DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Professor didn't follow the study guide on our final exam

Don't hold back here. Tell me what you think.

Prior to the semester at hand, I have completed seven graduate level courses and have not earned less than an A- in any of them. Not to brag, but I am very, very, devoted. I take all of my classes very seriously.

I just completed another graduate-level course, this one ran through late Spring/early Summer. - Throughout this semester, our professor assigned a fair amount of coursework. Lots of reading and writing, nothing unusual. The grading scale was as follows: Five written assignments each worth 10 points, and one final exam which is worth 50 points. A total of 100 possible points.

Our classes were simple: We read assigned chapters from our text, plus our professor puts info on a screen, we write down same info in our notebooks, and also note any other relevant lecture data. Throughout the semester, our professor would tell us which content from the lectures would be on our final. - Very nice, and it makes our jobs as students much easier. The professor went so far as to have a one hour long review session centered on the info that would be on the final. - The prof. told us what was going to be on the final, and then reviewed it with us. - Cool.
Then the prof. made our lives easier by giving us a portion of the exam to complete at home. - Five essay questions, which were worth 4 points each. So that means that our final boiled down to 5 take home essay questions, and a 30 point test which was to be completed on the final day of class. -Again, we were told what to expect for the class portion of the final - a matching section, and some short answer questions.

I took the essay questions home, and typed up five pages worth of answers for 5 essay questions. - Well researched, well written answers. After completing the essay questions, I spent a total of about 10 hours (sporadically) studying for the remaining 30 questions of the final. - Diligent studying to ensure that I comprehended all of the material the Prof. told us we would need to know - material the Prof reviewed with us, and again, told us would be on the final.

I walk into class today, nervous but ready to take the final. Then a problem arose. The final wasn't matching and short answer like the prof told us it would be, rather, it was multiple choice. - No bid deal. However, I counted seven questions that were not related in any way to our study guide, and six questions that focused on stuff we had not learned at all during the semester - no joke.

Granted, 7 questions that weren't on the study guide were based on material covered at the very beginning of the semester. So I ask myself why weren't we simply told that the exam would be comprehensive. Why tell us what to study, then hold a review session, then not put what we reviewed as a class on the exam and replace it with material that was covered and forgetten about at the beginning of the semester?

In other words, I usually prepare for an exam by studying everything that has been covered in class and in the textbook. However, this time I was told what information I needed to know for the exam. The the exam strayed away from the study guide and covered info that I normally would have reviewed.

As for the other 6 questions, that I had no clue how to answer, I asked a few of my classmates afterwards if they had heard of the content before, and none of them had a clue either.

Take it as a lesson learned I guess. I'm glad that my other profs are more concerned about gauging our actual comprehension than they are about playing juvenile games.

Btw, prior to the final, I had a 50/50 and felt really good about the take home questions, which ideally put me at 70/100 prior to taking the multiple choice section, which I figure I scored about 15/30 on. - Pathetic. So, in other words, I'll probably be looking at the first "B" on my graduate transcript which, as any grad student will tell you, isn't a good thing.

Let me have it....

Not knowing any details about the class/professor is it possible he inadvertently handed out a test from a previous semester?

Did he specifically state what would NOT be on it?

Does the syllabus offer any help? Did he follow the syllabus?

I would talk to the professor and give him the benefit of explaining.

If he truly mislead the class and maybe even on purpose talk to the Chair of the department and if not satisfied the Dean.

I have had teachers throw curve balls like that before on finals but it was usually one or two questions to see if you paid attention, not half the test after telling you what would be on it.

I would definitely approach the professor and explain your good record/pride in maintaining your GPA and ask for clarity. Better still . . . if you can get a few students to go along with you . . .


If you don't mind me asking . . . have you missed any classes?

You could complain....but if the prof is a jerk, you look like a whiner and get nowhere. I'd wait to see the grade and go from there. Any anyway, you sound like you'll pass with a B regardless of the outcome. In my book, that's a decent grade.

At worst, you don't get an A. Move on and don't worry about it...is my advice.

