View Full Version : Getting good grades you don't deserve.
danielineffigy
05/12/10, 09:40 PM
I just finished my second semester of college. I'll be starting my sophomore year with a flat 3.0 on a 4 point scale as I made a 'B' in literally every class I took. I guess I'm happy with that for now.
The thing is I really slacked in my Economics class. It was an easy class and I shouldn't have had any problems but I always pushed it to the side to work on other classes and when finals rolled around I was teetering between a C and a D. I took the final, got an 84, calculated my grade, and discovered that I had a earned a low C. Today my official scores showed up online and I had a B for the course.
I know I didn't earn this score so I can only assume it was subject to a very generous curve or she decided to award letter grade averages based on the final exam. I know this kind of things is pretty common for introductory classes necessary to satisfy core curriculum, but however I choose to look at it I know I didn't deserve the grade.
Anyone else ever experience this kind of thing? I was ecstatic/relieved all day.
Stavie Steelo
05/12/10, 10:41 PM
I got a B in Astronomy with a 76% teacher has some sweet grade scale. Went to class a total of 4 times not including the test days; copied my buddy on all the tests and he gave me all the answers for the online quizzes, I'll take it.
ohheroine
05/12/10, 10:50 PM
I know exactly what you're talking about. I just finished my sophomore year and it was my last semester of english (we have to have four semesters, 2 lit classes and 2 writing reinforcement.)
For this class we had 3 major papers to write, all on the subject of nature in literature. I did TERRIBLE; i made a 55, and 63 and a 75. Apparently I can't argue for shit in papers. I have always been a champ at English and I have never seen my writing torn apart the way that teacher did. She made it pretty clear that she didn't like me in more ways than that, but that's a different story.
I don't make C's and I was so afraid my final grade in the class was going to be a C or even a D. I got my final grade back and amazingly i had a B. I called my mom freaking out because i just couldn't believe it. Along with the 3 major papers, we had to write five parodies and poems. I think i did so well on those that it saved my grade. Either way I am overly thankful and it made my gpa good enough for deans list wahoo.
Kassie09
05/12/10, 11:42 PM
my art teacher gave me an a- even though i only earned an 89 (and that was with his lenient grading because he really liked me)
he knew i wanted an a-, then i went in his office to watch him grade my stuff and it added up to an 89 and i was like aw ok well at least i tried and he was like ok a- for you!
don't feel bad at all, dont care. i wish all teachers did this
It all depends on if the class is curved or scaled. In my Chemistry class I got 73%, and that managed to get me a B+ because it was scaled quite a bit. Also, most business faculties work on a curved system. Every single class is curved, so unless you're one of the top three students in the class, your chance at an A+ are nonexistent. Sucks sometimes, one time my friend got 90% in a business class, and ended up with a B-.
my art teacher gave me an a- even though i only earned an 89 (and that was with his lenient grading because he really liked me)
he knew i wanted an a-, then i went in his office to watch him grade my stuff and it added up to an 89 and i was like aw ok well at least i tried and he was like ok a- for you!
don't feel bad at all, dont care. i wish all teachers did this
:-|
What is an A- normally. I'm starting to think either Canadian schools have way easier marking schemes and are easier in general, or American schools give you a lot of bonus marks to make the higher grade requirements possible.
introduction
05/13/10, 03:06 AM
I miss out on good grades I deserve because teachers don't want me to get too cocky.
Kassie09
05/13/10, 11:46 AM
:-|
What is an A- normally. I'm starting to think either Canadian schools have way easier marking schemes and are easier in general, or American schools give you a lot of bonus marks to make the higher grade requirements possible.
90-93% is an A- here
89-86% would be a B+
so it was just a 1% difference. I've noticed canadas grading system is quite difference.
90-93% is an A- here
89-86% would be a B+
so it was just a 1% difference. I've noticed canadas grading system is quite difference.
I've read some posts around here that make it seem like bonus marks are handed out like candy though. Is there any truth to that?
Yeah, it is quite different here. Like I mentioned, in my Business faculty, everything is curved, so even getting 90 percent could get you a B-. In the faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, often 60 percent and lower is a fail. For something like Criminology, 100 to 95 is an A+, 90 to 94 is an A, and 85 to 89 is an A-. But in Political science, A+ and A is the same, but A- is 80 to 89 percent.
Scrandon
05/13/10, 12:28 PM
I've read some posts around here that make it seem like bonus marks are handed out like candy though. Is there any truth to that?
Yeah, it is quite different here. Like I mentioned, in my Business faculty, everything is curved, so even getting 90 percent could get you a B-. In the faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, often 60 percent and lower is a fail. For something like Criminology, 100 to 95 is an A+, 90 to 94 is an A, and 85 to 89 is an A-. But in Political science, A+ and A is the same, but A- is 80 to 89 percent.
That's roughly how my school works... but I think it's really unfair to give a B- for a 90%. That teacher needs to seriously fix their curve.
