ESSAY EXAMINATIONS

Doing well on essay examinations involves not only preparing for the exam, but also analyzing the questions and answering the questions clearly and fully.

PREPARING FOR ESSAY EXAMS

Because essay exams require you to produce a written response, the best way to prepare for them is by organizing and writing.

Create study sheets to synthesize information. Most essay exams require you to synthesize, or pull together, information. (For more on synthesizing sources, see Chapter 23.) To prepare for this task, try to identify the key topics in a course, and then create a study sheet for each main topic. Study sheets help you organize, consolidate, and study complex or detailed information.

To prepare a study sheet, draw on information from your textbook as well as from class notes, handouts, previous exams (look for emphasized topics), and assigned readings. You can organize a study sheet in a variety of ways. For example, you might:

Whatever method of organization you use for your study sheet, be sure to include key information about each topic: definitions, facts, principles, theories, events, research studies, and the like.

Here is part of one student’s study sheet for a speech communication course on the topic audience analysis.

SAMPLE STUDY SHEET

Topic: Audience Analysis

  1. Demographic characteristics
    • — Age and gender
    • — Educational background (type and level of education)
    • — Group membership (people who share similar interests or goals)
    • — Social and religious activities
    • — Hobbies and sports
  2. Psychological characteristics
    • — Beliefs (about what is true or false, right or wrong)
    • — Attitudes (positive or negative)
    • — Values (standards for judging worth of thoughts and actions)

Predict essay exam questions. Once you prepare study sheets for a particular course, the next step is to predict questions that might be asked on an essay exam. Although essay exam questions usually focus on general topics, themes, or patterns, these questions generally also require you to supply details in your response. For example, an essay question on a psychology exam might ask you to compare and contrast the James-Lange and Cannon-Bard theories of motivation. Your answer would focus on the similarities and differences between these key theories, incorporating relevant details where necessary.

Use the following strategies to help you predict the types of questions you might be asked on an essay exam.

  1. Group topics into categories. Review your textbook, class notes, and study sheets to devise categories. For example, if you find a chapter on kinship in your anthropology textbook and several entries in your class notes on this topic, a question on kinship is likely to appear on an essay exam for the course.
  2. Study your syllabus and objectives. These documents contain important clues about what your instructor expects you to learn during the course.
  3. Study previous exams. Notice which key ideas are emphasized in previous exams. If you had to explain the historical significance of the Boston Tea Party on your first American history exam, you can predict that future exams will ask you to explain the historical significance of other events.
  4. Listen to your instructor’s comments. When your instructor announces or reviews material for an upcoming essay exam, pay close attention to the key topics he or she reveals or to the areas he or she suggests that you study.
  5. Draft possible essay questions. Use Table 26.1 to draft possible essay questions using key verbs that hint at how you must answer effectively.
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Draft answers in outline form. After you predict several possible essay exam questions, the next step is to write a brief, rough outline of the information that answers each question. Be sure each outline responds to the wording of the question; that is, it should explain, compare, describe, or do whatever else the question asks (see Table 26.1). Writing a rough outline will strengthen your recall of the material. It will also save you time during the actual exam because you will have already spent some time thinking about, organizing, and writing about the material.

Here is a sample essay question and an informal outline written in response to it.

ESSAY QUESTION

Explain how material passes in and out of cells by crossing plasma membranes.

Informal Outline

Types of Transport

  1. Passive — no use of cellular energy; random movement of molecules
    1. Diffusion — molecules move from areas of high to areas of low concentration (example: open bottle of perfume, aroma spreads)
    2. Facilitated diffusion — similar to simple diffusion; differs in that some kinds of molecules are moved more easily than others (helped by carrier proteins in cell membrane)
    3. Osmosis — diffusion of water across membranes from area of lower to area of higher solute concentration
  2. Active — requires cellular energy; usually movement against the concentration gradient
    1. Facilitated active transport — carrier molecules move ions across a membrane
    2. Endocytosis — material is surrounded by a plasma membrane and pinched off into a vacuole
    3. Exocytosis — cells expel materials

Reduce informal outlines to key-word outlines. To help you recall your outlined answer during the exam, reduce it to a brief key-word outline or list of key topics. Here is a sample key-word outline for the essay question about cells:

KEY-WORD OUTLINE

Types of Transport

  1. Passive
    • — Diffusion
    • — Facilitated diffusion
    • — Osmosis
  2. Active
    • — Facilitated active transport
    • — Endocytosis
    • — Exocytosis

TAKING ESSAY EXAMS

Once you have done some preparation, you should be more confident about taking an essay exam. The general guidelines below will help you when you confront the exam itself.

