The Unit 5 exams are graded. The exam average was 78.0.
The Final exam is Friday, Dec 11. It is two hours, available at 8 am and due by 11:59 pm
The exam is comprehensive, covering the entire course. It will be similar to the unit exams in pretty much every way except it is twice as long (40 questions total, 30 4 point questions, 10 8 point questions for which work must be submitted). You will have 2 hours, so make sure you arrange for that in your scheduling.
Specific reminders for the exam are below. Before that, a couple more items.
“What should I study?”
Students often ask me what are good things to study to prepare for the final. That is a difficult question as it depends on how you learn. A big part of success in college is figuring out what study approaches work for you! That said, many students have told me that looking over their old exams, the practice quizzes, and the practice exams has been very helpful to them — them going back and studying the items they do not understand-can’t answer. So if you are unsure that might be a good thing to do.
“What happens next/when will I see grades/etc”
I will start grading the 10 8 point questions Saturday. As I grade them, I will put your exam grade in the comments when I return your 8 point questions in the submissions folder. Once they are all graded (it will probably be Monday because in addition to grading these, I will be grading materials and answering questions and helping my CHEM 152 and 262 students in preparation for their Monday finals.) I will release the final grade to D2L and put the final course grade in the D2L gradebook as well. Before I do that, you should be able to calculate your course grade by putting in your final exam score and looking at the grading scale in the syllabus. I know many of you are anxious about/and to know your grades – that said, please see the next paragraph 🙂
About emailing me
For the next week as we wind up the semester, I’ll get a lot of email. And I’m totally good with that – I enjoy working with and hearing from each of you and assisting you as you learn! And I take questions about the course seriously. But as I have four sections of students and get a lot of email volume at the end of the semester I prioritize them as I can’t get back to everyone quickly and complete grading. So I will not answer emails in the order received, rather I will answer them in this order:
- Questions about chemistry course material that students need to understand concepts and prepare for finals come first. They will move to the front of the line immediately.
- Questions calling my attention to any errors I made in grading (or possible errors) come next.
- I won’t look at emails asking me to round up grades or if any other work can be done to improve your grade until I’ve answered all the emails above and completed all of my grading for all my courses. This allows me to get grades back to everyone as soon as possible! Also, in most cases, the answer will be no.
- I will ignore emails asking when items will be graded or final grades will be posted. The college deadline is Wed 12/16 by 8am but I hope to beat that. I know you want to know your grades, and I want to complete them too! Rest assured I’m doing it as quickly as I can, while taking breaks to answer student questions. Again, this allows me to get grades back to all of you as quickly as possible!
As always, contact me if you have questions about the class or have any last minute questions about the material before beginning the exam.
Reminders for the exam are:
- You can take it on D2L at anytime between 8am and 11:59 pm on Friday , Dec 11, 2020 – must be completed online by 11:59 pm on Friday, December 11, 2020. Once you start you will only have 120 minutes (timer cannot be paused) so make sure you have two hours when you will not be interrupted.
- You are allowed 120 minutes and only 1 submission
- You are not allowed to open it multiple times, like the chapter quizzes.
- Choose a time to take it when you will not be interrupted, as the clock begins ticking as soon as you open it.
- Please keep track of the time counting down on your screen. You will be flagged with 5 minutes left and the computer will not allow you save any more answers once the timer runs out.
- You are allowed to work backwards. Some of you might consider starting with the 8-pt questions so that you have enough time and then finish with the multiple choice questions
- There are 30 Multiple Choice Questions (4 pts each) and ten 8-pt questions
- You will also be asked to submit your work for the 8 point questions in a separate folder in the assignments tab (similar to the way you submit quizzes).
- For the 8 pt questions, you must submit to me your work detailed on a sheet of paper in order to receive full credit (You will type the final answer in the box of the exam to be graded, but I need to see the accompanying work so that I can reward appropriate points).
- You can simply take a picture with your phone, as long as I am able to view your work clearly.
- The picture needs to be uploaded immediately after submitting your exam into a drop box that you will find on D2L(Assessments tab, Assignments, Final Exam Submissions).
- You must upload your work to the 8-pt questions for credit. Even if you have the correct answer, you will not receive full credit if I cannot follow your work (or you are missing units, sig figs, do not show the equation you are using). Be thorough. I do not need to see your work for the multiple choice questions.
- Submissions must be made to the Submissions folder. Do not email your work to me.
- Submissions must be made within 10 minutes of completing your exam. Note that I am able to see what time you complete your exam and what time you upload your submission
- Be sure that your answer on paper matches the answer that you type into the computer. Be sure to include units and be conscious of sig figs
- You will be able to use your own periodic table for the exam and obviously will have access to other supporting materials. Be careful, as that can become a “crutch.” I worry that you might end up spending too much time flipping through subsequent materials and whittle away the time on the clock if you are not well-prepared.
