The first examination will be a practice exam and is scheduled prior to the last day to withdraw from class. It is not a required exam and will not count toward your final grade. The purpose of this exam is to acquaint students with standards expected of students in this class, the format of the exams to follow, and grading procedures. The midterm exam will count 30 percent, the term paper 30 percent, and the final exam 30 percent of your final grade. The final 10 percent with be based on student participation in class discussions and during office hours with the instructor.
Students seem to have the most trouble with the first examination.
This is why a trial-run exam is being scheduled. Those who do not do as well as they would like to, or as well as the instructor hopes they will, tend to be those students who are not attending class regularly, those who are not taking careful notes on what they have read and on the class lectures, and those who cram for exams a day or two before they are administered. The instructor is available for personal assistance during the hours indicated or by appointment, and all students are required to meet individually with the instructor at least once during the semester. Of all the services a university offers students, this one is the most under utilized. Written work is the essence of history.