tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post1711874128904854607..comments2023-10-15T04:23:50.187-04:00Comments on College Misery: If It's Tuesday, I Must Be Baffled.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-58968632127909811662013-04-10T21:46:28.601-04:002013-04-10T21:46:28.601-04:00I had profs assign this when I was a student. I&#...I had profs assign this when I was a student. I'd do them the day before they were due, although i'd have the presence of mind to switch pens. <br /><br />So I don't assign them.Professor Chiltepinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10087270705989845484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-74885564485361756922013-04-10T21:44:49.606-04:002013-04-10T21:44:49.606-04:00Never underestimate the power of awkward silence. ...Never underestimate the power of awkward silence. The silence never lasts a full hour. Usually only six or seven minutes before someone gives it a stab. That first discussion sucks and is sweaty and uncomfortable. I let it stay uncomfortable. Don't fill silences. Ask follow up questions, call on a few people randomly, and if they're unprepared simply stare at them for a count of Professor Chiltepinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10087270705989845484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-11963547985982745892013-04-10T17:01:32.363-04:002013-04-10T17:01:32.363-04:00I love this. I wish I had the guts to do it.I love this. I wish I had the guts to do it.BurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-37654185501366807602013-04-10T17:00:51.708-04:002013-04-10T17:00:51.708-04:00I used to do that. I'd collect the journals ju...I used to do that. I'd collect the journals just after midterm. Surprising how many entries were written with the same pen with steadily worsening penmanship. I stopped when I realized that I was just wasting my valuable time (and killing my freaking back).<br /><br />I shifted to journals in print form (1-2 pages) but also too much reading (I teach a lot of comp) to keep up with/comment on.<BurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-91083133829507131842013-04-10T16:58:24.834-04:002013-04-10T16:58:24.834-04:00I use my LMS, which allows me to "select all&...I use my LMS, which allows me to "select all" and enter a grade "pass" for all of them. Then all I have to do is go back and uncheck the ones who were absent or who didn't read. Only a very few are bold enough to try to bullshit me, but when I use the "comment all" function and explain that zeroes happen if they try to bullshit me, they stop trying. Easy-peasy.<BurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-85288975155485866502013-04-10T16:47:11.436-04:002013-04-10T16:47:11.436-04:00I use index cards too - with a question from the r...I use index cards too - with a question from the reading, or the previous day's lecture - but I don't collect all of them. On any given day I collect about half, chosen alphabetically by name or month of birth or student number or similar. it has the same effect of gingering up the class without giving me so much marking.Merely Academichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00452389428113097744noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-65825284204936995842013-04-10T16:21:21.144-04:002013-04-10T16:21:21.144-04:00It's still worth measuring/recording/adding up...It's still worth measuring/recording/adding up the amount of time you're spending on such "quick" grading. Every time I have, I've been dumbfounded (and dismayed). Mind you, I still do such activities, but I'm aware that, with 90+ students, if I plan something that takes 5 minutes per student (for a particular assignment, or over the course of a week or a semester), I&#Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-64679322101737397102013-04-10T16:15:02.503-04:002013-04-10T16:15:02.503-04:00Amen. While I appreciate all the tips for encoura...Amen. While I appreciate all the tips for encouraging reading/engagement (and use many of them myself), this is, in the end, the bottom line, and we need to remember that. I'm not sure it would be worth the pain, but I would support a movement of (tenured, already decently-salaried) proffies who decide to go back to a minimalist approach: reading assignments, class discussion, a midterm, a Contingent Cassandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08161652083031423415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-13110939809876961052013-04-10T12:44:16.963-04:002013-04-10T12:44:16.963-04:00PG, I teach 4 courses a semester, 3 of which are c...PG, I teach 4 courses a semester, 3 of which are comp. each section is capped at 24, and I don't grade the cards for content. I flip through them right after they give them to me, and after class I award pass (5 points) for questions that demonstrate that they did the reading, and Fail (0 points) for DNRs or questions that are obviously bullshit. BurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-68211424348598278532013-04-10T01:03:30.632-04:002013-04-10T01:03:30.632-04:00I like this too, BurntChrome, but wonder about you...I like this too, BurntChrome, but wonder about your teaching load and how much time it takes to go through them and record the grades. <br /><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02906546940408742913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-34064604945095358172013-04-10T00:56:17.367-04:002013-04-10T00:56:17.367-04:00Brilliant.Brilliant.