Writing open book exams vs closed-book exams

Describe if you think it works better to have an openbook test or closedbook test for students. Open book exams are different to a standard exam as you are allowed to bring resources into the exam with you. What are the comparative advantages of openbook versus closed. You may be limited to your own notes only or just to the textbook. In the restricted form of open book exam, the students are allowed to bring into the examination hall one or more books approved by the teacher. All 59 students agreed to participate in the study and signed a written. Open book examination must not have questions like who invented the theory of relativity. Agarwal, karpicke, kang, roediger, and mcdermott 2008 found that students performed better on openbook tests, but their retention of this knowledge over the longterm was the same as that of the students who took closed. Exams are not about memorizing stuff and just writing them to get high scores.

Time is of the essence, so the more prepared a student is the better they will do. On some tests, ive allowed students a 3x5 card, or a one page cheat sheet. Half the participants open book group were allowed to use their notes and the course materials, which had been distributed at the beginning of each class. Here are some tips for preparing for a law school exam, regardless of its format. What are the comparative advantages of openbook versus. The effort a law student puts into studying should be identical regardless of whether the exam is open book or closed book. What do you think of closed book exams the student room. We must solve each and every exercise problems to answer all the exams. Open book examination is about writing an examination by keeping the textbook and notebook open. Closed book exams require more memorization, but open book exams may demand more information from the student. Last year, lots of students struggled with gcse english literature as it was a closed book exam. Among educators, an excellent way to incite a debate is to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of any particular testing protocol.

Open book and closed book examination are two types of examinations that show difference between them when it comes to their meaning, concept, and application. I would like to know the advantages and disadvantages of openbook exams as compared to closedbook exams, particularly in standard undergraduate courses like calculus or linear algebra. The study explored the application of closedbook, openbook and cheatsheet exams in an undergraduate cost and management accounting course at a university in ghana. The government have made new gcse english lit exams closed book rather than open book, so you cant take your texts into the exam with you and have to learn the quotes. This is usually met with relief, or joy, or gratitude.

Gharib decided to change his traditional, closedbook testing style about 10 years ago. Examining the testing effect with open and closedbook tests pooja k. What do the terms openbook, closedbook, secure, and non. And also the children cannot know about exams when they grow up. On law school exams, open book and closed book discourse. Preparing for openbook exams unsw current students. Openbook exams, closedbook exams, assessment, assurance of learning, education. Thoughts on closed book and open book exams parliament has debated whether students should continue to be allowed only closed book exams in gcse english and english literature. While traditional closed book exams require recall and memorisation, open book exams.

For example, you might be given a problem or a scenario and asked to apply concepts from several parts of the course. The goal is to evaluate the students understanding and skills, i. Throughout pharmacy school, i have taken closedbook, opennote, cheat sheet, takehome, and even group exams. When i tell students that they can bring in their textbook for the exam, they get. What do the terms openbook, closedbook, secure, and nonsecure exam mean. Secure is examsofts term for closedbook law school exams. The petition to authorise open book exams reads as follows. I dont no what to write because i want an answer and they are telling me to give my opinions on it. Open book exams are by no means simple and the answers will not be right in front of you. If the use of supplementary materials during a course examination is to be permitted, notice to that effect should be given to the class by the beginning of the fourth week in onequarter courses and by the beginning of the second quarter in all courses which extend beyond one quarter. This is true for all types of law school exams, but especially true on open book exams because all of the students have all of the rules in front of them. My practice about 20 years of teaching has always been to give openbook opennotes exams, allowing the students to use their books and notes during the exam. Instead, open book exams tend to ask students to apply, analyze, synthesize, comparecontrast or evaluate 1 information.

I didnt have an openbook exam until i was in an upperdivision class. Find out if open book examination is better than closed book examination. The essential difference between closed book examinations and open book examinations is that the former can still be used to evaluate how much the students have memorised, while th e latter cannot. They felt that they did about as well on openbook exams as on closedbook exams. A surprise test conducted in the eighth week demonstrated better results for the closed book group. Ideally, you should have them completely ingrained in your head by the time you take your final and this goes whether you have a closed book exam or an open book exam indeed, the preparation should not be much different for open book or closed book exams. Do you approach outlines and memorizing the terminology any differently you would for closed book exams, or is it generally similar to closed book studying. The introduction of closed book examinations, for gcse english literature, requires students to learn and memorise quotes for this exam. I think you make a good point, but dont go far enough. Difference between open and closed book examination. So another tip for openbook exams is to practice exams and make sure that you focus on writing a stellar analysis. Open book exams are actually very easy to design at least i think so, and i favor them in my own teaching. Students have been surveyed and pretty much 10 out of 10 prefer open book exams. Open book exams allow you to take notes, texts or resource materials into an exam situation.

In the sciences, most exams are a closedbook affair. It will put an end to the habit of teaching to the test. Can students still learn if they are examined in open book. There are two kinds of open book examinations, the type and the. Closed book exams just like open book exams but without notes ill let everyone in on the big secret about closed book exams. How can they expect us to remember quotes from 15 poems, plus how to analyse them, plus remembering the whole. The arguments for closed book exams now dominant at gcse, as and. Do openbook tests work better than closedbook tests. A discussion of the effect of openbook and closedbook. Closed book exams stimulate deep learning more than open book exams. While this may seem like an easy way to take a test, openbook exams may be harder than youd think since they are about taking information and applying it in.

