Once again my students are preparing for an exam and once again I am preparing to write up the exam they will be given. It is a complex course I teach. The students have three subjects, three instructors, three tests and a combination of in-class work, lecture, guest speakers and guest artists. One has trouble blaming them for asking what they should focus on while preparing for the exam. As such, they are given access to review materials in order to assist them in their studies. In truth, these review materials are often nothing more than the slides and notes of a presentation, a series of terms, or a set of weblinks. What is more interesting to me is the type of question that will be asked.
Our subject is art, culture, and the issues surrounding the constant merger of those two broad categories in daily life. This is the stuff of critical thinking, important discussions and in-depth analysis. However, as I said above, there are three of almost everything. This complicates such a lofty goal. There are also near one hundred students. The course falls under what is known as a core course, meaning that it resolves some requirement for graduation. This is the type of thing that ensures artists are exposed to science and atheletes are exposed to art. It is a good thing, but often it means that students are less than motivated to be taking the class in the first place. Oftentimes courses like these ask questions of the multiple choice variety. While that type has its place I’ve always prefered more options than A, B, C, and D.
While I do ask questions of the ABCD variety I also make sure to ask the students about what makes them connect to the material in the course. As I said, it is about the collision of art and culture. These students are constantly exposed to this collision and they are able to think intelligently about that collision if we give them the change. Other than classroom discussion, short answer questions are my way of allowing them to vent, share what they know (and oftentimes what I might not), and better show me how to best teach them. Some people hate short answer questions… I always thought of them as an opportunity to put myself on the page.