SMH... Young pup. In my day, when you got an F, boy you had to choke on that sumbich clear to graduation (if it didn't prevent that...then I suppose beyond...). Kids these days....
I cant say I've ever had a teacher weight homework the same as a test or quiz. Even if I took a straight 0 because I didnt feel like doing it, it wasnt the same as failing a test or getting a 0 on a quiz.
Here’s how I do it, not that anyone cares LOL. My grades are weighted, 70% tests and 30% everything else. (This is for my AP classes) I give out a calendar at the beginning of the month with tests dates, in class activities, and topics for each day. The only homework I give are chapter reading questions and vocabulary; AP Gov is very vocabulary heavy. These are due the day of the test and they are to be used as a study guide. Every chapter has lecture, reading, maybe a video, and some type of application component. Kids need to learn how to manage their time and those of you with high achieving kids know that they are spread thin academically, socially, and activities wise. The calendar is very helpful. One thing I do as far is grading is that if you get at least a 70 on your test you get the “AP” curve; if you get a 68 sucks to be you. The reasoning is that a 70 is analogous to a C in freshman level class. I used to offer retakes and it just didn’t work. My kids will bust ass to at least make the curve and it is born out by their AP scores. You get an A or B in my class you pass the exam and just saved your parents three credit hours.
Neither did i. But I did score a 42% on a theology test freshman year (the old man was NOT pleased...Catholic school ...tuition...THEOLOGY...). And all the talk about Jesus, and forgiveness, you'd think a fella could get a little forgiveness on a grade, but nooooo..... fire n brimstone when it come to grades...
Can we just talk about how little we all use calculus? I havent needed to figure out the rate of change on a curved line yet Ha ha. I am not disputing homework is important. All we are debating is whether its fair or not to handle missing assignments differently than giving a "zero". Are you ok with some of the thing I mentioned up thread like "throwing out" your lowest score of the semester? If you are ok with any other way to adjust scores then you are just bothered by the optics of looking like someone earned something for nothing. Did you know you cant get a zero on the SATs? You start with a number that isnt zero.
Perhaps more schools should adopt the Socratic method used in law school ( or at least aspects--not necessarily the "answer questions with questions" part). Assign the work, but dont grade assignments. Just randomly quiz the students every day on the assigned work, then (deviating from SM), keep running tally on each student, and assign a HW grade based on that tally. Keeps students on their toes, resposible for material, and AI cant do anything for them, other than helping a student understand the material. Jmho/fwiw.
All graded writing is done in class, right in front of me. We’ve been practicing FRQs getting ready for the exam and they do them online. Kids have school issued laptops and I can see their screens. A kid tried to open another tab to look up an answer and I closed the tab right in front of his face from my laptop. The look on his face was priceless. Dumb ass.
I do wish we could push Statistics as the capstone of high school math. Calculus is a really powerful tool, that only a very few people will ever actually use. Whereas Statistics is something that people use on a weekly, if not daily, basis. And because so few people have any real understanding of it, people are constantly making bad decisions because of it.
If you didn't do it, you shouldn't get any credit for it. The system I mentioned before is the one that still makes the most sense to me. If you get an A in the first nine weeks, homework is weighted 0% of your grade for the second nine weeks. Use one set as an incentive for the next. And yes I know you get 400 points for writing your name of the SAT (at least that was how it was when i took it.). Schools likely aren't going to accept you if you get a 400 on your SAT. Finally, you use basic calculus every day without realizing it if you drive. Knowing when to brake or accelerate you're doing those estimations. a=dv/dt v=dx/dt
Harman Wouk is an award-winning writer. He generally writes historical novels. He wants to write a very detailed novel about World War II. The result of the Manhattan Project, the atomic bomb, would determine the war’s end. That is why Herman Wouk wants to speak with the then-young scientist who worked on the Manhattan Project, Richard Feynman. That is because one of the most well-known scientists of the modern era is Richard Feynman. After a pleasant conversation, Feynman asks Wouk if he knows calculus. When Wouk gives a negative response, “You had better learn it; it’s the language God talks,” says Feynman. The Beautiful Applications of Calculus in Real Life Judging from my kids, it's become apparent that I left a LOT on the table. Regrets... C'est la vie.
Maybe--though I really don't think so. Law professors seem to do much less than other profs, imo--they lead a discussion, which they coax out of the students. The students, not the prof, fuel the discussion. Keeps students on their toes and engaged, and the learning is collateral, rather than spoon fed from on high. Seems to me it would be easier than the way traditional teaching does it, especially if the prof. is merely tracking points according to the student's--whom (s)he chooses--participation, then logging it in a book/registry, as opposed to grading individual HW assignments. jmho/fwiw. (I may be a tad tainted, since taht was my last experiecne in a classroom, besides CLE's).
A difference being that law students WANT to be there, high school students maybe not so much. I REALLY wish we had decent vocational programs.
The more mature the student, the more they can direct their own learning. Something that law professors all have in common is their students have completed four years of college and gained acceptance to law school. A bit different from the average middle-schooler. Teaching graduate students is awesome. Even teaching undergraduates is way better than teaching high schoolers. And middle schoolers are something out of Dante.
