Grading and Assignments

PHILOSOPHY

While grades have been around since the late 1600s, many scholars and professors think that they no longer serve a beneficial purpose. For example, students who manage to cheat or plagiarize and somehow get away with it can earn an A in some courses. But the A doesn't mean they learned or developed any skills that they need in their future career.

Faculty are also tired of students focusing on "getting points," doing an assignment "how the teacher wants" it done, and asking "How long does this paper have to be?" A lot of this is leftover garbage you were taught in high school: correctness, pleasing your teacher, boring thesis statements, the five paragraph essay, and "three main reasons corresponding to three body paragraphs."

Those behaviors and expectations have a negative impact on your learning, critical thinking, and creativity. Employers want graduates who are independent risk takers, innovators, and problem-solvers - not dull conformists who can't assess their own writing and form their own opinions.

If you focus on your learning, and put forth a lot of time and effort, your points earned should reflect that commitment.

Watch the TED Talk by Dr. Carol Dweck, a psychologist who developed growth mindset theory.

Students who adopt growth mindsets tend to perform better than students with fixed mindsets.

Carol Dweck, psychologist who developed Growth Mindset Theory.

"A" Students:

Earn 23 - 25 points in the course and complete everything.
Complete the proctored assignment by Week 2.
Complete some assignments by Day 3 of the course.
Spend the recommended amount of time on the materials assigned if needed.
Read all assignments and materials carefully and thoroughly.
Seek help when directed to do so.
Create original work honestly and ethically.
Want to learn, want to grow, and want a challenge.
Enjoy learning, and enjoy interacting with their classmates and professor.
Maintain excellent attendance and contribute to a peer-centered learning environment.
Rarely fall behind or procrastinate.
Always draw deep connections between what they were learning and their current lives and their future career.
Discover highly specialized knowledge and develop unique, thought-provoking, nuanced viewpoints and arguments.
Use AI only when instructed to do so.
Submit work that demonstrates exceptional achievement of the course learning objectives.

"B" Students:

Earn 20 - 22 points in the course and complete everything.
Complete the proctored assignment by Week 2.
Complete some assignments by Day 3 of the course.
Spend the recommended amount of time on the materials assigned if needed.
Read all assignments and materials carefully and thoroughly.
Seek help when directed to do so.
Create original work honestly and ethically.
Want to learn, want to grow, and usually want a challenge.
Enjoy learning, and enjoy interacting with their classmates and professor.
Maintain consistent attendance and contribute to a peer-centered learning environment.
Rarely fall behind or procrastinate.
Occasionally draw connections between what they were learning and their current lives and their future career.
Discover knowledge and use it to develop interesting and nuanced viewpoints and arguments.
Use AI only when instructed to do so.
Submit work that demonstrates above average achievement of the course learning objectives.

"C" Students:

Earn 18 - 19 points in the course and complete everything assigned.
Complete the proctored assignment by Week 2.
Spend the recommended amount of time on the materials assigned if needed.
Complete some assignments by Day 3 of the course.
Read all assignments and materials but usually just to "get it over with."
Seek help when directed to do so especially if they were in danger of earning a non-passing grade.
Create original work honestly and ethically.
Use AI only when instructed to do so.
Maintain consistent attendance and occasionally contribute to a peer-centered learning environment.
Occasionally want to learn and want to grow, and want a challenge, but mostly want to stay in their "comfort zone."
Occasionally enjoy learning and interacting with their classmates and professor.
Occasionally fall behind or procrastinate.
Do not draw connections between what they were learning and their current lives and their future career.
Discover knowledge but develop "safe" and non-controversial viewpoints and arguments.
Submit work that demonstrates sufficient achievement of the course learning objectives.

"D" or "F" Students:

One or more of these typically apply to students who earn a D or F:

Earn less than 17 points in the course or don't complete everything assigned.
Don't complete anything by the end of the first week of the course.
Don't complete the proctored assignment by Week 2.
Do very little work or do not spend enough time on the materials to demonstrate that they learned anything.
Don't like to read or don't want to read, or struggle to comprehend the readings.
Do not seek help if there were instructed to do so.
Fall significantly behind in the course due to poor time management, lack of consistent presence, or frequent tardiness.
Resort to desperate measures to get work completed (cheat or plagiarize) or they give up and stop attending or completing work.
Submit work that does not demonstrate achievement of the course learning objectives.

ASSIGNMENTS

This course is organized around five weekly milestones. The milestones help you stay organized and disciplined in absentia of a more structured, face to face course.

Each milestone is comprised of required readings, discussions, writing assignments, and activities designed to help you complete an 1) Annotated Bibliography, 2) Research Project, and 3) Reflective Essay.

As mentioned several times before, students are required to complete one assignment in COD's Testing Center, or in a remote, virtual format. Failure to complete the proctored assignment results in automatic failure on the course.

And you need to complete everything I assign. It's all worth your time.

Milestones - 5 points each

A note about reading

This course will require a lot of reading. In fact, you'll probably be reading more often than writing in this course.

Your performance on assignments will indicate whether you are reading or you are avoiding it. If you don't like to read, develop a like for it. If you find reading difficult, you actually get better at it by doing it more.

Students who refuse to read for class will probably receive a grade of D or F in this course.

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