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☖ Forums → Discussion Forum → Completely freaking out and have to share my pain
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Completely freaking out and have to share my pain
2007-12-07, 8:31 PM #1
So I just finished my finals this week and made the 4 hour trip home and I get home to this message in my inbox:

You signed an honor code pledge on the final exam and the first two tests to the effect:
I understand that if I do not turn test 1 and test 2 over to Professor Klein (leaving it in her mailbox in Academic 304, on her door in Academic 405) by 5 pm Friday December 7, I will lose 15 points on my final grade and initiate an honor council investigation.
I have not received your previous tests.
Professor Klein

I don't recall reading that, however we have to sign the honor code before every exam so I don't tend to read them anymore. Needless to say, I did not turn in my first two tests. I think she re-uses her tests, which is why she requires us to turn them in. HC investigation, I'm not too worried about. 15% off my final grade, major concern.

AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Fincham: Where are you going?
Me: I have no idea
Fincham: I meant where are you sitting. This wasn't an existential question.
2007-12-07, 8:40 PM #2
just mail the tests back and e-mail her about the mix-up. not a big deal.
2007-12-07, 8:41 PM #3
I don't have the tests, I didn't bring my notebook home

Also, she's the type that may be obnoxious about my getting them back to her late and take the 15% off anyway just because it's past 5pm on Friday the 7th.
Fincham: Where are you going?
Me: I have no idea
Fincham: I meant where are you sitting. This wasn't an existential question.
2007-12-07, 8:46 PM #4
Wow, that's horrible. Best of luck.
2007-12-07, 8:53 PM #5
*vibes*
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2007-12-07, 9:13 PM #6
What was the result? Being that it is now Sat. Dec. 8 on your half of the continent?

Sometimes professors will be that anal retentive. If you turn it in at 5:01 PM it could be considered late. I've had a couple of those. Were you supposed to turn these tests in but forgot or something? You have a friend still residing @ college who might be able to do that for you?

Otherwise, it might be an 8 hour round-trip sojourn for you in order to save your grade :/
Code to the left of him, code to the right of him, code in front of him compil'd and thundered. Programm'd at with shot and $SHELL. Boldly he typed and well. Into the jaws of C. Into the mouth of PERL. Debug'd the 0x258.
2007-12-07, 9:19 PM #7
problem being my mom and brother are both working tomorrow and my dad has my car.

I'm trying to get a friend of mine who's still there to somehow get security to let her into my room to get the tests. If that works, I still don't know if she's going to accept them, but I'm hoping. Hopefully she'll answer my e-mails soon. (Obviously not tonight but early tomorrow or something)
Fincham: Where are you going?
Me: I have no idea
Fincham: I meant where are you sitting. This wasn't an existential question.
2007-12-07, 9:20 PM #8
Man, I hope it went ok, sugarfull. Some of those professors can be a bit on the arse side
obviously you've never been able to harness the power of cleavage...

maeve
2007-12-07, 9:50 PM #9
Gl, dunno what else to say D:
D E A T H
2007-12-07, 9:53 PM #10
Best of luck too. 15% is quite a decent chunk of a grade.
"You want the truth?! You can't handle the truth!! No truth-handler you!! Bah!! I deride your truth-handling ability!!"
2007-12-07, 10:00 PM #11
this is what is so stupid about some classes. It's so arbitrary. You lost 15% just for not following some crazyass, facist wetdream of a rule.
"it is time to get a credit card to complete my financial independance" — Tibby, Aug. 2009
2007-12-07, 10:02 PM #12
I like the part where grades have become a reward system instead of a clear indicator of a student's understanding. A fifteen percent markdown based on returning a few pieces of paper that have already been graded isn't a very scholarly infraction.
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2007-12-08, 4:13 AM #13
Freelancer and JediKirby are right on. If you're feeling ballsy, confront the professor with said points, and watch them either give you credit or stammer away in fury (this is more likely).
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2007-12-08, 5:16 AM #14
If the professor isn't willing to give you the grade you deserve, contest the grade and bring up Kirby's point.
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2007-12-08, 7:44 AM #15
Universities really shouldn't be asking students to sign anything more complicated than a "I haven't cheated" form before an exam, particularly an important one. I'm assuming that's what an honour pledge is, but adding little clauses to it like this one is stupid.
2007-12-08, 7:50 AM #16
The entire premise is flawed because if the student had malicious intents, he could just photocopy the damn thing. :downswords:

Instead, maybe the professor should do his job and create a new test every semester.

