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Module Quiz

Complete this quiz after finishing all concept and practice pages. Save your answers before opening separate quiz calibration. Questions are scenario-based judgment calls. There are often several defensible answers; the task is to pick one and defend it.

Current Module Questions​

Question 1: Case Study Opener​

A peer shows you a draft case study whose first two paragraphs read: "This project was built using Python, FastAPI, Postgres, Redis, Docker, and GitHub Actions. The stack was chosen because it is modern and well-supported." Is this a good opening?

Question 2: Diagram Triage​

A case study has four diagrams: (a) a box-and-arrow architecture with no edge labels, (b) a sequence diagram for the ingestion retry path with labeled delivery semantics, (c) a tech-stack logo grid, (d) a failure-mode diagram showing what happens when Redis is lost. Which should stay, and which should go?

Question 3: Tradeoff Section​

Your capstone has a Tradeoffs section that says: "We chose Postgres for its reliability. Redis was added for latency. Docker was chosen for portability." Does this section work?

Question 4: Portfolio Pin Strategy​

You have 12 repos: 2 strong capstone projects, 3 tutorial follow-alongs, 1 unfinished side project pinned for 14 months, 4 small utilities, 2 forks you never touched. Someone advises "pin all 12 so nothing is hidden." Correct or incorrect?

Question 5: README Scope Disclosure​

A pinned repo claims in its README: "Fully production-ready distributed inventory system." In fact, it runs on one node, has no authn/authz, and has never been deployed beyond a local docker-compose. What is the risk?

Question 6: Commit Message Audit​

A reviewer scans the last 20 commits on main. Ten read "fix", three read "wip", four read "updates", and three have meaningful sentence-form messages. What will they infer, and what is the fix?

Question 7: Bio Voice Mismatch​

A candidate's GitHub bio says: "Distributed systems engineer specializing in large-scale backend architecture." Their pinned repos show three CRUD apps and one tutorial follow-along. What is the problem?

Question 8: Blog Cadence​

You have not blogged in 18 months and feel guilty. You consider writing four posts in two weeks to catch up. Is this a good idea?

Question 9: Editing Test​

Read: "It's worth noting that in many cases, one of the key considerations that often comes up is the question of how best to handle idempotency across multiple diverse upstream data sources." (31 words). Rewrite it to under 15 words without losing information.

Question 10: Specialization by Market​

Your strength grid shows you strongest in backend (4) and weak in ML/data engineering (1). A friend says "data is the hottest market, just pivot." You have four months to graduate. Best move?

Question 11: Rubric Tie​

Backend scores 11; distributed scores 12 (higher interest, equal market, slightly lower strength). You choose backend "to be safe." Is this defensible?

Question 12: Feynman Failure Mode​

You write a Feynman explanation of database isolation levels. It defines serializable, repeatable read, read committed, and read uncommitted -- but never mentions a scenario where the choice matters. Is the packet ready to ship?

Question 13: Hostile Question​

In mock defense, the interviewer asks: "You chose Raft instead of Paxos. Isn't that just trend-chasing?" You freeze. What is the ideal-shape answer?

Question 14: Gap List Audit​

Your gap list reads: "I want to learn more about AI, cloud, leadership, and databases." Is this a usable gap list?

Question 15: What "Done" Looks Like​

Your portfolio has: case study, organized profile, pinned repos, bio, 12-month plan, gap list, Feynman packet. But you have not delivered a live defense. Is the module complete?

Interleaved Review Questions​

Prior Module Question 1 (S10 M04)​

Your capstone has a runbook. A reviewer asks: "has this runbook ever been executed?" If the answer is no, what should you do before graduation?

Prior Module Question 2 (S8 M05)​

A design doc you wrote six months ago opens with three paragraphs of background before stating the proposal. Is that the right structure?

Prior Module Question 3 (S7 M05)​

An ADR you wrote states the decision but omits the "consequences" section. Is it usable?

Prior Module Question 4 (S6 distributed systems)​

You claim "exactly-once delivery" in a case study. A senior engineer raises an eyebrow. Why?

Prior Module Question 5 (S4/S5 systems and databases)​

Your case study claims "ACID guarantees" but you used read-committed isolation. Is the claim fine?

Self-Assessment and Remediation​

Scoring Bands​

Mastery Level (13-15 + 4-5 prior correct):

  • Status: portfolio, decision, and defense artifacts are graduation-ready.
  • Action: schedule the mock defense if not yet done; ship the 12-month plan.

Proficient Level (10-12 + 3-4 prior correct):

  • Status: substantive but uneven.
  • Action: identify the questions you got wrong; revisit the specific concept page (e.g., Q2 -> Cluster 1 concept 03; Q9 -> Cluster 3 concept 09). Revise the corresponding portfolio artifact.

Developing Level (7-9 + 2-3 prior correct):

  • Status: structural gaps in portfolio thinking.
  • Action: rework the practice pages in order (01 -> 02 -> 03). Do not skip Practice 04. Re-take the quiz after a week.

Insufficient Level (< 7 + < 2 prior correct):

  • Status: the module has been skimmed, not worked.
  • Action: restart from the module index. Do each cluster's concepts sequentially. Produce the drill outputs, not just read the pages. Re-take after all four practice pages are complete with their Evidence Check boxes ticked.

Remediation Map (by missed area)​

  • Case study weakness (Qs 1-3) -> revisit Cluster 1, redo Practice 01.
  • Portfolio weakness (Qs 4-6) -> revisit Cluster 2, redo Practice 02.
  • Voice / editing weakness (Qs 7-9) -> revisit Cluster 3; edit an existing artifact to half its length.
  • Decision weakness (Qs 10-11) -> revisit Cluster 4, refill the rubric; have a peer challenge it.
  • Defense weakness (Qs 12-15) -> revisit Cluster 5, run Defense Katas 1 and 3.

Progression boundary​

Quiz performance calibrates retrieval and reasoning. It does not replace runnable work, changed-case transfer, the module assessment or required semester evidence. Consult practice calibration for the additional independent cases.