The exam consists of three parts.  Part 1 is the Fill-in-the-Blank and short answer section, and Part 2 is the Essay section.  THIS EXAM IS WORTH 100 POINTS (20% OF THE FINAL GRADE).

Part 1:(TOTAL= 40 points, 40% of the exam.  2 points per question.)

KEY Terms/Identifications to know!
 

Edible History of Humanity	Declaration of Independence
Mughal Empire	The Lure of the “East" and Early Contact
Glory, Gold, and God/Spanish Empire	Atlantic Slave Trade
Conquest of the Aztecs	Hermetic Doctrine
Enlightenment	Scientific Revolution
John Locke	Conquistadors
Silk Route/Trade	Early European Exploration--Henry the Navigator, etc.
American Revolution	Slave Trade/Slavery in America
Olaudah Equiano	French-Indian War
Stamp Act/Intolerable Acts	Conquistadors film

Part Two:  ESSAY (TOTAL=60 points, 60% of the exam.)
This list contains 3 essay questions.  For the exam, I will choose 2 of them and you will  answer 1 of those two in a Blue Book.  The answer must be a well developed essay with an introductory paragraph, body paragraphs highlighting your various points, and a conclusion.

1.)Discuss the main assertions of Edible History of Humanity (through Chapter 2).  How did the author support his major assertions?  What kinds of evidence did he use?  Finally, how is this book a "historical approach" to understanding the past? 

2.)Compare and/or contrast the ENCOUNTER of TWO European societies with other NON-EUROPEAN societies.  What characterized the encounters?  What were the results?

3.)Discuss the Declaration of Independence and the Two Treatises of Government as classic Enlightenment texts.  What were their main assertions?  How did Locke influence Jefferson?  Why were they a watershed in political philosophy?  Finally, what makes them such enduring documents--refer to the US Constitution?  BE SURE TO CITE SPECIFIC EXAMPLES FROM EACH TEXT.
 
 

Taking Examinations

Thorough preparation is the key to success on all examinations. During the test you can't get help working that problem you skipped over in your math assignment!

Preparation is also important because your time might be limited. If you are not thoroughly familiar with the material, you will run out of time. Third, solid preparation is necessary because you will have to analyze and apply material. You might be asked to compare two concepts covered in different chapters or in different lectures weeks apart. Review the study hints described earlier in this section to prepare yourself for exams.

Essay Exams

Essays require a comprehensive understanding of large amounts of information and an ability to integrate this knowledge into a coherent essay. Simple memorization of unrelated facts will do you little good. You will be asked about fundamental ideas from the lectures, the readings, and the discussions. Here are some key principles to help you do well:

• Use your exam time well; pace yourself. Read the entire examination, including all the instructions. Plan out the amount of time you will need to answer each question. Then choose the question you know the most about first. It may feel a bit odd, but you will soon get used to it. If you still run out of time, at least you will have the satisfaction of knowing you are rushing through or leaving out what you could not have answered very well anyway. Also, since most students are somewhat tense before an examination, if you answer the first question well, that tension will likely go away. As you relax, you will find it easier to remember names, terms, and other bits of information to help answer other questions.

 
• Know the key task words in the essay questions and address the task asked for. Examples of key task words are "compare," "analyze," "define," "describe," and "evaluate."

 
• Write a focused, organized essay that answers the question asked. Outline first. This will help you stick to answering the question asked and not rambling about anything you know. If there is a bit of information you have forgotten, leave a space in your outline that you can go back to once you remember it. This should be a very brief outline in the margin of the exam paper or the inside cover of the blue book. A good rule of thumb is to spend 20% of your time in planning and outlining (pre-writing), 75% writing, and 5% reviewing what you wrote.

 
• Support your essay with factual material organized logically. Begin by telling the instructor what you are going to tell him or her. That is, present your thesis by reforming the question as a statement. Next, repeat words from the question in topic sentences in succeeding paragraphs. Each paragraph should start with a general statement (your topic sentence) and then follow with specific, informative sentences in support of your topic sentence. Always support your generalizations with specific facts and examples, but avoid supplying a mass of misinformation as this usually creates an impression that you do not know what you are talking about even on those sections of the exam where you really do. Wild guessing is almost sure to do you more harm than good. Finally, have a concluding paragraph which may include your own opinion. But make sure that your answer as a whole supports this opinion. Do not avoid facts that do not support your position; rather, explain why they are not relevant to your position. Just stating your opinion without facts to prove it rarely impresses anybody and is no indication of learning.

 
• Never allow your answer to wander away from the focus of the question. And remember, you need to prove your central points. But, do not repeat yourself. Every sentence or section should add new material or advance a line of argument.

In exercises which emphasize solutions to problems which have a single "correct" answer, too frequently students place emphasis on the answer and not upon the underlying principles and solution process. Just as your humanities professors expect you to go beyond a recitation of names, dates, and theories, so your science professors expect more insight than the ability to substitute values into a memorized equation. Here is a short list of suggestions to help you excel in science courses.

• In problems which have numerical solutions, get into the habit of setting up the problems in a neat, orderly manner. The grader will then be able to follow your reasoning and give a grade accordingly. An unsupported numerical response which is incorrect receives zero credit.

 
• Get into the habit of including dimensional units with numbers and make use of dimensional analysis. Dimensional analysis will frequently reveal an error in reasoning.

 
• Don't use proportions and ratios blindly, even if the "correct" answer results. Understand why a proportional relationship exists.

 
• Form a small study group for problem-solving. Study partners stimulate each other to engage a problem and develop a solution process for finding an answer. For a group study session to be effective, each member must be an active participant.

 
• Technical terms are precisely defined and permit unequivocal descriptions. Learn and use technical terms.

 
• Remember: laws, principles, and skills are universal. We learn by associating new, unfamiliar ideas with previous, familiar information. Use everything you have ever learned in every course you ever take. Don't compartmentalize your knowledge.

• If it makes you feel more comfortable, write down on the back of the exam any formulas or ideas that you might need to remember during the exam.

 
• Work the problems you feel confident about first. At least you will receive credit then for what you know, and you will also raise your confidence level so you may be better equipped to tackle those problems you are not as sure about.

 
• Don't get bogged down on one problem too long. Move on to what you can do.

 
• Show clearly all of the steps you used in solving a problem. Your professor is at least as interested in your thought process as in your final answer. Invite your professor into your mind.

 
• Bring your own calculator

 
• Be sure to check your answers.

• Be aware that plausible answers obtained from an incorrect application of principles may appear on the examination.

 
• Be cautious about choices that use absolute words such as "always," "never," and "only."

 
• Read carefully for terms like "not," "except," and "but."

 
• If you are stumped, mark the question and move on. If you have time, go back to this question.

 
• Effective guessing: eliminate the clearly wrong choices. Use what you do remember to help make the best guess about what you cannot remember.

• Be sure that every part of the question is correct before you mark "true."

 
• Check to see how qualifiers are used.

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

See principles under "multiple-choice exams."