PC: No Points for Effort

Testing students over the hundreds of pages of reading from prior to Spring Break, today’s PC II quiz went something like this:

Prof: “Clear your desks.” [Handing out quizzes]
Prof: Pattillo. Why are you reading the question?
Pattillo: I’m sorry, didn’t realize . . . .
Prof: You have ½ the time of everyone else.
Prof: Does everyone have a quiz? [Silent pause]
Prof: You have 45 seconds. 22 seconds for Pattillo.

Upon turning the page and writing a test number, students were faced with a three or four sentence question followed by about seven blank lines in which to write an answer. For me it was enough time to scribble one and a half sentences equal in score to the phrase, “Glorious horse pecker.”