Tuesday, April 25, 2006

The Talk

There comes a time in every teacher's life when she or he has to have The Talk with a student. "Kid, you just aren't going to get the grade that you hoped for."

Usually, this is with a student who thinks they can pass, but they can't. It's amazing how hope springs eternal. But today's Talk was with a student who wants an A, but will be lucky to get a B. It was not an easy Talk. It started with specific questions on the exam. "Why did I only get 4 points on this question when my answer was correct?" "How about this one? What more was I supposed to show?" I tried to be sympathetic, but the truth is that he made really common mistakes. If I were to regrade his paper, I'd have to call them all back and regrade a bunch of them. So I didn't give him much satisfaction.

From there, it progressed to how he was doing in the course. I am grading very tough on the assignments, with the intention of making it up on the final curve. I've been very up front about that. But it means that right now his percentage is really low. I've been very clear about what I consider a decent pace, and he's right there at a B. But somehow, he has the impression that I've decided he can't get an A, and what do I have against him, anyway?

The funny thing is, I really like this student. He's a hard worker, and he's getting the most out of his ability. But this is a hard course, and he just isn't in the class of the people who are getting A's. So, how do you gently say that?

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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

hi, it sounds a bit sad. since he's hard working, maybe you can specify to all students (hopefully he gets it) a sample of a good assignment? i think i could've been in his show & not know where i;m doing wrong. hopefully the teacher can point it out.

thanks. :)

USJogger said...

Hey, Nisa, thanks for visiting. I visited your web-site, which is just beautiful, but I didn't find any place to leave a comment.

I do have a reaction to your suggestion, but I think it's going to work itself into a full post in a day or two.