Question: I'm going to be absent from class on (insert date here)---will I miss
anything?
Answer: No! Of course not! Well, unless you mean the lecture,
examples, homework, demonstrations, discussion, important announcements, and possibly
an in-class quiz. I suggest that you arrange to get the notes from someone
in class on the day that you were absent.
Number 2
Question: Will there be a quiz on (insert date here)?
Answer: In-class quizzes are unannounced or "pop" quizzes. The
idea is to encourage you to come to class everytime, and to come prepared for a
possible quiz. If I tell you that we will or won't have a quiz on a
particular day, then you tell someone else, and pretty soon that
whole come-to-every-class-prepared thing goes by the wayside. So, if you
ask, the answer is always going to be YES! Get it?
Number 3
Question: I missed (or might miss) an in-class quiz on a
certain date. How can I make it up?
Answer: You can't. Well, except in the way that is spelled
out in the course outline, where you can
replace your two lowest in-class quiz grades with the average of your
highest scores on all of the online quizzes.
Number 4
Question: How can I make up one of the scheduled 1-hour exams
that I have to miss because of (select as many as apply)
university sponsored activity
medical emergency
family emergency
abduction and gang probing by aliens previously scheduled
selected for new "Survivor: Greenland" show
something else incredibly important to me
Answer: If you have a really, really good excuse other than
medical, contact me BEFORE the scheduled exam and I will try to let
you take it early. If you are suddenly ill the day of the test, please
contact me by phone or e-mail as soon as possible, before the
next class meeting, and bring a note from your health care provider.
Number 5
Question: How does the lab grade factor into my grade for the
course?
Answer: It doesn't. The lab is a separate 1-hour course with
a grade assigned by the lab instructor.
Number 6
Question: What score do I need to make on the final to get a
particular letter grade for the course?
Answer: Beats me! I won't try to do the calculation for you
either, but due to my incredibly generous nature, I have made it easy for
you to do yourself using the amazing automatic grade calculator that I wrote.
Number 7
Question: When/where are you going to post the scores for
the quiz/exam?
Answer: I don't post scores. University policy strongly
discourages faculty from publicly posting student scores. I will hand your
quizzes and exams back in class just as soon as I grade and record them.
Your semester grade will be posted on TechSIS just as soon as I grade the
final---calling, e-mailing, or knocking on my door while I am grading the
final just delays the process for everyone and annoys the professor.
Number 8
Question: Do you curve?
Answer: No. Since the average semester score for this
course is fairly high, norming the average to a C (grading on a curve) would
lower most student's letter grade.
Number 9
Question: Can you tell me what my grades are?
Answer: No. I hand all of your in-class work back as soon
as it is graded and recorded. While I do keep a record, it is extremely
time-consuming to look up and e-mail 60 or 70 people their scores during the
semester. So, if you want to know how you are doing, come to class, pick up
your work, and keep track of it yourself. Of course, you can check your online quiz scores anytime.
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