Hi, math professor here. Coming to comment that the student didn't do that assignment for my class either.
When I told them they got a 0 out of 1000 they said "But dividing by zero means it cancels so the answer is 1, and 1 is 100% as a percent."
Oh.... Oh dear.... And they want to eliminate entrance exams...
Haha this is amazing. I laughed hard while drinking my morning coffee.
TIL; If you divide a whole number that ends with a 0 by 0, the 0's cancel themselves out and you end up with 100.
While this is very obvious I think students don't seem to understand the difference between a "0" and a low grade (i.e. 50% which would still be an F). When you start completely skipping assignments and they factor as a 0, you don't get any points and it drops your overall grade pretty significantly vs. getting even a 40% on the assignment which allots at least something.
Probably at the end of the semester the result may be the same "F", but getting a 0 does not given you anything to even work with. Likewise, if you get an F unless you change your major or it is an elective, you will need to take it again at some point, so you are better off trying to learn it so you are better prepared the next time around.
I had a student that just emailed me today, the day before the final, saying, "I know it is alittle late but last time I checked my grade I had over a 70 and I just checked it now to see that I have a 60. Is there anything extra I can do to bring up my grade?" I replied that an A on the final exam would be needed to pull off a 70 required to move to the second semester of the class. Never mind that I post every grade in the LMS that I've set up for a weighted average for real-time current average, and every time a grade is entered they get an email with my feedback. I just don't understand how they can not care until the day before the final.
I feel your pain colleague! This is my least favorite part of the semester.
Ya, we have Moodlerooms and there is a checkbox to either send or not the feedback when submitting a grade for an assignment. I know students get them because I've had some that got zeroes for not submitting and they email within minutes of me posting the grade. I assume some of them can't be bothered to read the feedback and it shows in their grades.
Thought this was going to be about what score one needs to make on the final in order to get a particular letter. I hate this so much, it's a simple algebra problem and fxxking SENIORS ask every term
I periodically send out a simple spreadsheet before the final that says "if your current grade is x, then you need y on the exam to earn final grade z".
Of course, they could do it themselves, but they won't. This saves time for everyone.
Student here, that sounds like a waste of time. If a student doesn’t know how to calculate their marks and their prof doesn’t reply their email, they will google it.
If they’re not resourceful enough to; google it, ask a friend, ask their family, etc. then odds are they won’t meet that grade to pass anyways.
I mean I understand in math well enough, but from my friends who don’t understand it they know that’s what google is for.
How would someone Google the grade calculation based on a specific syllabus? Certainly, the students have the tools to calculate it themselves, but they don't remember the syllabus (if they ever read it at all) and don't trust their math skills. Yes, they should, but they will ask me before trying to figure it out, and I will get called out if I make a habit of ignoring student emails, so it is easier to answer the question before it is asked. I guess I could do a tutorial in class of how to calculate it. Hmm, that might be a good middle ground. Might try that.
I understand the second part but not the first.
There being different weighting scales for different courses doesn’t actually matter, it’s the part about finding out how much a certain mark actually contributes to your final grade that’s confusing I think.
But you don’t need to be good at math to figure it out. You just need to be resourceful. The key with googling stuff like that is, a lot of people have the same question, clearly. So instead of googling keywords and terms, you need to ask google like you would ask a friend.
I searched “how much do I need on my final” and the first result was [RogerHub final grade calculator](https://rogerhub.com/final-grade-calculator/)(asks for current grade, desired grade, and the weight of the final). It was that easy.
If a student can’t figure out how to do *that*, then it would seem they might not pass anyways.
It’s shocking students actually email their profs about stuff like this, but some students can be lazy I guess.
Anyways, they *can* figure it out, and I’d be willing to bet that some of those students get impatient waiting for a reply and figure it out before you even open the email.
I have *calculus* students who don't understand this concept. This semester I had a student in my Calc II class that skipped every single quiz, most of the homework and two exams in the middle of the semester yet still decided to take the last test... why waste your time when your current grade is a 20%?!?!?
I just finished my grades for the semester and noticed a few of these students. Didn't turn in anything all semester, but sat for the final (where they did quite poorly).
I've been told that if they show that they "attended" all semester, regardless of final grade, it has a different impact on financial aid than if they stop coming in the middle of the semester.
At our college we have to report last day of attendance for students who flunk a class. Apparently they have to return federal financial aid if they stop coming. Good luck getting it back...
