Exam Schedule

Our final exam will take place on Wednesday, March 14. It will start shortly after 7:30pm and will have a time limit of two hours. Late arrivals will be able to take the exam but will have to finish at the same time as everyone else.

Format of the Exam

The final consists of 25 questions intended to test your knowledge of concepts underlying C++ programming as well as your ability to program. There are no multiple choice, fill-in-the-blanks, true-false, etc. - you write your own answers to all questions.

To make it easier to prepare for the form of the exam, I'm publishing its exact structure - but not the questions, of course.

Questions 1 - 20 (40 points)

You are asked to write definitions of 20 terms related to C++ program design and programming. They are all terms that have come up in class and in most cases can be found in the book as well.

Questions 21 - 23 (10 points)

These are short questions about programming and C++.

Question 24 (10 points)

A short essay question (half page) about program design.

Question 25 (40 points)

You are given a problem and asked to write a complete C++ program to solve it. You will use the computer to enter, compile and test your program. You will turn in a signed listing of your source file and also  give me an electronic copy for easier grading.

Preparing for the Exam

If you have been keeping up with assignments and taking notes in class, you are probably fairly well prepared for this exam. On the other hand, it is designed to present a challenge, so everyone in the class will probably miss a question or two. If you feel a review is needed, the following is a suggested approach.

1. Sit down and make a list of all the things you have learned in the course of this class. It's probably a pretty good list. The exam really isn't that important compared to what you have learned. Hold that thought.
   
2. Review the Class Notes on this web site. In particular, focus on concepts as well as C++ programming features. Make notes of the areas in which you feel weak.
   
3. Make up your own list of terms that someone from this class should be able to define. Make up your own list of short questions about C++ and programming in  general. Inventing questions based on the objectives of a class is a really good way to prepare for any exam.
   
4. Review your own programming assignments and especially any written comments I gave you about them. Identify areas in which you are uncertain. Review those programming constructs and write a few simple programs to test them.
   
5. Review C++ features needed to write most programs: assignments, function calls, I/O, conditional and other program control statements, arrays. The program on the exam will not require you to use two-dimensional arrays or pointers.
   
6. Think about how you will write a program in class. Practice writing small programs quickly. Think about a strategy for budgeting your time so that you produce a complete program right away but then fill in the details later. A complete working program that is missing one little detail might get you 35 points out of 40. A program that is never completed - i.e. doesn't compile and run at all - will be graded zero.

Final Words

Relax before the exam and come in rested. Don't spend time trying to learn something you didn't get before. You'll only detract from what you do know. Everyone who stuck it out through this class has learned a lot and I expect the exam - as well as the final grades - to reflect that fact.

Copyright © 2000  Charlie Poole. All rights reserved.
Revised: July 15, 2002 - cpoole@ctc.edu