We know that you work hard on completing your programming assignments, and that work forms the primary mechanism for growing your coding practice skills and learning the theory concepts in CS106B. Growing and learning messy processes full of ups and downs, and the weeklong format of assignments allows time for this. Exams, on the other hand, are a way for you to demonstrate that by the end of those assignment ups and downs, you did finally reach a place of mastery at the level we expect for this course. We will have two exam assessments in this course.
Midterm Diagnostic Exam
The midterm diagnostic will be a short, loosely-timed online assessment of the core, fundamental topics from the first half of CS106B. The diagnostic is designed to take about 90 minutes, and you will complete it during a timed 3-hour window of your choosing between 5pm on Tuesday, October 26 and 5pm on Wednesday October 27. The 24-hr window means that you need to turn in your exam by 5pm on Wednesday, so you should start your 3-hr window no later than 2pm. By enrolling in this course, you are confirming that you will be able to take the exam in that window. We understand that most of you have other commitments such as jobs, sports, other exams, etc, and that is why we are allowing the flexibility of a 24-hr window; but you are required to meet that schedule without further exceptions. (If you have OAE accommodations that affect exam scheduling, our staff will work with you to meet those.)
Watch this space for a link to more details about the exam topics and practice problems, to be released as the date of the exam approaches.
End-Quarter Final Exam
The end-quarter final exam will have the same format as the midterm, and will focus on the fundamental topics from the second half of CS106B. Students often ask if the final will be "cumulative," and the answer is somewhat yes and somewhat no. The focus is very much on the second half of the course; but on the other hand, it would be impossible not to touch topics from the first half at all, since the course content builds on itself. The final is designed to take about 2 hours, and you will complete it during a timed 3-hour window of your choosing on Monday, December 6 (from 12:01am to 11:59pm PST on December 6). December 6 is our registrar-scheduled final exam day (they have us for 8:30-11:30am on December 6), so you are certainly welcome to take it in that exact timeslot, but we are allowing some extra flexibility. The 24-hr window means that you need to turn in your exam by 11:59pm, so you should start your 3-hr window no later than 9pm. As with the midterm, by enrolling in this course, you are confirming that you will be able to take the exam in that window. (If you have OAE accommodations that affect exam scheduling, our staff will work with you to meet those.)
Watch this space for a link to more details about the exam topics and practice problems, to be released as the date of the exam approaches.