Re: [Phys-l] Online Homework Assignments and Grading

[Jack Uretsky <jlu@hep.anl.gov>]

Hi all-
	I save time for the instructor by grading only a fraction of the 
assigned problems.  The students don't know in advance which problems will 
be graded, so if the don't do all the homework, their grades suffer on a 
probabilistic basis.
	By the way, I had a recent collaboration with a chemist who 
introduced be to a delightful book by Chandler (there is also a solution 
book to accompany the text).  For the past year I've been dealing with 
non-equilibrium thermodynamics (look up Glauber's work to get some 
insight).
			Regards,
				Jack


On Tue, 21 Jul 2009, Polvani, Donald G. wrote:

> I will be teaching introductory thermodynamics and electromagnetism at
> local community college after an absence of over 5 years.  The last time
> I taught the course I assigned end of the chapter homework problems,
> collected and graded the students answers, and returned the papers to
> the students.  Sometimes I would go over an especially troublesome
> problem on the board after finding that many students had a problem with
> it.  Homework counts for about 15% of the student's grade.
>
> In the fall, I am considering using an online homework assignment and
> grading program (Mastering Physics by Pearson/Addison Wesley which goes
> with the textbook "University Physics by Young and Freedman).  I have
> not used such a system before, but the instructor in the mechanics
> course, which precedes the course I will teach, has used Mastering
> Physics for homework and likes it.  She feels the students benefit from
> the extra tutorials and examples which are available as well as the
> hints and extra tries that are allowed by the grading systems.  The
> instructor benefits from the savings in grading time and the automatic
> compilation of grades which the system provides.
>
> I'm wondering what the experience of the list has been with systems like
> Mastering Physics in introductory physics courses.  This is a calculus
> based course intended for engineers and physicists.  Do you feel online
> homework assignment and grading systems are effective for the students
> in addition to saving time for the instructor?
>
> Don Polvani
> Northrop Grumman Corp.
> Undersea Systems
> Annapolis, MD 21404
> _______________________________________________
> Forum for Physics Educators
> Phys-l@carnot.physics.buffalo.edu
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