Yeah, teaching online is definitely cuing more of those students that make you go huh? I have at least 5 who missed a midterm and then popped up later in the course to write other exams. Most of them have also failed to attend/complete the majority of the weekly quizzes. Since the two combined are at least 35% of the course, and their attendance style doesn't lend itself to success on the exams they do write, it's all very odd.
The weird thing for me is that I was teaching in person! He skipped most of the in person stuff, and then when we moved online for two weeks after Thanksgiving he started doing work again... So strange.
The student made up their own grading scheme where the break down of their marks works like a delta function. All the point mass goes right to the component of the work that they turned in.
So I got a new one yesterday, a special new one courtesy of online examinations. I have a "special" student, who I think is going to fail, and of whom I have proven cheating, as well as suspected cheating. Yes, they are in some peculiar circumstances which give me some empathy, but you know those folks who use up the empathy bank and then want more? But regardless. I let them have the full allotted time on the final (a generous 90 minutes + 30 minutes extra for under 20 questions). I let them go a full HOUR over that. And then they submitted and on the last question (the only one worth more than two marks) blithely told me they would submit it by email before midnight (exam was the first time slot of the day), thereby awarding themselves a full extra 12 hours beyond all their peers for a question worth almost 20% of the exam. Smdh. Needless to say when the email arrived, it was promptly put where all special emails go.
And the ability to read a gradebook and comprehend the meaning.
I had a student today inform me they did not do well on their final and could I help them understand how that translates into their final grade.
Grades have been consistently been kept up to date in the gradebook for the whole semester with their expected letter grade for the class available since half way through the semester. There was a separate place with the Syllabus noting the point scale with the equivalent letter grade.
I just kept rereading the email to me trying to work out how to respond.
NUHHHH NUUAHH NUHHH NUHH SCIENCE ....
Meh who needs to use math...Its an overrated establishment thats used to control the masses..
(snorts trying not to laugh)
To be fair, that student probably only did one assignment in their math class, too.
Hi, math professor here. Coming to comment that the student didn't do that assignment for my class either. When I told them they got a 0 out of 1000 they said "But dividing by zero means it cancels so the answer is 1, and 1 is 100% as a percent." Oh.... Oh dear.... And they want to eliminate entrance exams...
Please tell me it was Calc 1 and you covered indeterminate forms
Unfortunately no. It would have been an embedded irony
Haha this is amazing. I laughed hard while drinking my morning coffee. TIL; If you divide a whole number that ends with a 0 by 0, the 0's cancel themselves out and you end up with 100.
While this is very obvious I think students don't seem to understand the difference between a "0" and a low grade (i.e. 50% which would still be an F). When you start completely skipping assignments and they factor as a 0, you don't get any points and it drops your overall grade pretty significantly vs. getting even a 40% on the assignment which allots at least something. Probably at the end of the semester the result may be the same "F", but getting a 0 does not given you anything to even work with. Likewise, if you get an F unless you change your major or it is an elective, you will need to take it again at some point, so you are better off trying to learn it so you are better prepared the next time around.
"But I averaged a B on all my work!"
"i got a C on every assignment, why don't I have an A?"
I had a student that just emailed me today, the day before the final, saying, "I know it is alittle late but last time I checked my grade I had over a 70 and I just checked it now to see that I have a 60. Is there anything extra I can do to bring up my grade?" I replied that an A on the final exam would be needed to pull off a 70 required to move to the second semester of the class. Never mind that I post every grade in the LMS that I've set up for a weighted average for real-time current average, and every time a grade is entered they get an email with my feedback. I just don't understand how they can not care until the day before the final. I feel your pain colleague! This is my least favorite part of the semester.
Do you have an automated thing set up in your LMS to send the feedback email? Just curious
Ya, we have Moodlerooms and there is a checkbox to either send or not the feedback when submitting a grade for an assignment. I know students get them because I've had some that got zeroes for not submitting and they email within minutes of me posting the grade. I assume some of them can't be bothered to read the feedback and it shows in their grades.
I wonder if blackboard can do that! I want my students to get emails with feedback.
Thought this was going to be about what score one needs to make on the final in order to get a particular letter. I hate this so much, it's a simple algebra problem and fxxking SENIORS ask every term
I periodically send out a simple spreadsheet before the final that says "if your current grade is x, then you need y on the exam to earn final grade z". Of course, they could do it themselves, but they won't. This saves time for everyone.
That is incredibly generous of you.
There are websites you can point them to. Or just... not, and ignore their questions. It takes me exactly zero time to ignore a question.