I think it's an unfortunate situation. I was in something similar ... but not exactly the same. I was given the opportunity to make up the points and bumped a grad school class from a B+ to a flat A (only the difference of I think 3 points on an essay ... there weren't a lot of points in the class)

But I presented the information in a way that was fair and honest. I didn't attack the guy, I didn't call him a jerk ... I just explained the situation.

I would recommend to try and speak with your prof about it - mention all of the things you told us ... and if worst comes to worst - you should still have that same B. But maybe you get it bumped up?

Not to sound like a jerk, but were you told not to worry about various portions of the coursework??

I think you have a good professor who isn't going to give students a total guide to an A. He or she guided you to everything you needed to be well on your way to an A, and then wanted to see which students took the extra steps to find those last few points.

As for info not covered....I doubt that.

There may have been a lack of emphasis, or something not covered in lecture and simply pulled from the book to see if students were simply reading the "important" parts and skimming what they though wouldn't show up on test.

I doubt you could challenge the prof. on the items not covered. I would be totally shocked if the prof, if pushed couldn't point directly to some paragraph in some book, handout, or overhead slide showing the material had indeed been presented in some form or fashion.

JMO



OH.....don't sweat a B....there is nothing wrong with that.

Good job.

'Peen, the way I see it is this: It is the profs responsibility to train the student to learn the content. It is the student's responsibility to attend 100% of the classes, take notes, and complete all reading & writing assignments. The goal here is for the student to be able to apply the material that is being taught.

In this case, the teacher did a great job of getting us to understand the content, and I feel I learned a lot, however, the questions on the exam weren't listed in an effort to check our comprehension. - Which means the final grades in the class will not reflect who worked the hardest or who learned the most.

I'm not the type to challenge the prof, but I will send an email notifying them that I don't appreciate being set up to fail like that. A 15/30 on a final? Sorry, but not me. Or so I thought.

I have not recieved a grade lower than an A- until now (probably).

1st - I think "being set up to fail" is a poor phrase to use. Sounds too confrontational to me for a 1st discussion of the situation.

2nd - I think an in person conversation would be a much better way to approach the situation than an email.

3rd - Start with the professor himself before going over his head and approach in a non-attacking non-threatening manner. Be polite and cordial. Perhaps those "outside the scope" questions were included as extra credit questions. If he intentionally misled the class and remains unreasonable then you can always escalate your approach later on if need be.

That's tough. I think I agree with Ballpeen. As long as the information was somewhere in the class, you probably won't have any success challenging the grade. However, it might be worth looking into. Do you have an advisor or a graduate coordinator that you trust? The way the grading scale is in graduate school these days, a B really is unacceptable. It's like getting a C- in undergrad.

As I'm sure 'Peen will agree (and any other lawyers out there), I have a feeling those of us who have been through law school don't feel too bad about this.

If you go to the prof I would do it from the standpoint that it was confusing. Just admit to him that you believed from what he said with his comments and his test prep methods that you were refreshing everything that was going to be covered on the test and that you didn't bother studying the other stuff.. then admit that THAT was your fault. Then advise him that in the future, just to avoid the same confusion, he might want to stress to future classes that while he will make comments about test stuff and that while there will be reviews of potential test materials, that EVERYTHING they have learned is in play.. as for the stuff you didn't even cover, you might want to ask him about that too. Tell him you were at every class and you read every assignment and you don't remember covering that and ask him if you missed something. Then thank him for his time and tell him you enjoyed his class... Unless he is a total jackwagon, he will appreciate the feedback from a good student.

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So, in other words, I'll probably be looking at the first "B" on my graduate transcript which, as any grad student will tell you, isn't a good thing.

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What is so wrong with a B? Are you planning on going to Harvard or MIT for your PhD? That would be the only real problem I can see with one B...

Almost the exact same thing happened to me in college once. Professor spent the entire quarter on certain topics. He spent literally five minutes on one particular problem and never revisited it again. The test was three questions. One of the questions was basically this particular problem. I - nor did any of the people I studied with - never even gave this particular question any attention. When I got the test I realized I was absolutely clueless as to how to answer the question and panic set in.

