Happy Exam Week - "May The Odds Ever Be In Your Favor"

Midterms and Finals week have been coined “Hell Week” here at UW-Madison, and for

very good reasons. Many midterms fall in the same week or day, and every teacher has different

ideas on how to prepare their students for the exam. Another factor that stresses students out is

that some final grades are completely dependent on three exam grades, so bombing one is not an

option. What kinds of classes are best suited for a student to learn and thrive in? In the following,

I will explore grading fairness, a student’s willingness to take risks with grades, and how

students evaluate courses based on different factors.

In the article titled “The Effects of Grading and Teaching Practices on Students’

Perceptions of Grading Fairness,” Michael Gordon and Charles Hay start off by saying that there

is a lot of information about teachers’ perspective of grading, but very little information is given

on how the students perceive grading. When students reported on their classes, it was found that

they felt they were graded fair when teachers focused on prepping students for tests instead of

“manipulating” the final grade (Gordon and Hay, Pg. 93).

There are two different grade distribution rules. The first one is called meritocratic, and it

means that grades are distributed based on academic achievement. High ability students tend to

prefer this because it best portrays their knowledge. The second grade distribution rule is

particularistic, which means that grades are distributed based on personal circumstances, such as

the need to pass a class or problems in their lives that prevent them from getting their work done

adequately and on time. Low ability students tend to prefer this method as it is much more

forgivi...

... middle of paper ...

...mpared to a big lecture. In discussion, students should be

ready to be called on since the group is smaller, but one would not expect that in a lecture hall

where a student can be anonymous.

To test these theories out, there would need to be two classrooms of students learning the

same things, but each class would be structured differently. One class would be a lecture class,

and the other class would have lectures, discussions, and daily work to keep them involved.

Comparing grades and course evaluations at the end would determine which class seems to be

better suited to the needs of students. In the end, the majority of students just want to perform

well and understand the material. So, for the sake of final grades, students and teachers should

work closer together when it comes to covering the material and find ways to be more involved

in class.