Most teachers at my school make the mean score the cutoff for the lowest B.
cantnokdahustle
05/13/10, 12:41 PM
Welcome to the world of grade inflation.
That's roughly how my school works... but I think it's really unfair to give a B- for a 90%. That teacher needs to seriously fix their curve.
Most teachers at my school make the mean score the cutoff for the lowest B.
Well it normally isn't, but the prof who teaches Organizational Behaviour is really easy, so the average is normally high 80s. For accounting or that it's a totally different story. Depending on the class, the mean grade gets you either a B- or a C+.
sdbrown
05/13/10, 02:13 PM
I went to see my microeconomics professor for help on our take home exam. She went through every question and told me which ones I had wrong.
My cog psych class had a grade scale like 90-100 A, 80-89 B , etc. and was based on 4 take extensive essay exams. The essays didn't have scores, just letter grades. I got an A, A-, B, B+ and that somehow averaged to an A overall. Still thanking my lucky stars for that one.
Other than that I usually worked pretty hard for my grades.
fishguts182
05/13/10, 02:14 PM
well last semester for my computer logic class i basically should of got a c- or d+ but somehow I managed to pull a B+ but I heard there was no curve for the class, so I believe my TA who I got along with really good had something to do with increasing my grade.
Kassie09
05/13/10, 08:00 PM
I've read some posts around here that make it seem like bonus marks are handed out like candy though. Is there any truth to that?
Yeah, it is quite different here. Like I mentioned, in my Business faculty, everything is curved, so even getting 90 percent could get you a B-. In the faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, often 60 percent and lower is a fail. For something like Criminology, 100 to 95 is an A+, 90 to 94 is an A, and 85 to 89 is an A-. But in Political science, A+ and A is the same, but A- is 80 to 89 percent.
Nah, bonus marks usually aren't given out easily (in my science classes and math and english, you earn that shit or you're fucked) I think since this was art and I did make a genuine effort, he gave it to me. I mean, its art, it has no point in my education future, haha.
And, oh weird. Our marks do not change according to what class it is. The entire university uses the same grading scale. It would be nice for harder classes to have a lower % = a higher mark. I had to work my ass off for an A(97%) in political science.
uhaul610
05/13/10, 08:19 PM
Freshman year. Signed up for a Sociology class. Showed up two times (on the only two test dates). Finished the class with an A-.
the course im doing atm has a pass mark of 80%
i got 71% for my last unit and passed. i have no idea what happened, but i dont really care
It's like finding money in your pockets that you forgot about. Bonus!
KellyGleason
05/18/10, 08:38 PM
I had a really rough semester with work, personal issues, and tough classes. I was not in the zone and did not study as hard as I could have for Organic Chemistry. I worked my butt off in what time I did have, but other than an 88, my test grades were super low. I had this sinking feeling in my stomach that I was going to fail (in my program you need a C+ or higher in everything to pass), and was ready to ruin my summer and drain my bank account to re-take it.
Somehow I passed. I found out last night and jumped on my mom's bed while I was sleeping to tell her. I did go to every class, did all of the homework, and attended all of the labs, but the way the tests were weighted, I didn't deserve to pass. I must have aced the final, which was 120 questions, AND my teacher showed up 45 minutes late to.
/Stupid story.
TLDR; I passed.
catherinexhimel
05/19/10, 06:59 AM
I cheat in math. But that doesn't count.
I cheat in math. But that doesn't count.
Could get you in trouble eventually... and bigger trouble in college.
catherinexhimel
05/19/10, 03:25 PM
Could get you in trouble eventually... and bigger trouble in college.
Hopefully not, but most likely.
KidRobot
05/19/10, 03:34 PM
It's called a curve.
Two Headed Girl
05/19/10, 04:02 PM
My American Revolutionary Period professor last semester was a very hard grader and a stickler for attendance and stuff but his scale was something like D=55-65, C=66-75, B=76-85, A=86-100. I had like an 82 but got a B+. Rumor has it the teacher for the Comp Sci class I'm in now is a ridiculous grader. Like People have had 50s, 60s, 70s on all the tests and quizzes and end up with Bs in the class. Pretty excited.
tommyishere
05/19/10, 06:08 PM
my Physics teacher said in college he passed a Physics class with a 36%
Chancetobe
05/20/10, 01:50 PM
I've gotten many an a's I didn't deserve. I feel bad for a second, and am then just thankful, since its really important to the GPA. If your grade improved, so did others, and it just puts you on a level playing field.
I'm sure you'll also get many a bad grades you don't think you deserve.
I had a stats class in which you could skip the final if you had an 85%+ test average. Of course, I fucked up and mine was about an 82-83%, so I took the final and got like an 87%. Then I realized that tests and final only accounted for half of the grade, and homework, participation, attendance and a group project ended up being the other half. Long story short, I got an A-!
It's when your grades are inexplicably lower that you should worry.
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