  1. Arrive at the room where the exam is to be given a few minutes early. You can use this time to collect your thoughts and get organized.
  2. Sit in the front of the room. You will be less distracted and better able to see and hear the instructor as last-minute directions or corrections are announced.
  3. Read the directions carefully. Some exams may direct you to answer only one of three questions, whereas other exams may ask you to answer all questions.
  4. Consider your audience and purpose. For most essay exams, your instructor is your audience. Since your instructor is already knowledgeable about the topic, your purpose is to demonstrate what you know about the topic. Therefore, you should write thorough and complete answers, pretending that your instructor knows only what you tell him or her.
  5. Preview the exam and plan your time carefully. Read through the whole exam to get a complete picture of the task at hand and then plan how you will complete the exam within the allotted time. If you have fifty minutes, spend roughly ten minutes planning; thirty minutes writing; and ten minutes editing, proofreading, and making last-minute changes. Begin by writing a brief thesis statement. Then jot down the key supporting points and number them in the order you will present them. Leave space under each supporting point for your details. If the question is one you had predicted, write down your keyword outline. If an idea for an interesting introduction or an effective conclusion comes to mind, jot it down as well. At the end of your allotted time for writing, reread your essay and correct surface errors.
  6. Notice the point value of each question. If your instructor assigns points to each question, use the point values to plan your time. For example, spend more time answering a 30-point question than a 10-point question.
  7. Choose topics or questions carefully. Often you will have little or no choice of topic or question. If you do have a choice, choose the topics or answer the questions that you know the most about. If the question asks you to write about a broad topic, such as a current social issue, narrow the topic to one you can write about in the specified amount of time.
  8. Answer the easiest question first. Answering the easiest question first will boost your confidence and allow you to spend the remaining time working on the more difficult questions. Generally if an exam contains both objective and essay questions, get the objective questions out of the way first.
  9. Remember that your first draft is your final draft. Plan on writing your first draft carefully and correctly so that it can serve as your final copy. However, you can always make minor changes and additions as you write or edit and proofread.

ANALYZING ESSAY EXAM QUESTIONS

Essay exam questions are often concise, but if you read them closely, you will find that they do specifically tell you what to write about. Consider the following sample essay question from a sociology exam.

Choose a particular institution, define it, and identify its primary characteristics.

The question tells you exactly what to write about — a particular institution. In addition, the key verbs define and identify tell you how to approach the subject. To get full credit for this essay question, then, you would have to give an accurate definition of an institution and discuss its primary characteristics.

Table 26.1 lists key verbs commonly used in essay exam questions along with sample questions and tips for answering them. As you study the list, notice that many of the verbs suggest a particular pattern of development. For example, trace suggests using a narrative sequence, and justify suggests using argumentation. For key verbs such as explain or discuss, you might use a combination of patterns.

WRITING ESSAY ANSWERS

Use the following guidelines to write the answers to essay questions.

  1. Since your first-draft essay exam is also your final draft, write in complete and grammatically correct sentences. Supply sufficient detail and follow a logical organization. It is acceptable to cross out words or sentences neatly and indicate corrections in spelling or grammar.
  2. Add ideas neatly. If you think of an idea you would like to add to your answer, write the sentence at the top of the paper and draw an arrow to indicate where it should be inserted.
  3. Provide a brief introduction and, in some cases, a conclusion. Depending on how much time you have, the introduction may consist of only your thesis statement, or it may also include necessary background information on the topic. Write a conclusion only if the question seems to require a final evaluative statement.
  4. If you run out of time, jot the unfinished portion of your outline at the end of the essay. Your instructor may give you partial credit.

Write your thesis statement. Your thesis statement should be clear and direct. Identify your subject and suggest your approach to the topic. Often the thesis statement rephrases or answers the essay exam question. Consider the following examples. (For more on writing a thesis, see Chapter 6.)

Essay Exam Question Thesis Statement
Explain how tides are produced in the Earth’s oceans. Account for seasonal variations. The Earth’s gravitational forces are responsible for producing tides in the Earth’s oceans.
Distinguish between bureaucratic agencies and other government decision-making bodies. Bureaucratic agencies are distinct from other government decision-making bodies because of their hierarchical organization, character, culture, and professionalism.

Your thesis may also suggest the organization of your essay. For example, if the question asks you to explain the differences between primary and secondary groups, you might state your thesis as follows: “Primary groups differ from secondary groups in their membership, purpose, level of interaction, and level of intimacy.” Your essay would then discuss membership first, purpose second, and so on.

Develop supporting details. Write a separate paragraph for each of your key points. For example, in an essay answer distinguishing primary from secondary groups, devote one paragraph to each distinguishing feature: membership, purpose, level of interaction, and level of intimacy. The topic sentence for each paragraph should identify and briefly explain the key point. For example, a topic sentence for the first main point about groups might be: “Membership, or who belongs, is one factor that distinguishes primary from secondary groups.” (For more on topic sentences, see Chapter 8.) The rest of the paragraph would explain membership: what constitutes membership, what criteria are used to decide who belongs, and who decides.

Whenever possible, supply examples to make it clear that you can apply the information you have learned. Keep in mind that your goal is to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the material.

Reread and proofread your answer. Leave enough time to reread and proofread your essay answer. First, reread to make sure you have answered all parts of the question. Then reread your answer, checking it for content. Add missing information, correct vague or unclear sentences, and add facts or details. Next, proofread for errors in spelling, punctuation, and grammar. A clear, nearly error-free essay makes a positive impression on your instructor and identifies you as a serious, conscientious student. An error-free essay may also improve your grade. (For more on editing and proofreading, see Chapter 10.)