I use may different grading techniques and believe that for each subject there are at least two ways to evaluate the student performance. If you talk to students who have previously taken my class you will learn that you just cannot B.S. your way through an in class question. I have all students fill out a picture ID card with their names, SSN, phone numbers, GPA and future goals listed. I do not tolerate cheating. I use both multiple choice tests that are long and complex or short essay tests for most mid term exams.
Finals are usually essay in nature and are of the take home format.
I some classes I offer students the opportunity of a contract grade system. They agree to do certain work for certain grades. The up side is you know in advance exactly what you need to do and the time required for each grade. This comes out to a 3.15 or so g.p.a. In some classes I do not have exams, rather there is a class project that is graded by a client and by myself.