I vote that you allow this thread to run its course, then print it out and give it to your professor. It may not help your grade but it will make you feel better.
Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.
2007-12-08, 7:54 AM #17
That's very ridiculous. If some professors weren't so lazy and didn't reuse the exact same test every year, then things like this wouldn't happen. At the very least, the tests should have been collected sooner so as not to cause this kind of thing.

Best of luck with it, sugarless.

Edit: I have to agree with Emon. If the test is out that long, then there is nothing to stop students from copying it. I have to wonder how some professors manage to get hired to teach college classes if they're that dumb.
2007-12-08, 10:14 AM #18
Quote:
Instead, maybe the professor should do his job and create a new test every semester.


In all fairness, that's kind of hard unless the course radically changes from year to year. (it would be easy for math or something, but I don't think that's what this is)
COUCHMAN IS BACK BABY
2007-12-08, 10:25 AM #19
Originally posted by Tracer:
In all fairness, that's kind of hard unless the course radically changes from year to year. (it would be easy for math or something, but I don't think that's what this is)


You could still have a pool of n questions and rotate the ones that make it on the test each term.
Cordially,
Lord Tiberius Grismath
1473 for '1337' posts.
2007-12-08, 10:37 AM #20
Well, sure. I think most teachers do that. When I've been in big classes there's usually a a test and a b test, but the more different tests they have to make up the more unpaid overtime they have to clock in after work.

I'm not saying this teacher isn't being kind of a dick if she doesn't accept sug's tests, but suggesting that she is somehow not doing her job or is lazy is BS.
COUCHMAN IS BACK BABY
2007-12-08, 10:56 AM #21
Originally posted by Tracer:
In all fairness, that's kind of hard unless the course radically changes from year to year. (it would be easy for math or something, but I don't think that's what this is)

Probably not make up a completely whole new test but change questions a bit. Reorder them. Cover different areas of the course.

Clarification: Were these take home tests? I mean if they were, she might have little recourse as it was on her plate to make sure the tests get in to the professor by a specified time. Correct me if I misunderstood anything.
Code to the left of him, code to the right of him, code in front of him compil'd and thundered. Programm'd at with shot and $SHELL. Boldly he typed and well. Into the jaws of C. Into the mouth of PERL. Debug'd the 0x258.
2007-12-08, 11:06 AM #22
1. it's just school. breath - 15% isn't the end of the world. its just a mark.
2. there is almost always someone besides the prof you can bring your marking grievances to besides the prof, to prevent profs from making biased decisions based on their relationships with students. if the prof won't cut you some slack, take it to the next level.
2007-12-08, 11:48 AM #23
This is something that the professor should have mentioned verbally, probably more than once. For that big of a markdown, it probably should have been on your syllabus as well. If your prof didn't do these things, I'd say you have a legitimate grievance. There's no reason you should be expected to read and remember every word of an honor code pledge (usually a glorified "I won't cheat" statement) when you've got more important things on your mind, like the test sitting on your desk.
If you think the waiters are rude, you should see the manager.
2007-12-08, 1:49 PM #24
I really don't have much to stand on considering the fact that I signed the damn thing.

Tracer: it's Economics. And I'm not saying she should have a bunch of different tests but a new one every year, or even a slightly altered one every year would probably be manageable.

Also: JG: they were in class tests that she graded and handed back to us: one in late September and one in late October.
Fincham: Where are you going?
Me: I have no idea
Fincham: I meant where are you sitting. This wasn't an existential question.
2007-12-08, 1:54 PM #25
My accounting professor reused exams. However, we did not get to keep the exams after going over them. That way, no one can cheat that way.
2007-12-08, 2:44 PM #26
Originally posted by sugarless5:
I really don't have much to stand on considering the fact that I signed the damn thing.

Tracer: it's Economics. And I'm not saying she should have a bunch of different tests but a new one every year, or even a slightly altered one every year would probably be manageable.

Also: JG: they were in class tests that she graded and handed back to us: one in late September and one in late October.


Having signed a piece of paper and agreeing to its terms does not mean that the terms are infallible and are unquestionable. You have absolutely nothing to lose in challenging the rule considering you will be docked either way. We all agree to abide by the rules of many things, but that doesn't mean we can't question the legitimacy of those rules. Unchallenged rules are bad ones.
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2007-12-08, 5:18 PM #27
You might also be able to do something because she didn't email you until AFTER you left. If you can prove to someone (the prof, someone higher than the prof) when you left (train ticket, etc), it could work out.

*hugs*
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2007-12-08, 5:38 PM #28
Originally posted by JediKirby:
You have absolutely nothing to lose in challenging the rule


Bleh. There's ALWAYS something to lose. Especially when signing honor pledges. Schools tend to take **** seriously.
2007-12-08, 6:02 PM #29
I'm inclined to agree with IRG SithLord. Cheating is like the capital crime in academia. Reputations and tuition dollars can be hampered by cheating scandals. Some universities may be operated by state governments but they still have a very business-like mentality. Universities want to boast that their university promotes academic excellence not a bunch of cheaters.

