Welcome to the club Molly. Your experiences are not that unusual. Your frustration and disappointment is understandable. You are one of our successes and were not aware that you were different from the other students. If you can keep your students learning eventually they will perform at the level you are currently at. Teaching at a small private college suggest that your students came from well to do intellectual parents who are hopefully that you can accomplish a miracle by converting the student into mature learning adults. Ron Blue >>>>>>>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: Molly Straight <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: TIPS <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, November 03, 1999 10:15 PM Subject: exams I am in my first year of teaching at a small private college. I only have 3 students in my class! I just gave an exam on 2 chapters and had a D and 2 F's. And this was a computer-generated exam from the test bank that came with the text! I had even given them a study guide, which I wrote after I had made up the exam! One of the reasons I just joined this list and a few others, was for ideas, support, and inspiration. So, Annette & others, what do you do besides give a make-up exam? I don't really want to do that. I do not have class time to spend on that. I assigned an essay combining elements from both chapters, for 15 points towards their exam grade (total of 60 points). They had the weekend to do it. I feel I have to know that they understand the material or else I cannot give them a passing grade on the material. I have also been very disappointed in the quality of their writing. What are they teaching in high schools, anyway? These students were probably considered good students in high school. So, I have had to lower my expectations of their writing or they would all be failing! Other instructors there are having the same problems. I was an undergraduate just three years ago myself and I would not have dreamed of turning in papers of the level that they are. Molly Straight
