Professor Weisiger’s Tips for Taking Essay Exams
Grading Expectations
First, be aware that I have high expectations! After all, I have given you the instructions and a pool of questions in advance, I have provided a set of notes on the lectures, and I allow you to choose which question you will answer. Consequently, I expect more than a regurgitation of one lecture or one section of a book. I expect more than a list of information. I want you to make connections between historical events in order to interpret and analyze why and how a historical issue developed in the way it did, and explain the significance of the outcome.
Also be aware that there is no single “right answer” to any of the essay questions. Sure, there are wrong answers. But there are multiple right answers, depending on how you interpret the facts and the evidence you choose to draw on.
My scale looks something like this:
A – Shows an extraordinary command of the material. Makes connections between different events and/or issues. Provides a clear argument supported by concrete evidence. Doesn’t ignore evidence that might be used to refute the argument. Answers all parts of the question and demonstrates an understanding of the implications of the issue at hand. Draws on multiple lectures and the readings.
B – Shows a strong command of the material. Provides a clear argument supported by concrete evidence. Answers all parts of the question. Falls short of an A answer in one or more ways. May have minor errors of fact.
C – Shows familiarity with the course material, but lacks a strong argument or concrete evidence. Provides only a “data dump.” Shows a general understanding of the big picture, but makes several factual errors.
D – Shows some familiarity with the general concepts of the course, but is too vague or unclear.
F – Does not appear to have grasped the basic concepts of the course.
Preparing Your Answers (Homework)
● Read the instructions carefully. You’d be surprised by how many people fail to follow this simple rule.
● Read each question carefully. Each word provides a clue to a good answer. Underline the key words. Be sure to answer all parts of each question. One of the biggest mistakes people make is to leave out one or more parts of the answer, invariably resulting in a drop of one letter grade or more.
Always explain: who, what, where, when, how, and why (the most important of these are how and why). Some questions use imperative (commanding) verbs that provide clues to how you’re expected to approach your answer. For example:
Analyze – Divide something into its parts, describe the significance of each, and show how they connect to one another
Describe – What are the important characteristics or features of this event or information.
Discuss – Examine the subject thoroughly and treat it in all of its significant parts. Similar to analyze.
Evaluate – What are the arguments for and against this idea? What arguments are stronger?
Explain – Provide the reasons “why and how” something turned out the way it did.
Trace – What is the sequence of events?
● Develop a timeline. This is an optional step, but many of my students have found it helpful to develop a timeline of events. This helps you to see the order the events discussed in the lectures and readings and make connections between events that you might not make otherwise. The same timeline can be used to develop answers for all three questions you’re preparing, and it can help you to make connections between the questions that may help you streamline the information you need to know.
● Formulate a thesis for each essay question you prepare to answer. Your thesis (also known as an argument) should make a debatable point. It should demonstrate that you have integrated course lectures and readings and have developed your own idea about why things happened the way they did. The thesis should not simply be a list of stuff. Nor should it simply be a restatement of the question. I know what the question is. Don’t waste valuable time writing it down.
● Support your claim with evidence (i.e., examples) from the lectures and the readings (see the discussion under “Outline” for help in organizing this evidence). Your evidence should have the following characteristics:
♦ It should be concrete; that is, specific. It should also be accurate. One of the mistakes that people make is being vague. Vague, mushy evidence results in lower grades. One way to devise concrete evidence is to look at the list of identification terms for possible evidence to support your claim. However, you should not confine yourself to that list.
♦ It should draw from the lectures and the readings. Many students think that if I thought it was important I would have mentioned it in the lectures. But the readings in the books (Created Equal, Thinking Through the Past, Main Problems in American History, autobiographies, and monographs) are also key to answering the questions well. A really good answer (that is, an A answer) shows me you’ve mastered both the lectures and the readings.
♦ Tie multiple lectures together. No single lecture provides a good answer to any of the essay questions. Your job is to make connections between the lectures and between the lectures and the readings.
♦ Don’t perform a “data dump.” It’s not enough to list events or people, or even describe a bunch of facts. Your job is to analyze and explain your evidence and demonstrate how it supports your argument.
● Focus your evidence. While it’s important to show you’ve mastered the material in the course, the only important material in an essay exam is the evidence that supports your thesis. Providing extraneous information only makes it look like you don’t really know what you’re writing about.
● Develop an outline. Once you’ve listed, analyzed, and explained your evidence, create an outline. This will help you to organize your evidence in a logical fashion to support your thesis. Just as a good answer is not just a list of stuff, a good outline is not just a list, nor is it a bunch of brainstorming bubbles. It should have an introduction (the thesis statement), a body of argument, and a conclusion (a final analysis of the significance or legacy of the issue you’re writing about). Within the body, it’s always a good idea to follow the “rule of threes.” Consequently, your outline should have three major points that support your thesis, and each point should be supported by at least three pieces of evidence. Your major points may or may not follow the order of the various parts of the essay question, but they should ultimately address all parts of the question.
I. Thesis paragraph (introduction)
II. First supporting point
A. Evidence
B. Evidence
C. Evidence
III. Second supporting point
A. Evidence
B. Evidence
C. Evidence
IV. Third supporting point
A. Evidence
B. Evidence
C. Evidence
V. Concluding analysis of significance
Note: In practice, the discussion of the evidence (points A-C) may consist of a single paragraph that offers three brief examples, one of which may qualify the other evidence by revealing a contradiction.
● Review the question again, checking to make sure you’ve answered all parts of the question. Look again to make sure you’ve not misread the question.
● As you write your essay, use signals to direct your reader through your argument. For example: “There are three reasons why . . .” “First, … Second, … Finally. . . .” “In the Spanish American War, American military forces…. By contrast, in the Sand Creek Massacre . . .”