By no means am I accusing sugarless of being a cheater but given the very competitive nature of universities, they really clamper down on this stuff. Is there a better way to handle this, of course.
Code to the left of him, code to the right of him, code in front of him compil'd and thundered. Programm'd at with shot and $SHELL. Boldly he typed and well. Into the jaws of C. Into the mouth of PERL. Debug'd the 0x258.
2007-12-08, 6:12 PM #30
The first post had me scratching my head but Kirby's remarks helped me decipher it. Not that it was poorly written, just that having been out of school for over 18 years I didn't get it. I don't see the big deal. Contact the professor to see if she will excuse your mistake. Otherwise, suck up the 15 points and remember to actually read and adhere to "honor pledges" in the future. At some point, all people learn valuable lessons from mistakes due to laziness, ignorance, or disorganization.
"I would rather claim to be an uneducated man than be mal-educated and claim to be otherwise." - Wookie 03:16

2007-12-08, 6:22 PM #31
Originally posted by Wookie06:
The first post had me scratching my head but Kirby's remarks helped me decipher it. Not that it was poorly written, just that having been out of school for over 18 years I didn't get it. I don't see the big deal. Contact the professor to see if she will excuse your mistake. Otherwise, suck up the 15 points and remember to actually read and adhere to "honor pledges" in the future. At some point, all people learn valuable lessons from mistakes due to laziness, ignorance, or disorganization.

Minor clarification it's not 15 points it's 15% off the final grade. So if she had a B+ (88/100, assume 100pt total class), that drops her down to a 73 which could be considered a C- and that is not a passing grade. If it were 15 pts off the final itself, yeah I would suck that up but having 15% lobbed off your final grade, that would cause me to fret.
Code to the left of him, code to the right of him, code in front of him compil'd and thundered. Programm'd at with shot and $SHELL. Boldly he typed and well. Into the jaws of C. Into the mouth of PERL. Debug'd the 0x258.
2007-12-08, 6:26 PM #32
No clarification necessary. I know it was 15 points of the final course grade. I'm not saying don't fret. Just handle it like an adult and, if necessary, deal with and learn from the consequences.
"I would rather claim to be an uneducated man than be mal-educated and claim to be otherwise." - Wookie 03:16

2007-12-08, 6:28 PM #33
...73 is a fail? :eek:
COUCHMAN IS BACK BABY
2007-12-08, 6:43 PM #34
Yep. Well not in the sense of a 'F' grade but if you get C-, you have to repeat the course. For almost all universities, a passing grade is C and above. At least I know that's policy for the Cal States. It is up the the professor to set the "C" range. In my discrete class a C was 60-80. Some profs don't even give C- grades. In aforementioned class, 59 was a D.
Code to the left of him, code to the right of him, code in front of him compil'd and thundered. Programm'd at with shot and $SHELL. Boldly he typed and well. Into the jaws of C. Into the mouth of PERL. Debug'd the 0x258.
2007-12-08, 6:47 PM #35
Heh, while at Uni and even here at seminary I can make a D and not take the class over. I just have to keep a certain GPA. Most people take D classes over to fix the GPA but not required.
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2007-12-08, 6:48 PM #36
At RIT, a D will usually get you credit, but a C is often necessary in order to advance in the course sequence.
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2007-12-08, 6:52 PM #37
Originally posted by Emon:
At RIT, a D will usually get you credit, but a C is often necessary in order to advance in the course sequence.


I got through the early math sequence on Ds :ninja:
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2007-12-08, 7:04 PM #38
Clarification: At my alma mater, you needed a C or better for your MAJOR classes. Sorry about that.
Code to the left of him, code to the right of him, code in front of him compil'd and thundered. Programm'd at with shot and $SHELL. Boldly he typed and well. Into the jaws of C. Into the mouth of PERL. Debug'd the 0x258.
2007-12-08, 11:37 PM #39
In Britland 70% is the highest grade boundary. Average 70% for your whole degree and you get a first.
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2007-12-09, 12:09 AM #40
Originally posted by sugarless5:
I really don't have much to stand on considering the fact that I signed the damn thing.


IANAL, (I am not a lawyer) but I remember hearing somewhere that things signed under duress (where you really have only one choice, which is to sign) are not binding. I could be wrong, though.

If you had to sign this thing to take the test, then I would think you have a valid grievance, since you basically had no choice.
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