It was the only time in college I ever cheated. Upon receiving the test, my buddy - after realizing what we were faced with - had gone into his notes, pulled out the page with the problem on it, and neatly put it under the test so it wasn't visible. After he used it, he tapped me on the shoulder, and slid it to me. To this day, I have zero guilt about doing it. I thought the teacher jobbed us.

But I will also say that I agree with Peen. The teacher jobbed us to an extent, but it was still my responsibility to review ALL the material from the quarter. It really was my fault.

For everyone questioning why he has a problem with a B. In graduate school, a B is basically failing....

I would go to the prof. maybe with a couple of others who feel the same way.

Be very respectful and just flat out make your point and tell him what you just told us. I've been in the situation before. I had an honest respectful conversation about what was on a test versus what we were told was going to be on the test. Make it sound as if it is your fault by asking the prof if he/she could help you understand where you got confused.

I've done it and it worked, the prof admitted making a mistake and gave the points back to the entire class for the question. Just remember....respect, non argumentative, be honest, and make it seem you are asking for help rather than whining about it.

I say go for it. I kinda know how you feel. When I got my bachelors in Computer Information Science I had a 4.0 going into the last class (Urban Studies of all things. Anyone who went to Cleveland State knows what I'm talking about as it was mandatory). I got a B and trashed my 4.0 The only way I could have got a B going into that final was to completely blow it by getting a "D". I know I didn't get a D, but I also know I blew the class off like crazy and went to the bar across the street. I didn't question it because all she had to say was that I blew off class at every break. She would have been right. It was my own fault. I really wanted a 4.0, but....

i had a similar issue when i was in undergrad. i remember because it was a very difficult (for me) physics class where i essentially aced the first test in the class (with everyone doing very poorly), except i got docked 10% points for using the random variable ('d') instead of the one in a reference sheet ('x'). i went to the professor who agreed it was ridiculous (it was TA-graded) but he was unwilling to adjust it. instead, he "made a deal" with me that, if this had an impact on my final grade at semester's end, he'd adjust it. i took his word and long story short, at semester's end, it did. he didn't hold up to his end of the bargain. i went as far as a dean (forget which) but the lesson the dean basically told me was "sucks, you should've gotten it in writing."

in your case, you somewhat do have it in writing but the advice i'd give you is obviously speak with the professor (NOT with anyone else, as you don't want to seem to be ganging up on him) and just have a candid talk with him. you don't want to bring up that this will be your first B as it'll make you seem grade-grubbing but instead voice your concern over the lack of consistency in his message and point to any documents he provided to support that. in addition, you would also want to point out that you dedicated a lot of time and effort into his guidance and it would be unfair for you to be penalized by his inconsistency.

that being said, the biggest piece of advice i can give you is that it's not the end of the world to get a B (even in grad school, and i know tons of grad students, it'd be another story if it was a C). in school, grades is everything but your perspective will change once you're working. a B will not kill you and while it's great to get the best possible grades ever, even a couple years from now, it will not be the reason you didn't get a job, or get a target salary, or whatnot. i would know because my grades fell well short of my expectations and no one cared in my interviews and ultimately, my career.

DC, in order to complete the grad program, a student's gpa must be at or above a 3.0.

That is why getting a B in grad school is very risky. The prof is a thirtysomething who is pursuing a doctorate. - Teaches high school during the day, then college at night. I guess that is why the major lesson in this course ended up being more philosophical than anything else.

The thing that ticks me off more than anything is that the questions on the exam that nobody prepared for were not based on any practical knowledge of the course itself. Meaning, they were structured like this:

What year was this passed?

What agency is responsible for initiating this law back in 1973?

- Questions that I could have read over once or twice prior to the exam and been able to answer correctly.

The study guide, however, focused on practical data. Knowledge that is useful in future applications. Content such as:

"What is the difference between transitional education and vocational education?" "Name three elements that are necessary for positive transitioning from high school to postsecondary school for Autistic students"
"List 4 competencies and subcompetencies for personal social skills" - Info like this is what comprised the study guide. No question that this info important to know and is also very, very, practical. - My responses to questions like these should dictate my grade. Given the chance, I could fill up numerous pages with relevant info.

