At 02:17 PM 2/14/2003, Herman Rubin wrote:
The instructor does not have the right. But the instructor should have the obligation to teach the course at the level for which it is intended, no matter who is in the classroom. And the instructor should have the right to give the student credit for knowing the material, no matter how it is learned.
I know that in a previous post, where I mentioned an introductory statistics course at Purdue (which was only meant as an exemplar) ... you said that a number of folks there know that you have been critical of how such a course operates. I am sure that many of us would find fault with all kinds of courses ... especially at the introductory.
But, in reference to the above ... what IS the level for which a course like introductory statistics ... even taught differently than how currently taught ... that is appropriate? It's NOT easy at all to define these with any precision AND, at the same time, meet the needs of students having to sign up for such courses.
What I see missing in most course proposals (and your comments) ... particularly for introductory courses ... is a clear specification of who SHOULD be allowed in and who should not and why ... that is, the enumeration of a set of prerequisite skills and LEVELS of skills that makes the course ... right for them or wrong.
After all, courses can only operate IF there is some critical mass of students signing up for them and .advisors recommending them .. if our courses become SO particular as to who we will let in ... our courses won't live very long.
I don't think that "higher education" lets us be quite so fussy (pardon the term) as to who we will let in ... particularly for our general purpose, introductory kinds of courses.
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