Something I feared most going into college was midterms and finals. This semester I was fortunate enough to only have only one midterm. However, the fear was still there about how the exam was going to go. It was for my art history class and we had to memorize 44 artifacts that we had gone over in class since day one. The test covered time periods from paleolithic and neolithic times, ancient Near East, Egypt, Greece, China, Rome, and the Indus Valley Civilizations. Since all of these places has such different cultures from each other, I was nervous about remembering everything.
Our test was set up in 5 sections. The first section had images where you had to write down the name, artist or culture, medium, and date of the artifact. She randomly chose eight out of the forty-four artifacts for this section and put it on the screen up front. Then she gave us one minute to identify the picture and it was gone. The thought of that was stressful and terrifying. The second section was similar in that you had to identify the picture on the screen and list of name, date, artist, and medium. However, you were given six minutes this section because you also had to write down four facts about each picture. The third section was identifying an object we had never seen before and we had the picture for 11 minutes. We had to compare it to something we learned about and guess the place and time period it was from. The fourth section was multiple choice vocabulary. Finally, the fifth was an essay based question comparing and contrasting two objects from completely different time periods.
Therefore, with all this knowledge before the test, my friends and I knew we were going to have to study— a lot. We spent almost a week and a half making flashcards with pictures on one side and facts on the other, a vocabulary sheet, a timeline, the one index card we were allowed to bring to the exam with us, and studying them all. The twenty-four hour period prior to the exam I was freaking out and panicking that I was forgetting to study something. However, when I walked into the exam, I felt well prepared. The material came back easy to me and I actually feel like I did well. This goes to show you that no matter how stressed out you get and how impossible a task may seem, with the right preparation, organization, and motivation you can accomplish anything.
