What’s on the Final Exam?

For years, students have asked me, “what’s on the final exam?” I usually offer a vague answer along the lines of “questions on everything we covered since the midterm,” but in the interest of trying something new, here’s a breakdown of exactly what will be on the midterm, including the subject of each question.

The final exam will consist of four parts, covering material from the entire course. The four parts are: true-false, multiple-choice, identifications, and short answers. Material from before the midterm will only appear on the first two (objective) sections, and the exam will favor material from after the midterm exam. Moreover, the questions on material from before the midterm exam will be more general in scope that questions on material from after the midterm exam.

True-False

There will be ten (10) questions on the following topics from the course, each worth two points.

1. magazines
2. broadcast radio
3. magazines
4. Internet
5. broadcast radio
6. telephone
7. Internet
8. television
9. writing
10. writing

Here’s an example of such a question:

1. Machine-made paper, developed in the 1830s, made books more expensive because they were of a higher quality.

• True
• False

Multiple Choice

There will be ten (10) questions on the following topics from the course, each worth three points.

1. recorded sound
2. radio technology
3. motion pictures
4. telephone
5. radio technology
6. broadcast radio
7. radio technology
8. telephone
9. Internet
10. Internet

Here’s an example of such a question:

2. Which of the following was the first commercially viable use for radio waves?

1. high-power ovens
2. wireless telegraphy
3. wireless telephony
4. mass broadcasting

Identification

Like the midterm exam, these questions require you to define or identify each term or phrase and describe its relevance to the history and culture of mediated communication. There will be five (5) questions, each worth five points. Your response should be about two-to-three sentences in length.

1. recorded sound
2. television
3. motion pictures
4. broadcast radio
5. Internet

Here’s an example of an identification.

Short Answer

There will be four questions, of which you will answer three (3) with a two-paragraph response, about six to eight sentences. Each question is worth ten points each.

1. television
2. telephone
3. motion pictures
4. Internet

Here is an example of a short answer question:

4. Discuss how the development of movable type printing led to the Enlightenment and the industrial revolution.

Remember to use the outlines that I posted on the course website for studying. If understand those outlines, you should be fine. If you don’t understand something, look it up in the readings or even search the web. As a last resort, email me or the class list to verify something.

Good luck.