However, my grade will suffer because questions that related to practical knowledge were replaced by questions that asked about basic info that anybody with a rote memory could answer. - A stupid way to conclude an otherwise great class.

Again, our practical knowledge was checked periodically with written assignments. However, written assignments and the essay portion of the final only comprised 70/100 points. With the other 30 being on the multiple choice exam which we were given the study guide for.

I feel for your frustration but have a beer and forget about it. Life ain't fair. It's just another bump in the road. You'll get next time.

Agreed. My original sentence should have went "It is the profs responsibility to train the student, and it is the student's responsibility to learn the content."

When there is certain material or course work that was never brought up or talked about and its on the final or other test I call BS. Also, it depends on the teacher and subject, but if the course work has so many details its not even funny usually the professor will say 70% of what was covered after the midterm is the final. The example I was thinking of was physics II, electromagnetism, light, flux, circuits, that kind of stuff. Ughhh, I hate to even think about it.

I agree that it is the professors job to present the material and the student's to make sure they understand it fully. However, we all know some profs are better than others, relate to people better, and generally just know how to teach in an effective way. On the other hand, you'll get profs who just suck. Last quarter I had a calculus class where about two weeks in, 1/4 of the people showed up for his lecture because he was that bad.

This is one thing I can actually claim to be an expert on rather than just pretending to be one.

I'm at the end of grad school, and am starting to write my dissertation, so I've been through 3 years of grad level classes. I've helped younger students with their classes and I'm in constant contact with the professors in my department, who always have a story.

First off, I agree 100% with Jester. If you hope to get somewhere with the prof, don't send a snippy e-mail. That will evoke the exact opposite response of what you want. It sounds like you already do this, but think of grad school like a full time job and treat your professor just like you would any boss. If you had a problem in the workplace, you wouldn't send a snippy e-mail, so don't do it here.

I know you're upset, but cool off and go talk to them in person. The vast majority of professors are good people, and want people to do well, even though they will challenge you at the graduate level. They also don't want grad studies or the dean's office breathing down their neck b/c the entire class averaged a 40%. The person sounds like a relatively young professor without a ton of experience; remember that he/she is learning too.

Don't wait to go talk to them either, the further past final grades' submission to the university you get, the harder it gets for the prof to do anything for you.

Second, to whomever said that a B is like an F, that is ridiculous, esp. if you have 7 A's already. You would need something like 7 C's to fall below a 3.0. And if you get A's all the time, then even if you can't get this B worked out, you will still likely end up with something like a 3.8 or 3.9. Nothing to sneeze at, and will likely put you near the top of your class anyways. I know the 4.0 would be great, but realistically if in future job interviews anyone even asks about your GPA (in my field no one ever will; it will be all about experience and publications), they are never going to say "Darn, if you had a 4.0, we would've hired you, but you did get a 3.9."

Lastly, I do agree with parts of what Ballpeen said. I have had professors who would tell us "these sections will definitely be on the test" but didn't technically exclude anything else. Then things other than what they said are on the test, but technically they didn't exclude them. Its a good practice to study most of the material for a final unless they explicitly say "the final will only be on chapter X, nothing else we covered in class will be on the final.

It sounds like you are doing really well, so good luck with the rest of your classes.

I'd fight for it. That GPA is the point of the whole operation. Go for it.

Got questions thrown out on every mid-term and final I ever took, except for one particular prof, who wrote very good tests. Usual strategy was demonstrate an acceptable alternative answer based on the wording of the question.

My favorite was "Can you explain this formula?" Answer - "yes". I contended that "no" should also be considered a correct answer, if accurate. Test score changed.

If there was material on the test that was not covered in class, or in any of the reading material or assignments, then you have a legitimate complaint. The study guide being incorrect, IF the material was covered in class or in the book, much weaker. However,confront the prof and state you will go to the department head. What do you have to lose? Also, if you don't do anything, the next class will have to suffer through the same problem.

