Posted here is the instruction portion and assignment portion of the final examination. The actual question portion (which is not included) is 4 pages, double spaced.
I strongly recommend that students read this document before the exam.
The exam is Tuesday, December 11, 2007, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. (2 hours).
The exam room for those handwriting the exam is 209
BLB 215 TUII.
The exam room for those typing their exam by computer is 240
BLB 211 TUII.
Everyone must be in 240 BLB 211
TUII by 5:45 p.m. for examination distribution.
{ forthcoming, if any }
Here is a prototype of the exam instructions I anticipate using on the final examination. I contemplate that the ultimate exam instructions will be substantially similar to these instructions, however, I reserve the right to change these exam instructions in any way.
Here is a document about how to write answers for my exams and some information about how I evaluate these answers. There may be revisions to this document during the Fall 2006 "exam season."
The items available are the IP Survey examination from Fall 2002, Fall 2003, Fall 2004, and Fall 2005 and a composite student model answer (posted without any individually identifiable information) from students that earned a high grade for each class.
Please note that I generally calibrate the length of my exams with the number of course hours. For a two hour class, the examination will be up to, but no more than, 4 pages, double spaced.
The Fall 2005 IP Survey final examination is representative of the final examination I contemplate for the course.
Here is the Fall 2005 IP Survey examination, and here is the composite student model answer. Please note that the composite answer does not necessarily address every issue, nor resolve every issue in such a way as to earn all the points for that issue. Both the examination and the answer should be read in light of the documents I have posted above describing how to deal with my exams.
The Fall 2004 IP Survey final examination for my day section is representative of the final examination I contemplate for the course. I taught both a day and an evening section in the fall of 2004, but I am only releasing the day section exam.
Here is the Fall 2004 IP Survey day section examination, and here is the composite student model answer. Please note that the composite answer does not necessarily address every issue, nor resolve every issue in such a way as to earn all the points for that issue. Both the examination and the answer should be read in light of the documents I have posted above describing how to deal with my exams.
The Fall 2003 IP Survey final examination is representative of the final examination I contemplate for the course.
Here is the Fall 2003 IP Survey examination, and here is the composite student model answer. Please note that the composite answer does not necessarily address every issue, nor resolve every issue in such a way as to earn all the points for that issue. Both the examination and the answer should be read in light of the documents I have posted above describing how to deal with my exams.
The Fall 2002 IP Survey final examination was longer than 4 double-spaced pages (it was 3 pages for the problem itself, single spaced, the equivalent of 6 double-spaced pages), despite the fact that it was a two hour class. This was my first class as a law professor, and I overscoped the Fall 2002 IP Survey examination. It was longer and had a greater issue density than was productive.
Additionally, please note that the Fall 2002 IP Survey examination tested some doctrine that has not been covered in the Fall 2003 IP Survey class. The principal example of this is means-plus-function claim elements and §112¶6 equivalents arising from such elements. Thus, in using the Fall 2002 examination and the composite answer to gauge the upcoming examination, it will be necessary to filter out these items from both the questions and the answers: the examination recites a claim element labeled "means for allowing passage . . ." This is a means-plus-function claim element that we did not learn how to analyze.
Here is the Fall 2002 IP Survey examination, and here is the composite student model answer. Please note that the composite answer does not necessarily address every issue, nor resolve every issue in such a way as to earn all the points for that issue. Both the examination and the answer should be read in light of the documents I have posted above describing how to deal with my exams.
Here is a practice final I provided to my IP Survey class in the fall of 2002. Also available is a model answer to this practice final. It is exclusively an "IRAC" style examination (Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion).
Please note that the preliminary exam instructions in the practice final are no longer current. Please rely on this practice final and model answer only in a general sense - to get a feel for how my issue-spotting fact-pattern exam questions are likely to be organized.
Also, please recognize that my practices are evolving in this area. For example, the actual final in the Fall 2003 IP Survey class was a five page (double spaced) fact pattern IRAC style exam. There was an additional page giving the "call" of the question that I distributed a few days before the actual exam. The exam was complex with respect to the law, and time-pressured. I have concluded that it was probably overly time pressured and issue dense, and while I intend to backoff somewhat in these areas, I anticipate that my issue-spotting exam questions will still be time-pressured.
Last modified on December 10, 2007, by Greg R. Vetter