EXAM CARD INSTRUCTIONS
Dr. Halbert's Courses

During the course of the semester, there will be a mid-term and final exam, along with several smaller essay exams, that require the creation of an "exam card." These cards are to be prepared beforehand following the regulations listed below. The goal is to take a question distributed before the exam and prepare notes to answer the question. You may write an outline, bullet points, and quotes (with the page numbers listed), but you may not write out the whole essay. You also may not include quotes that are not related to your essay in the hope of making the quote identifications easier on the mid-term and final.

Requirements:

• The card may be no bigger than 5" x 8".
• Your name must appear in the upper right corner of the card (with a horizontal orientation so that the longest side is at top).
• A clear space at the top left corner should be left blank for stapling.
• You are expected to record quotes on the card with page numbers, but each quote on the card needs to appear in the essay. Do not list other quotes in an attempt to have the answers to the ID section. Quotes are expected in the essay since you can prepare ahead of time.
• You may not write out the essay on the card, but you may outline the key points.
• You may not create a list of all the authors and their texts' titles for the semester.
• You can opt to use your computer to make two 5" x 8" text boxes to type up your outline. I recommend this method because you can then scale the font to write all you need and then fitting it to the space. You do not need to cut the two boxes out and tape them together. Use the INSERT menu to select TEXT BOX and then use the drag feature to make the box. You should make it 5" wide and 8" tall.

Failure to follow these directions will result in the card not being allowed during the exam. I will inspect the card before the exam starts. You may wish to show up early to get my approval. You may not use your book during the exam, so all the information you need to answer the question needs to be in your head or on the card.

Why use exam cards?

As a 200-level course, this class is expected to be challenging without being overly advanced or specialized. Essay exams like the ones in my course are routine in upper-level English courses and in other subjects, but generally advanced warning of the question is not given, nor are cards allowed. The exam card allows you to think through the question ahead of time and to prepare as much as you like to adequately deal with the question. The result is that you have thought through the issues the question is designed to investigate while giving you control over as much as possible in preparation.

Outline Template (no complete sentences except in quotes):

I. Introduction

A. Main Topic
B. Thesis statement: state exactly what you believe is true about your topic. Do not fall into the trap of saying, "This essay/paper will provr why X is true." Focus instead on "X is true because Y."
C. Preview author's and titles you are going to address in the essay.
D. List your three major points (since this will be a five paragraph essay).
E. Return to your thesis one more time.

II. Body Paragraphs (do this three times for your three major points)

A. Transitional element + Topic of Paragraph
B. Signal phrase to set up quote
C. Actual quote from text in quotation marks followed by page number in parentheses. No works cited needed.
D. Discuss quote.
E. Relate quote to main point of paragraph and to overall thesis.

III. Second Body Paragraph (follow model for II)

IV. Third Body Paragraph (follow model for II)

V. Conclusion

A. Transition element that is not "in conclusion."
B. Resteate thesis
C. List three main points
D. Apply thesis to a broader conext