French Educational System

Here is my problem. I just spent the last 2 weeks studying furiously for my final exam in animal reproduction. There were drawings with labels, lists, flowcharts, and other such notes to study . By the time this morning's exam rolled around, I knew the basics of insect, bird, mammal, and arthropod reproduction, as well as the embryonic development. And yet, as prepared as I felt walking into the classroom, nothing prepared me for what I got.

The exact same drawings that I studied over...without the labels.

Blank boxes where a flowchart would be.

Graphs of hormone levels...without the lines.

Directions: Fill it in.

I could tell you that the point where the graph peaks is the point where the "décharge ovulante" occurs, the point where luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone had reached the maximal concentration, the point where ovulation occurs. But to draw the entire graph? I was at a loss.

I could tell you that Calyptrea was a hermaphrodite that, at a certain point in time, undergoes a brutal passage into female form, known as protogynie (the reverse is protandrie). But to label all its organs? Couldn't do it.

I could tell you the roles of all the sexual hormones. But to redraw the exact flow chart that taught me that? NO!

By the end of that test, the professor looked at me grimly and said, "C'est pas bon, ça."

The second half of the exam was oral, which was far better; I was able to explain what I knew in a more articulate way. That professor seemed a bit more impressed but still stone-faced.

By the end of the exam, I was crying. Surely I had failed!

Here is what is wrong with this scenario: I did nothing but study for the past two weeks (with the occasional snack break)! And yet, by the time the exam rolled around, the questions were so specific that I couldn't even answer them.

The exam seems to be designed to benefit people who are particularly good at memorizing facts. Sure, those people can recreate their notes, but do they really understand what that means? If they were asked a question that was not taken from the notes verbatim, would they be able to answer it?

I suppose I can say now that the French university system is flawed in this way. The lectures are designed to make people swallow as much information as possible in order to regurgitate it exactly as it was presented. I don't think I have ever taken a test like that before. The American university system is not necessarily any better than the French one, but now I can say that both of these have some problems.

Update: I passed! 10/20!