Exams

So we finished another week of midterm exams. I often wonder around this time of year what the whole point is of having them. I'm not convinced yet that they are a valuable learning tool as they now stand: 150 or 200 multiple choice questions, many of which are a game of trivial pursuit. No higher-order critical thinking going on there, just recall. Sure, some parts of an exam can be designed to include critical thinking, but I haven't seen enough of that yet. And the gotcha questions are terrible--strictly designed to trap students. I vote for exams that ask students to write out written responses to the material covered--yes, this means sitting down and grading them by hand, but that's our job, isn't it?