I'm really sad and upset because yesterday the organization that administers the architect registration exam (NCARB) just announced that on November 16th they are no longer allowing test takers to use scratch paper. I take my next exam on November 17th, so literally the day after they do away with scratch paper, I'll be taking my exam. The decision to take away paper sounds trivial, but I used it to work math problems out, jot down notes as I was trying to understand the questions and honestly used it as a crutch. Not only that, my first year in architecture school, they made us hand draft everything. Architecture is a visual field and I use paper every single day for my projects so it's a slap in the face for NCARB to make this decision.
Since they announced it, candidates have been up and arms and a petition has gone around that generated over 1,000 signatures in less than 18 hours. I've written a comment in the ncarb community site and I'm also considering emailing my state board of directors. It's incredibly upsetting and I'm wondering if how I study should be to forgo using paper so I can get used to not having paper.