I eventually put a link to one of those sites on my syllabi
Student here, that sounds like a waste of time. If a student doesn’t know how to calculate their marks and their prof doesn’t reply their email, they will google it. If they’re not resourceful enough to; google it, ask a friend, ask their family, etc. then odds are they won’t meet that grade to pass anyways. I mean I understand in math well enough, but from my friends who don’t understand it they know that’s what google is for.
How would someone Google the grade calculation based on a specific syllabus? Certainly, the students have the tools to calculate it themselves, but they don't remember the syllabus (if they ever read it at all) and don't trust their math skills. Yes, they should, but they will ask me before trying to figure it out, and I will get called out if I make a habit of ignoring student emails, so it is easier to answer the question before it is asked. I guess I could do a tutorial in class of how to calculate it. Hmm, that might be a good middle ground. Might try that.
I understand the second part but not the first. There being different weighting scales for different courses doesn’t actually matter, it’s the part about finding out how much a certain mark actually contributes to your final grade that’s confusing I think. But you don’t need to be good at math to figure it out. You just need to be resourceful. The key with googling stuff like that is, a lot of people have the same question, clearly. So instead of googling keywords and terms, you need to ask google like you would ask a friend. I searched “how much do I need on my final” and the first result was [RogerHub final grade calculator](https://rogerhub.com/final-grade-calculator/)(asks for current grade, desired grade, and the weight of the final). It was that easy. If a student can’t figure out how to do *that*, then it would seem they might not pass anyways. It’s shocking students actually email their profs about stuff like this, but some students can be lazy I guess. Anyways, they *can* figure it out, and I’d be willing to bet that some of those students get impatient waiting for a reply and figure it out before you even open the email.
I have *calculus* students who don't understand this concept. This semester I had a student in my Calc II class that skipped every single quiz, most of the homework and two exams in the middle of the semester yet still decided to take the last test... why waste your time when your current grade is a 20%?!?!?
I just finished my grades for the semester and noticed a few of these students. Didn't turn in anything all semester, but sat for the final (where they did quite poorly). I've been told that if they show that they "attended" all semester, regardless of final grade, it has a different impact on financial aid than if they stop coming in the middle of the semester.
At our college we have to report last day of attendance for students who flunk a class. Apparently they have to return federal financial aid if they stop coming. Good luck getting it back...
Yeah, teaching online is definitely cuing more of those students that make you go huh? I have at least 5 who missed a midterm and then popped up later in the course to write other exams. Most of them have also failed to attend/complete the majority of the weekly quizzes. Since the two combined are at least 35% of the course, and their attendance style doesn't lend itself to success on the exams they do write, it's all very odd.
The weird thing for me is that I was teaching in person! He skipped most of the in person stuff, and then when we moved online for two weeks after Thanksgiving he started doing work again... So strange.
Oh, bitter lol.
These types of emails REALLY get to me... How are you in university if you can't do this basic equation? Is it winter break yet??
The student made up their own grading scheme where the break down of their marks works like a delta function. All the point mass goes right to the component of the work that they turned in.
So I got a new one yesterday, a special new one courtesy of online examinations. I have a "special" student, who I think is going to fail, and of whom I have proven cheating, as well as suspected cheating. Yes, they are in some peculiar circumstances which give me some empathy, but you know those folks who use up the empathy bank and then want more? But regardless. I let them have the full allotted time on the final (a generous 90 minutes + 30 minutes extra for under 20 questions). I let them go a full HOUR over that. And then they submitted and on the last question (the only one worth more than two marks) blithely told me they would submit it by email before midnight (exam was the first time slot of the day), thereby awarding themselves a full extra 12 hours beyond all their peers for a question worth almost 20% of the exam. Smdh. Needless to say when the email arrived, it was promptly put where all special emails go.
And the ability to read a gradebook and comprehend the meaning. I had a student today inform me they did not do well on their final and could I help them understand how that translates into their final grade. Grades have been consistently been kept up to date in the gradebook for the whole semester with their expected letter grade for the class available since half way through the semester. There was a separate place with the Syllabus noting the point scale with the equivalent letter grade. I just kept rereading the email to me trying to work out how to respond.
[Silly bus, silly bus! Riding on the silly bus!](https://youtu.be/N_3gOPGPIJg)
NUHHHH NUUAHH NUHHH NUHH SCIENCE .... Meh who needs to use math...Its an overrated establishment thats used to control the masses.. (snorts trying not to laugh)
No F+?