Open book exams allow the examinees to carry books and other reference material related to the subject for the exam. A petition with over 100,000 signatures went to the government, lobbying for open book exams to come back and this was the response they gave. It may sound easy, but the questions in these types of exams are actually harder than that of closed book exams. Closedbook exam generally means that the only source of information you may rely on is your brain. Examining the testing effect with open and closedbook tests. The main premise for open book exams is that teachers can devise questions that require students to answer in more critical and analytical ways thus encouraging highorder thinking skills in their students. Here is a look at the differences between and benefits of open and closed book law school exams. If we are not interested in testing memorised information, why use closed book examinations. In classes with open note exams, i felt less pressure in class to vigorously jot down notes, and i spent more time actively listening to the presenter.

To do so, i usually design exams as problems rather than series of. If there are open book tests, what do we get to know about the subject. I agree that a law students skill in writing briefs is important, and that a closedbook test cant accurately assess that. Open books exams seem to be very comfortable,just open the book and write but if we see actual open book exam papers from bits pilani site, we would be tensed up.

One of the most frequently debated issues concerning law school exams is open book or closed book. You need to undertake the exact same preparation, you still need to prepare your exam script, and going through old exams is just as important. For example, when i was a firstyear law student, all of my exams were closed book. Psychologist afshin gharib and his colleagues write that some researchers agree with students that openbook exams emphasize deep. Many people considering an online education have questions as to how the tests work. I feel like my 1002 would have been a lot less close if i actually was engaged with writing down information during the videos. Depending on your law school, you may have many or few closedbook exams. Nonsecure is examsofts term for openbook law school exams.

They test your ability to find and apply information and knowledge, so are often used in subjects requiring direct reference to written materials, like law statutes, statistics or acts of parliament. The literature is mixed however on whether deeper learning or better preparation occurs with openbook exams. Open book examinations are the ones in which the exams are supposed to be conducted according to me. These findings question the quality of deep learning and retention with the open book exam. The exam questions are supposed to be designed in a way that the. Closed book exam generally tests your ability to write theories and problems which are readily available in some prescribed textbook. Change the gcse english literature exam from closed book. Pdf critical analysis of openbook exams for university.

I am not suggesting that m emory has no value in education. Open book exam for law help please the student room. Throughout pharmacy school, i have taken closed book, open note, cheat sheet, takehome, and even group exams. I would read and reread your materials extensively over the. The amount of resources you can take into an open book exams can vary so check what you can take in with you and adapt your revision accordingly. There are 2 literature papers which include the content of. I rightly oppose to the thought of open book examinations. Given the large body of knowledge physicians need to have, testing entities are revisiting the advantages of open book exams vs. I felt i was applying information and learning during an opennote exam. The silver exams alone are difficult enough that having openbook resources on hand is a practical necessity to pass. In classes with opennote exams, i felt less pressure in class to vigorously jot down notes, and i spent more time actively listening to the presenter.

So in a way, you want to study the material as if you were taking a closed book exam. Students seem to be partial to open book exams, perhaps because they seem less overwhelming. Jason dions practice exams used this as i neared the end of the video course. An openbook exam is a test that lets you bring your books or notes in with you. Once you are done outlining, you have to learn your outlines. Closed book exams are better because they test our memory.

Openbook versus closedbook tests in university classes. He got tired of curving exam scores and decided to try out the openbook style. Thank god, our open book exams are very realxed atleast for coss and networks. What are the benefits of an openbook exam over a closedbook. The best lawyers are the ones who can absorb a lot of information in a very short period of time, interpret them in a way that makes sense for their clients we are talking practical here. The essential difference between closed book examinations and open book examinations is therefore that the former can still be used to evaluate how much you have memorised, while the latter cannot. Despite the allure of open book exams, in terms of results, ive found them more hard going than closed book exams. In the free type, students are free to bring anything of their choice. Learn how this may impact the future of board exams. Just finished up fall 1l semester and didnt do too shabby. Open book exams are not an easy option and are likely to be more demanding than a closed book exam, so really good preparation is required. Students took 1060% more time to complete an openbook exam, and performed significantly lower on closedbook exams when earlier tests were administered in the openbook exam format durning et al. It might seem that because youre working remotely, and cant be directly monitored by your instructor, that every test is opennotes and openbook format. You need to study for openbook exams just as you would for any exam.

It will ensure that a lot more thought will go into the seting of question paper. However, at the same time, the examination period is short enough that one cannot solely rely on the books for all the answers and still finish in time. You are still forced to study and make notes however, using notes, reference materials and equipment, you are able to formulate more indepth answers, show ability in knowledge searching, understanding and application of this knowledge and formulate. Louis, usa summary twoexperimentsexaminedthe testing effect with openbook tests, inwhich students view notes and. Open book exams are a pretty good idea, we had them in stats in the first year and if a majority of the exams where closed book then i most likely would not be sat here writing this now. That being said, you sound like youre in a very good position overall.