding of the material. Indeed, if you find that you do less well on an exam which is of one format, then consider yourself fortunate that I have a tendency to vary formats from exam to exam, rather than sticking with the format you least prefer.

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It doesn't matter how poorly I do on exams since my grade is curved, right?

More or less, if you do worse than average in this course, your grade will be less than that which is average for students finishing this course. If you do much worse than average, then your grade will be much less than that which is average for students finishing this course. Significantly less than average is a D. Much less than average is an E. The class as a whole may do much better with a curve than without one. However, should a curve be provided then how well an individual does is solely a function of how well they do in comparison with the class, whichever is greater. If you want to assure that you do well, you need to perform well when examined, curve or no curve.

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I prefer multiple choice questions to essay and fill in the blank questions. It's unfair to have questions other than multiple choice on an exam, right?

Life, of course, is not a multiple choice exam. In fact, multiple choice exams don't exist for your convenience. Instead, they represent a form of examination which is, big surprise here, easier for instructors to grade. They are also typically more difficult to write, but the more students one has in a class, the greater this initial cost is mitigated. They don't exist to make your life easier. It is a shame that their use has led students to think that somehow their knowledge of the world should be limited to that necessary to take a multiple choice exam. It shouldn't, of course. And you shouldn't base your studying strategies on an expectation of multiple choice exam questions in this or any course.

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I prefer fill in the blank and essay questions to multiple choice questions. Why do you persist in your use of stupid multiple choice questions?

Bravo! Bravo! I humbly apologize for this weakness. See my answer to the above question.

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If only you had given a review session prior to the exam I would have known what you wanted me to know. In the absence of a review session it is your fault that I did less well than I wanted to on the exam, right?

Wrong. I expect you to know everything that I present in lectures. If you think that I have presented something in a lecture that I couldn't possibly want you to know, then you need to ask me to clarify my position on that specific item. A review session where I describe exactly what I want you to know for an exam, therefore, is impossible since I would essentially have to go over all of the material I had previously gone over in all lectures given prior to an exam. This is not to say that a review session cannot be useful to both you and me. Particularly, if I can clarify points made in lectures, a review session just prior to an exam is a useful time to do this, especially since this is the point at which your understanding of the material is likely greatest. However, note that you are free to ask questions and request clarifications any time during lectures, on any point present or past. A review session would be no different. The onus for requesting clarifications and asking questions still lies with you. Allow me also to point out that if you are waiting until just prior to an exam to know what will be on that exam, then this implies, by definition, that you have put off studying for the exam until the last moment. Putting off studying for a biology exam until the last moment is a recipe for disaster. Finally, I'm quite happy to participate in review sessions. I just won't have them during lectures (except to a limited extent) and I won't be responsible for organizing them. Hint 1: The earlier prior to an exam that you attempt to organize the review session, the more likely I will be able to attend it. Hint 2: Organizing a review session by e-mail is a good alternative to organizing one during class. Let me know if you would like to do this and I can assist you in your gathering of the e-mail addresses of your classmates.

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Just what do expect from me?

I expect you to have learned all of the material I present in lectures to the fullest of your ability.

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I would have come to you for help but was afraid that you would count that against me.

Please, if you ever have any problems, insights, or even rewarding experiences which you would like to share with me, don't hesitate to stop by and do so.

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What can I do to improve my performance in biology courses?

1. Only put things off to the last minute if you need to maximize the number of things that you are doing, rather than maximizing the quality of any one thing. You will face enough situations in life where quantity must come first, to start out with this attitude so early in your lives. Instead, do whatever you can do to ease up your burden. Take it easy. Relax. Devote yourself to what you are doing now. Don't spread yourself too thin. Think quality, quality, quality. Save quantity, quantity, quantity only for those times when you have absolutely no choice, then live with your consequences.

2. Every day you should organize your notes, particularly those notes you have just received in lectures attended that day. This might involve copying over those notes into something more legible, or an easier to study from form. Regardless, the trick is to turn today's notes into a lasting document which makes sense and is easy to use. This will greatly ease your burden come test time since you will now be able to devote your time to studying for the exam rather than just organizing your notes. Remember, technically you haven't even begun to study for an exam until you are done organizing your notes, and therefore have defined exactly what it is that you will be studying.

3. You should have every relevant point in your notes, if not your entire organized notes document, completely memorized at least three days (or so) prior to the exam. That is, you should be able to recite the entire document from memory with only minimal cueing. Essentially this means that you will know the notes better than your instructor does, though not necessarily with nearly the same depth. Doing this (as well as step 2) will allow you to identify and clarify trouble spots long before the exam is upon you. You can either study your notes each day to achieve memorization, or devote a previous weekend to this memorization. Either way, you will know when you are have achieved A-level preparedness when the difficulty associated with studying far exceeds the difficulty you have actually taking the exam (note: for exams which are problem intensive, you should instead do problem sets each day and have each problem typeso well thought out these three or so days prior to the exam that you can literally do them in your sleep).

4. On the night before the exam you should study only to the extent that you need to prove to yourself that you really do have your notes document completely memorized (or run through all assigned problems two or three times just to prove to yourself you've still got it).

5. Get a good night's sleep.

6. On exam day, enjoy yourself. Don't bother studying anything except those few things you need to force into short term memory (and limit these to as few things as possible, preferably none at all). Read a book or magazine. Take a shower. Stretch out. Relax. An exam is an event (just like running a 10 kilometer road race is an event). The maximum success you are going to have in an event has already been decided by the day of the event. All that is left is to do is whatever it takes to assure that you actually realize your maximum. Usually this means taking it easy and looking forward to taking the exam rather than needlessly psyching yourself out.

7. Remember that I can easily tell if you have failed to heed much of the above advice if you are still studying, for example, as I hand out the exam. In addition, I can tell that you are not relaxed, enjoying an exam, treating it as an event, or fully prepared when you either complain about how much you are suffering while taking it, or when you leave early rather than either meditating on the exam during your remaining time or rechecking your answers (in fact, it is typically my best students who take the longest to complete an exam). Minimally, you are not leaving others with all that great an impression of your dedication to the course if you are still studying right up to the start of an exam, or if you finish and leave an exam early, especially much earlier than your peers.

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