Today was my Canadian Government and Politics exam. I did terribly on it. Luckily, I wasn't the only one. I discussed the exam with a few of my friends, and eavesdropped on other students - we were all surprised by the exam. How so? Well, the midterm in that class was insanely hard - I've honestly never had such a difficult midterm (and a multiple-choice one at that) in my life. Therefore, we were all expecting something similar for the final.
Alas, twas not meant to be. Instead, the questions were ridiculously easy (list these, list those)... Unfortunately I hadn't really studied for that kind of test, or studied hard at all (see? I'm taking SOME responsibility for this). And then there was a final essay question. I don't think I've ever written an essay with absolutely no substance behind it. There were lots of pretty words, but no meaning to them. I actually read the essay question first, muttered, "Oh shit" out loud, then went back to the fill in the blanks questions.
I don't know if this exam was difficult in itself, or whether I've just been spoiled by all the other profs. Normally professors will focus on either the textbook, or their lecture notes for the content of their tests. This prof though expects us to know both (hence the stupid question regarding the Privy Council - it was mentioned in like, ONE paragraph in the entire 400 page textbook. How would I know to memorize that one small section???). While one part of me is like, "Yeah, it's fair of him to demand that," the other part of me is like, "This isn't like all the other classes I've ever taken?! What the hell?!" So there's pros and cons to his style... I just wish there had been more tests and whatnot, so we'd get a better feel for what he wanted in his essays, etc.
Anyways, I exited the exam feeling like shit because of the piss poor job I did on it. Then I remembered that I needed to pick up my marked paper for the same class. We had written this paper back in November and it was only returned today. I entered the classroom that the papers were in, grabbed mine, and left again because I didn't want the prof to see my reaction or talk to me when I looked at my paper.
Out in the hallway, I ignored any comments he had written on my paper (a book review), and skipped straight to the marking sheet. 95%. Eh? No. Something must be wrong. So I flip back through the paper trying to find comments. Nothing is written except for a request for an example at one of my arguments. I honestly could not believe that I got a 95% on my paper. I was so convinced that something was wrong, that I actually went back into the classroom and asked the professor to confirm that the mark was right. LOL. He assured me that it was and sent me on my merry way. I STILL can't believe it! This paper is worth 40% of my final grade! (Which is fantastic considering how poorly I did on the final exam.)
The most amusing thing about this paper is that I essentially wrote it the day it was due. And I was in one of those headspaces where I could only stare at my computer screen in dismay. I had NO idea what to write. I remember that I was so frustrated that I just began to type up random crap. I deliberately avoided discussing two whole chapters because I had no clue as to what the author was talking about in them.
So yay me! And, since I'm so damned pleased with myself, here's the essay I just talked about. (Minus its cover page and works cited page.)
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