Grading
How your coursework is weighted ⚖️
Your grades are divided into the following five categories. As you can see, each project increases in weight. That way, if you do not do well on the first project, it doesn’t hurt your grade as much as later projects. The idea is that you are learning with each project, so you will be doing better and better as we move along and you become a better writer.
Essay Project 1: 10%
Essay Project 2: 20%
Essay Project 3: 30%
Discussion: 20%
Final Exam: 20%
Extra Credit Opportunities:
You can receive extra credit three ways:
Taking advantage of tutoring, and scheduling an appointment with our writing center . You can receive 10 points extra credit for each appointment, but you are limited to one visit per essay, so you can earn up to 30 points.
Going to (pre-approved by me) campus events. Stay tuned for announcements on those or feel free to reach out if you see something you would like to attend. You can receive 10 points extra per event if you write a one page reflection.
Completing the optional Project 4: Agent of Change. This will expand on your writing for Project 3. More information in the modules!
Grading Policy:
I remember being in college and worrying about my grades. I would refresh a page over and over, waiting for my instructors to post grades. I know how important your grades are to you; they were that to me. After all, you want to graduate, to transfer, to have an amazing career, and so much of that seems to depend on the grades you get.
At the same time, as a teacher, what I want to prioritize is learning and growth rather than a focus on grades. My goal is for you to really learn, to take away valuable skills from our class that you can use in the future. I know it’s easy to say, “Worry about the learning, not about the grade” when I am not in your position.
With these things in mind, I wanted to create a grading system that was fair in that it allowed us as a class community to work on both these things: meaningful learning and good grades. To help with that, I am going to be using what they call the “minimal grading system.” Let me tell you how it works.
In our class, you will be graded using the A-F system that you are probably quite familiar with. This system uses the typical 100% top grade. The difference though is that the lowest grade you can get on an assignment is 50%. Below is the breakdown:
The Grading Scale
A = 90 - 100%
B = 80 - 89%
C = 70 - 79%
D = 60 - 69%
F = 50 - 59%
Why did I decide to use minimal grading? Well, I think it’s only fair. This way, the "F" range does not take up half the grading scale. Instead, it is only 10% of the scale, just like the other grades are. It also means that getting one bad grade has less of an impact, meaning that you can more easily recover if you learn and do better on other assignments. With each grade, I will also provide you with feedback. I will make suggestions on ways you can revise and improve, and I want you to take that feedback, ask me questions if you have them, and use it to get that better grade while also growing as a writer.
This, along with my late work and revision policies, are meant to show you what is important to me: that you take changes, you strive to learn and improve, and that you know I am here to support you in the best way I can. In the end, my hope is that you not only come out of our class with a “good grade” but also with stronger writing and communication skills that will serve you well in other courses and your future careers.