I made little to no attempt to be polite, (anybody surprised?) and did not care if I pissed off the prof, which I did several. Out of roughly 56 tests, got at least one question thrown out on 50 of them. Questions generally credited as correct for everybody.

Props to Dr. Nickerson at OU. Came close once, but 0 for 6 with him. Excellent teacher.

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However, grades in graduate school are almost obsolete, which is why the average is basically an A. What is more important is the letter of recommendation that a professor will write for you later.

You want to differentiate yourself from people who will just get the standard "He/She was a solid student" remark to "He/She is/was one of my top students." So, you can think of it as more of a pass/fail program where A=pass and everything else is suspect. Obviously I know the difference between B=3.00 and F=0.00. I'm not that dense.

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You are exactly right. Since grades don't matter that much in grad school, one B isn't the end of the world. Everyone in grad school has good grades b/c of the 3.0 rule. In my experience, differentiating yourself is going above and beyond, and showing a real passion for what you are doing, not just getting good grades. That's all I was trying to say.

I'm sorry if I offended you, but I wasn't calling you dense, I just thought it was a little dramatic to say one B is basically failing. That's all.

I could also be a little flippant about this b/c in my field, grades really don't matter. You just need to pass with the 3.0. Your next job after grad school only cares about your commitment, your passion for the field, your publications, your skills at the bench, and in many cases, your ability to get funded (and you are right, these are all in the recommendations). Probably this doesn't translate to every field.

NP, but yea, fields differ. In mine, we are all basically staying within academia, so it really is about making a name for yourself and impressing faculty/fighting for letters of recommendation etc.

So, in my case at least, I would feel like I failed if I got a B in something....

I think classes should all be pass/fail fwiw....

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I think classes should all be pass/fail fwiw....

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I strongly disagree.

If you move to a "pass or fail" type system, where is the incentive for excellence? How do you know which student was an exceptional student, who learned his lessons above the average, and who was the guy who barely struggled through?

Just a sign of the times my friend.

Why should that person make more money over the other person?

Because grades are what employers look at in a great number of cases.

Do you not think that there is a difference in performance, even among high performers?

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Because grades are what employers look at in a great number of cases.

Do you not think that there is a difference in performance, even among high performers?

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I can't speak for every field, but for most of the sciences, grades don't matter at all to future employers. Employers know that if you made it through grad school, you had to get at least a 3.0, and the vast majority end up with almost all A's.

Again, only for my field, but getting a 4.0 on textbook learning means nothing to a person's ability to teach and mentor, give a seminar to a large group, obtain research funding, critically think about the research, design meaningful experiments, write various publications, as well as critical evaluation of publications. None of these skills can really be taught in the classroom, and they make up 99% of my future job.

It is really like running a small business. Texts can take you only so far, and you are usually there by the end of undergrad in my field. The other stuff has to be learned hands on, and grad school is much like an apprenticeship that provides that opportunity.

In my field, I think there is an argument to be made that there is actually too much classroom learning (about 3 years worth). For biochemistry, the background stuff that doesn't change is usually all taught in undergrad. The stuff that is modern and more directly pertinent to my research changes all the time as new publications come out. It moves so fast that a lot of the material in texts is old, outdated, or shown to be plain wrong within a year or two.

One thing I can contribute to you is that teachers that do this (habitually and/or sporadically) develop a reputation for doing so. Word travels fast. Have you heard anything like this before? If you did, then I would say the responsibility falls on you, but it sounds like you didn't hear that.

If he doesn't have a rep for this kind of thing, then maybe he can be reasoned with, one on one. If that doesn't work, escalate to include others from the class. Then, if you want, go over his head.

dong:
a B will not kill you and while it's great to get the best possible grades ever, even a couple years from now, it will not be the reason you didn't get a job, or get a target salary, or whatnot. i would know because my grades fell well short of my expectations and no one cared in my interviews and ultimately, my career.

asian:
it's more about how well you can do a job and who you know. grades will help only to a certain extent.

:-\