Job Discussion Forums

[lumberjackej]

When I was a college student, I hated finals.

I still do.

Hours grading hundreds of exams on a beautiful day. Dealing with students who need their own Chinese translator to give me some ridiculous excuse why they should pass the course, even though they've never attended class or handed in any work to me. Registering 0's and failing students who have blatantly cheated on final projects...this is the least fun of all.

I just want to finish all this grading and correcting and calculating so that I have a happy, uplifting wrap-up week on Monday with the students who do actually care...this last week has been pretty blegggh though.

I'd rant more, but I'm too disheartened to write any further.

Anyone else going through the same shi t?

-EJ

[tofuman]

It took a while for me to figure out that I should prepare finals for my comfort and advantage. If a student fails my exam, I'm supposed to give them an easier one they can pass. Of course, I refuse to do this, but I want to avoid another confrontation. The solution: an easy exam.

Should I have to do twice as much work because of a student's sloth or ignorance?
My answer: NOPE!

I still fail the students caught cheating. I gave them all the answers prior to the test. If they still cheat, they deserve to fail. They will not get a second chance mandated by the school. Students I suspected of cheating, I retested. If they didn't get close to their original score, they failed.

I can't speak for your school, but the place that I worked at was rotten and corrupt when it came to educational integrity. The local teacher supposedly proctoring my exam had her nose in a book while the students blatantly cheated, copying from a paper on their desk. The students were treacherous, the administration incompetent, and so- called colleagues, negligent.

Toxic environment.

[peabocardigan]

lumberjackej-

I just finished testing last week. My frustration started with not having had a classlist for the entire term, other than my own which only comprises my students' English names. When I asked the office for classlists so that I could test them they told me they didn't have any. I had to pester them for about a week and threaten them with cancellation of tests until I finally got the classlists.

Despite my early announcements for the tests many of my students didn't show up for the tests because they had been sent out on the university's recruiting-campaign for next year. However, the Dean of Foreign Languages told me not to fail anyone and if anyone wouldn't show up he told me to base their grades on their regular performances. Since most of my 11 different classes have more than 50 students and I was never given a classlist nor instructions for grading nor instructions for anything taking place in the classroom I only graded those that actually showed up. I don't feel bad about it 'cause the headteachers pass everyone anyway.

[brsmith15]

I teach accounting. What I do is go over every problem that'll be on the final. That way, the average score is around 90 and only the absolute dolts fail. What the hell. I'm trying to get a few basic ideas across and most of these kids won't become accountants anyway.

What a horrid fate!

[The Great Wall of Whiner]

And this is just a few of the many reasons why University degrees and college diplomas from China are not recognized in most western countries.

[eslLori]

Yes, exams.They are part of school life everywhere, but in sinoland it has a quite different shade to it-or maybe it is all gray.
The routine: no class list, no schedual until the day before,cancellation of classes-make up on the weekend, test too hard, no shows whine,cheaters cheat,liers lie, staff are dullards, FAO lies,is a dullard, and shows president false copy of contract... blah,blah,blah
All the while everyone seems to be chewing on those big pot seeds-hummm?
Hey, summer time is around the corner folks. Remember were only talking heads!

[tofuman]

"FAO lies,is a dullard, and shows president false copy of contract... "

Hadn't thought of that one. I know the FAO can not be trusted to translate what I say. He says what he wants me to say, or thinks I should say. Not always, but he must think he is doing me a favor because he himself told me what he does.

[tw]

I had students who didn't prepare for my examination -- even though I'd told them what the questions would be 2 weeks in advance.

I had a graduate student who was on his merry way back to the dormitory after eating dinner when he ran into me. I had to remind him there was an examination that evening (my third 2+ hour-long exam that day!)

Another graduate student had said the night before that he was ready for my exam because it was easy -- and he was drunk. the enxt day he could barely give me 20 seconds of answers, and had the nerve to ask me if he'd passed. Then he told me that someone had been spreading the rumour that a 10-second long answer would get them a pass.

A few graduate students showed up for the exam even though they hardly ever came to classes. They were all told to leave -- male and female, good looking or not.

One more graduate student came and told me that he didn't start preparing for the exam until the night before. After 2 minutes of "er...er...ah...ah...I mean..." I told him to get lost.

Last but not least, a freshman missed his turn because he was sound asleep on the day of the exam. Eventually his class monitor woke him up and he came -- 15 minutes late. He got a big fat duck egg on the score sheet.

Nothing is more amusing than seeing the worried, oh wait, make that petrified look on students' faces on the day of the exam when you walk into the classroom -- especially those who were always bored and unmotivated during lessons.