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02906546940408742913noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-35045580874173098942013-04-09T21:50:43.137-04:002013-04-09T21:50:43.137-04:00Yes, that's possible, but since the quizzes we...Yes, that's possible, but since the quizzes were an afterthought (after half the class bombed the second test) I can't really make them worth a whole lot. The problem is that, while they all "look attentive", half of them understand very little, and the quizzes will make them aware of this before the next test. <br /><br />Other times I've tested whether they were doing the Peter Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00754472537710161295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-28677877380173980282013-04-09T19:56:35.926-04:002013-04-09T19:56:35.926-04:00Seconded.Seconded.CrayonEaterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10126396989880932207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-12178375945227342832013-04-09T17:16:15.589-04:002013-04-09T17:16:15.589-04:00Quizzes are fine, but really what it comes down to...Quizzes are fine, but really what it comes down to is students must feel that something is at stake. I rarely have a hard time getting students to read, because on the first day of classes I tell them "This is a discussion class. If you prepare, we will have interesting discussions. If you are unprepared, we will sit in silence for an hour." And then, the next class, when they don&Professor Chiltepinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10087270705989845484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-61704429652140405342013-04-09T16:17:20.004-04:002013-04-09T16:17:20.004-04:00Or daily "journal" writing assignments o...Or daily "journal" writing assignments on the reading for that day.<br /><br />Grade them check, plus, and minus (and I added zero for "not done"), and then make up a grade at the end based on the distribution you see in the class.The_Mythhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10621186404597424842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-78998796860516162592013-04-09T15:23:38.688-04:002013-04-09T15:23:38.688-04:00Could it be that the quizzes are just bonus points...Could it be that the quizzes are just bonus points that makes the difference? In my experience, admittedly less broad than some others here, if you make the quiz points a part of the actual grade, they start to take it more seriously. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-5215777637445535082013-04-09T14:37:52.261-04:002013-04-09T14:37:52.261-04:00Yes to index cards. I use 'em, award 'em ...Yes to index cards. I use 'em, award 'em points (1-3), shuffle and stack them, use them to prepare the next week's lecture, etc. They are my favorite low-tech tool. Sometimes I even use them for "flash feedback" about a method I am trying.Frog and Toadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06377542172335502858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-56296040123347920602013-04-09T12:43:13.349-04:002013-04-09T12:43:13.349-04:00I like this! Will try this next semester, thanks!...I like this! Will try this next semester, thanks!CrayonEaterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10126396989880932207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-50550656499658533102013-04-09T09:25:30.888-04:002013-04-09T09:25:30.888-04:00Have you tried different kinds of CATs (Classroom ...Have you tried different kinds of CATs (Classroom Assessment Techniques)? Fancy term for things like 1-minute papers, or muddiest point-type things. I learned about them when I got training to teach a hybrid course. They're usually not graded (I don't), but I award points (5) if they complete them, and they cannot complete them if they have not prepared for class. <br /><br />When I do BurntChromehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06055976331443607569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-59941744102455356812013-04-09T09:11:00.143-04:002013-04-09T09:11:00.143-04:00Well, I've tried the quiz route, a five-minute...Well, I've tried the quiz route, a five-minute one at the beginning of class. A simple question, dealing either with material discussed in the previous lecture or with a main point in the section they were told to read in advance. For instance, if I'm going to lecture on applications of uniform hamsterence I might ask them for the definition.<br /><br />Here is what happens: the good Peter Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00754472537710161295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-42558377760306484902013-04-09T08:51:19.344-04:002013-04-09T08:51:19.344-04:00Participation is 25% of the grade. If they miss 1/...Participation is 25% of the grade. If they miss 1/4 of the classes they're already down to a 75%. If they screw up the pop quizzes and can't answer the simple questions I ask them, I mark it on the seating chart.<br /><br />They won't read unless you make them. Unless there are serious consequences for not reading.<br /><br /> <br />StellafromSparksburghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17584701718285662953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-7051483603664587632013-04-09T08:07:10.373-04:002013-04-09T08:07:10.373-04:00The only thing I do differently is sometimes give ...The only thing I do differently is sometimes give them five minutes at the beginning of class to discuss the reading or to "free write". This has various virtues/vices: (1) it occupies class time; (2) it improves or at least starts discussion; and (3) it gives me five minutes to (a) review some points myself or (b) stare out the window (or at a blank wall) and take deep breaths to stillAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-69981796886186786152013-04-09T08:06:43.839-04:002013-04-09T08:06:43.839-04:00"And I feel like I've failed once again.&..."And I feel like I've failed once again."<br /><br />You prepared for class. They did not. You didn't fail. They did.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-80345991499396908762013-04-09T06:56:05.850-04:002013-04-09T06:56:05.850-04:00Cambridge is right.
These are the three things ...Cambridge is right. <br /><br />These are the three things you should do on your own, one of these three will show up on the test.<br /><br />Vog3lfr3ihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07498874776211940606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2883226237165701608.post-68421632020703525352013-04-09T05:58:59.193-04:002013-04-09T05:58:59.193-04:00That's golden, like the color of lemons. Make...That's golden, like the color of lemons. Make lemonade.<br /><br />Since you can't go with your "A" Plan (have an intelligent discussion), you now have time in your schedule for your "B" Plan (a good old fashioned written test, something along the lines of "Q1) Write at least 2 paragraphs on the assigned reading"<br /><br />Whenever I deploy that strategy, Cambridge0101https://www.blogger.com/profile/12153435765355501551noreply@blogger.com