4k views

When handing back exams, what should we tell our students about the distribution of exam scores?

I've seen a variety of approaches to the day we hand back our exams. Show every score listed in order, so every student knows exactly how they compare to others Show an aggregated histogram, for ...
4k views

How can we handle grocery store/bus stop conversations better?

When chatting with a new acquaintance for a few minutes, our profession often comes into the conversation and then takes over. We're all familiar with this line at grocery stores, airplanes, trains, ...
903 views

We tell undergraduate students that they should study two to three hours for every hour they spend in class. We know that many students don't follow through with this nearly to the degree that they ...
5k views

I taught Calculus 2 at my institution the past two semesters and several students have left comments in their course evaluations that advocate grading homework problems based on whether they were ...
924 views

What are the pros and cons of having students choose which HW problems are looked at?

I am considering a new HW policy that I haven't seen elsewhere. Each week the student must turn in $n$ problems, of her choosing. There will be no HW score beyond documenting whether the student is ...
929 views

What are the minimum criteria when checking homework for completion only?

I know that some instructors collect homework and "grade that on the basis of completion" (e.g., item #2 on this answer). In fact, I tried this myself for several years, based on advice from my mentor ...
372 views

Correctness in learning mathematics

I came to mathematics via physics, in part because of the reputation of physics as allowing "non-rigorous" reasoning. The subject felt more free and less anal-retentive than mathematics. This is not ...
291 views

What are some resources for “ungrading” in a math class?

Most of the stuff I'm finding online about ungrading are either general descriptions of its virtues, or personal accounts from instructors from subjects other than math. Does anyone know any resources ...