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Re: Grading schemes



But not much.....

Mark Shapiro

-----Original Message-----
From: Roger Freedman [mailto:airboy@PHYSICS.UCSB.EDU]
Sent: Friday, October 08, 1999 9:31 AM
To: PHYS-L@lists.nau.edu
Subject: Re: Grading schemes


Wes Davis <wdavis@LIGHTSIDE.COM> writes:

At least ONE professor at UCLA has solved the old tutoring
problem in >General Education Physics. 'Mark' (call me Mark, says his
syllabus) >guarantees students at least a 'C' in the class. My daughter
is taking Physics >10 at UCLA. The minimum requirement for a 'C' grade is
to "show up for one of >the two midterms" (sic.) and to take the final.
There is no minimum grade on >the tests for a C. Granted I went to
school in the '60s, but I am >pretty outraged at the way instructors, even
at noted universities, are >pandering to non-science majors. Heaven
forbid we should hurt their self >esteems by requiring them to actually
perform!

I took a peek at the syllabus for this course (available on-line at
http://www.physics.ucla.edu/class/99F/10_Cowan/syllabus.html) and
discovered that the requirements for the course are rather more demanding
that Wes Davis states. Here's the statement from the web page:

Final Exam (You must take the final exam in order to pass the
course!!!)-30%, you may drop your lowest midterm - the remaining
midterm will be worth 30%, homework - 20%, and the report will
be worth 20%.

Guaranteed passing grade of C: You will be guaranteed a passing
grade, i.e., a C, if you do the following: take the final exam
(you must take the final exam in order to pass the course!!!),
take at least one of the two midterms, turn in 60% of the homework
assignments, and turn in the previously mentioned four page report.

Of course we all have our own grading standards (I'm teaching the same
course at UC Santa Barbara this quarter, and you can see my grading scheme
on-line at
http://www.physics.ucsb.edu/~airboy/classwork/1999fall/ns1a/syllabus.html).
But it does seem like the Physics 10 class in question at UCLA requires a
bit more than merely "showing up."

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Roger A. Freedman
Department of Physics and College of Creative Studies
University of California, Santa Barbara

Mailing address:
Department of Physics
UCSB
Santa Barbara CA 93106-9530

E-mail: airboy@physics.ucsb.edu
WWW: http://www.physics.ucsb.edu/~airboy/
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