Let me ask you all this- because this board actually has many intelligent individuals unlike others I frequent- my son is a sophomore in high school- he is exempt from his Math final because as long as you have an 88 for the 6 weeks, you are exempt. My son has an 89 for the 6 weeks and an 89 for the semester. My son would like to take the final to try to get a 90. Here's my question: if you were a teacher, and an exempt student elected to take the final, would you "not count" the grade if it turned out to be lower than an 89? Or would you feel that if he takes it, the grade has to be counted regardless. Just curious as to your opinion. On the one hand, an exempt student who elects to take the final shouldn't be penalized for trying to better their grade; on the other hand, is it fair for the other students who have to take the final if the exempt student's grade on the final is more of an arbitrary thing?
I have had several teachers and professors who offered exemption from finals if your averages were good enough And every single one of them has made clear that if you decide to take it and **** up, it will be counted against you I think one of the major reasons is that they simply don't want to spend time grading an exam that you put no effort in.
I think the implication of taking a final you're exempt from is to reap the benefits or suffer the consequences, one way or the other. A teacher probably doesn't want to waste his/her time grading a final that you put no effort into, so to curtail that from happening, they count the final. That way, you HAVE to take it seriously.
In general, I would say "Take it and it counts." That said, I might consider letting them take it just for the experience/practice of taking the final and not count the grade either way, but to think that they could take it and only "use" the results if they are positive is silly.
I think a teacher is likely to look kindly upon a student who elects to do an optional test and will find whatever way possible to buoy their grade. If it was essay-writing, that's an easy choice because it's subjective. A math test has right and wrong answers, so if your son screws up, the teacher doesn't have too many options. Still, unless it's a bubble-test, there's room for partial credit. He probably doesn't have the lattitude to just not count it though. Still, I think you should absolutely encourage your son to take the test: 1. If he's currently at 88, he's not going to get less than a B even with a bad final, and probably wouldn't even get bumped off a B+. There's more potential for him to do well and get the A- than to do poorly and get the B. How much weight does the final carry? Have you done the math on how far it can move his grade in either direction? 2. You son will work hard and study if he's choosing to take this test. He might learn some math. Which is kinda the point. 3. It will reflect well on his character, for teacher recommendations for colleges later. 4. It will teach him to be proactive, to go after the things he wants, to be confident in his ability, and that hard work, calculated risk-taking and entreprenuerial spirit are rewarded. Advising him to skip it is advice to take what you're given, to fear risk, and to not have confidence that you can succeed in the things you may want to do.
I congratulate him on going for the "A". If's he has done B+ level work all year and he studies for the test knowing that he needs to ace the test to get an A, he probably will do well enough that he won't significantly hurt his grade. Other factors might include, did he typically do well on the tests and maybe miss a homework assignment or two, or did he make B's and C's on some tests and have his overall grade improved by homework and participation. I don't know if teachers have the leeway to "not count" the test if it is attempted. If I were teaching and had that leeway, I probably would not count the test if it lowered his grade, if it was clear he had put in the hours studying, and not just "taking a shot". That way I would encourage the initiative to "go for the A" and do more than was absolutely required.
If 80-89 is a B, then who cares if he gets an 89 or 82. If your school employs B-'s, that's a different scenario.
OK, but I think some of you are misunderstanding what I'm saying. My son would not take the final just for a goof and not put any effort into it. Obviously, he had to work very hard to get that grade in order to be exempt in the first place. Now, I understand completely if you're saying, "Hey, he takes the test, he has to have the grade counted regardless." That is a teacher's right. But he wouldn't be taking this final just for the heck of it or not putting any effort into it. You think a kid who's exempt from a final wants to show up at school and take it just for the heck of it? No- he just wants to see if he can take it and possibly bring his average up from an 89 to a 90- this has a direct effect on his GPA (and the weird thing is that he's the one who wanted to take it- I told him that his grade is fine as is and he has As in everything else). Anyway, very grateful for the responses- I respect this group a heck of a lot and fully understand that his grade should count regardless of what it turns out to be if he elects to take the test.
Excellent post- final is 1/7, so it really may not affect it one way or the other. He's the one that came to me and asked about it. I'm with you- what's the harm, right? Thanks!
I think in HS, the teachers have a lot of lattitude on counting the grade or not, and a lot of them are more easing going, unlike college professors. Your son could ask the teacher directly, it's a simple question.
The bottom line is this - grades are arbitrary. Its like speeding tickets. Some cops will let you off, others wont. Some will let you off one day, but not the next. At TAMU, I remember you could get into a stat class where the average was in the 70's with a huge drop rate, the same class from another prof had a 90+ average. Grades are stupid.
Back in my high school days there were a few times when this happen to me.. I was so close to the next letter grade (A of course) maybe off by 1 percent. In that case I always went for it because I figured I wouldn't drop to a C. Granted my school didn't have B- of B+ so an 89.4 or 79.5 were both B's. So if thats his case encourage him to go for it.
In the district I was in, a 90 got more grade points than an 89 (obviously) but there was a second cut off at 85 (B- got less than B+). As long as he doesn't think he'll mess up the final enough to drop to an 84, why not?
Good on your son. Back when I was still in school I think teachers would look at your weird if you showed up anyways after being exempt. Needless to say, I accepted all my exemptions and thoroughly enjoyed sleeping in. I think back then 85 was the grade for exemption.
wouldn't the easy thing to do is for your son to ask the teacher? seems like a standard question to me.
