Take Home Test

I absolutely loved take home tests in high school and college. They were usually open book, open notes and only limited to no help from a person. Let me say that last part again, no help from another person was permitted. It was that last part that opened up a world of possibilities.

"The Book"

My high school biology class was comprised of "gifted and talented" students. The school district decided to provide us with a new and untested biology textbook written specifically for advanced students. Only problem was the book was horribly written, many of the sample experiments were flawed and was considered useless by students and the faculty.

In desperation and in a flash of inspiration I purchased a college level biology book at a yard sale. Throughout the term it had provided me with better explanations and examples of the topics we were covering.

Here's where it got interesting.

Enter the take home exam.

The exam rules were simple; use any materials you wanted as long as it wasn't another person. Our teacher insisted that every question was taken directly from "the book". Well, the book he used for the take home exam was not the one provided by the school but by some twist of fate the very college textbook that I had purchased for the princely sum of 25 cents. Questions on our take home test matched passages out of the college biology book word-for-word.

After we graded the take home tests in class, the other students complained bitterly that none of the questions were from our book. That was when I pulled the college biology book out of my knapsack and said "the book" used was not ours but the college biology book I was holding in my hand. The teacher gave it completely away when he jerked around to see if his copy of the same biology textbook was still in his briefcase. Amid claims that I cheated, the grades stood with mine being the only perfect score in the class.

College Resources

Moving on to college and the rigors of Calculus. Even though my assigned calculus textbook was fairly decent, I thought it might pay to pick up a few old ones available at just about every thrift store or yard sale. Oh, imagine my surprise when given take home exams and finding the same exact problems from my test in one or more of the ancient textbooks I had collected.

How to Ace the Take Home Exam

Throughout my education, it was often supplementary textbooks I picked up for next to nothing that provided the missing concept or explanation that I needed to "get it." And, on numerous occasions my small library of cast off college textbooks proved invaluable for take home exams.

The Internet and the many free textbooks, including free pyschology textbooks and free math textbooks, provide students with huge opportunities both for acing take home exams and supplementary materials to help with confusing or poorly presented concepts. Roaming used book stores, thrift shops, yard sales and library sales is still my favorite way to supplement my library. Online Degree Discussion's ever-growing list of free online textbooks is a great place for students of all ages to search for help without having to hunt among thousands of old books in town for the treasures they seek.

Cheating on a Test

Unfortunately, the availability of vast information on the Internet may have also made teachers and professors become a bit more circumspect about the rules of their take home tests but many still only prohibit the use of other people. So, pay attention to the rules the next time you are given a take home exam and you just might find yourself with a huge advantage over your classmates if you know where to look. But, do watch out for the "only approved course materials may be used" clause, otherwise you could find yourself in violation of your school's honor code.