Job Discussion Forums

[clandestine782]

When I started teaching the culture class, no one told me how the grades were done. Two things that were a surprise when I got to turning in the marks for the exam:

1. They don't use grading curves here. I calculated the mean (but not the standard deviaton) and based my cutoff line roughtly where I found a clean break (36%). So, if you got 36%, that was enough to pass the class. The Dean of the Foreign Languages Department had NO IDEA what I was talking about, even though I used formulae to describe it all. (Math is the same in every language.) She said she wanted it on a "normal" 100% scale where 60 is the cutoff. I don't know how to do this, since the range of the scores is so large that if I move them in such a way that only two or three people fail the class (at 60% cutoff--even though my mean was about 55% and the cutoff that I selected was 36% for passing), then there will be quite a few people with over 100%-- which is not permissible. On the other hand, if I move the marks in such a way that the top mark is 100%, a lot more people will fail the class. I want to protect all the hard work I've done in creating the marks and I want to be consistent, but they are holding onto my plane ticket until I come back with the "right" answer. What's more-- She told me that everyone should pass because I won't be here next term. If I'd known that was the f ucking case, I would have just given a 5 or 10 question true/ false exam and cut my grading time down to about 2 hours for all 400 students.

Should I just pick an average and put EVERY SINGLE SCORE at that value (this is actually out of spite, since they won't believe what I tell them)? It will solve the problem of whether everyone passes or not, but it will not reward the students who worked the hardest and will reward those who sat in class looking like morons (i.e., 90% of the male students).

2. They expected me to take attendance here and fold that into the grades-- of students that are over 20 years old. I didn't take attendance for a SINGLE class period.

What do you suggest?

[7969]

[Roger]

Frankly, I didn't understand it either. I don't care BEFOREHAND how many students fail or pass; they have to demonstrate certain abilities, skills or improvements to their English; no maths is needed to show how many failed to achieve a mark of 60. And no one scores higher than 100!

By the way, I put students through two tests during the semester followed by the final exam; the tests were helpful in gauging their progress. You could identify the slackers and the achievers.

[7969]

i had two different types of class.

1. oral english. 3/4 of these classes were quite good. good level of english in most cases and attendance was almost 100% for every class this term in 3/4 classes. the exception was an international trade class that was weak in english. also had spotty attendance. these classes were easy to grade.

2. logistics management classes. i had no idea what i was supposed to do in these classes but i figured it out eventually. all four classes were huge, more than 100 and one of them had 150 students. attendance was minimal for all of them, so it was easy to do attendance just by asking the ones who showed up what their name was and check it off. i gave a written exam in this class at terms end. four questions from the text that we covered previously. i gave a review period where we covered 12 potential questions from which i chose the four test questions. open book exam. most students didnt bother to show up for the pre exam review. some forgot their textbooks for the exam. despite open book exam, there was still loads of copying, cheating and other shenanigans going on in the class. clearly those who did such things should have failed. however i would have had to fail 80% of the class and we all know how that would have turned out.

then there was my grading. i asked several students and teachers how they did their grading. they all without exception told me A B C D etc. so thats what i did. then when it came time for someone to input my grades into the schools online grading system, the people inputting the data for me asked what A B C meant. huh? only then did i find out that they use you - A, liang - B, zhong - C etc. like i said you have to keep it simple. trying to do anything complicated, no matter how professional it may seem, will only backfire here in china, as far as i can see.

7969

[mondrian]

[latefordinner]

Mondrian, that's just about how I figured it, that's how I've done it. Marks range from low- and mid-nineties (the ones who've busted thier tails class after class) to low sixties (the ones I've never seen before).
Now what's cute is that I picked up 6 classes from other teachers who got fed up with the school and left at mid year. After about 6 weeks of being unable to get any replacement teachers (our, ahem, college is getting quite a reputation), the FAO asked me to pick up what I could. Just for a week or two, while we get someone new in. I don't need a curriculum or even a class list, just keep the students occupied. Well maybe a month. Well maybe next month as well. Could I finish the term?
About 2 and a half weeks ago, I was talking with the FAO and suggesting various dates for my final exams. We settled on something, then later I got a call from her. Seems someone from the English department has a list of, ahem, requirements for my exam. Who is this, and why haven't I met this person before? My students don't know either, finally someone clues in that this is the vice-dean and should be spoken to. <sigh> So off I go to see her, just a few days before my first test is scheduled. Guess who doesn't like the proposed format and content of my final exam? Who gave me permission to test my students' English, anyway?
Anyway I persuaded her that I know what I'm doing (or that I'm a stubborn SOB, which is closer to the truth) and I got something pretty close to my way of doing things. Asking politely, I even got class lists for 4 of the 6 classes. So I did my exams and just finished marking the written work today. Bellcurved it according to the school's, ahem, expectations. Everyone passes, including the ones who compare poorly with a rock. On my way to the Dean's office tomorrow, I'm going to post copies of the results in public places, so if the results change there will be talk. And I will hear it.

[latefordinner]

Forgot to add, I gave a number grade out of 100. It makes it look so scientific and unquestionable, doesn't it? So what's the difference between his 10+6+13+13+36 = 78 and her 10+5+14+13+37 = 79? After grading all those spokens and marking all those writtens, I really can't say anymore.

[kev7161]

In my Oral English classes, I would have tests of course (both written and oral) for the students to earn points, but I also would create a rubric for the speaking assignments we'd have throughout the school year. Basically, I just added up all the points (tests and rubrics) and divided by the scores they received to get the percentages. In the chaotic classes I had, this seemed to work the best for me.

[lf_aristotle69]

[lf_aristotle69]

[ColinA]

Well Clandestine,
You probably didnt read my post suggesting that FT's shouldnt take their job too seriously. Most of us are not much more than flag wavers, of novel value to be paraded before prospective students and their parents. Failing students doesnt earn money in case you didnt know- it's not on the agenda! I taught a writing class of second year ENglish majors which included about 20 hours painstakingly reading and marking essays every fortnight. While I tried to be much more generous than say the IELTS marking criteria allowed, I just couldnt pass 5 or 6 students. Despite my objections, the dean elevated their marks to a pass (60%) and resorted (so I was told) to a "severe" reprimand, hahaha! The excuse was, they'd be given the chance to turnaround their marks in the second semester. All the more reason I would have thought, to fail them the 1st time.

By the way, did you find anyone's final exam mark suddenly took a dive in comparison to their progressive fortnightly efforts? Now I wonder why that was? If you havent worked it out already, lying, cheating and plagerising are cultural "skills" much like smoking. I should also add they were generally a great bunch of friendly kids; its just the way the system is. So you want suggestions? Since you're leaving, do the miminim stats that will satisfy their paper work, cut your losses, take your travel pay and move on. Next time dont take your job so seriously. Other posters may tell you that teaching qualifications are a waste of time e.g. (who needs a B.Ed or Dip.Ed...?) Afterall, employers cant really be expecting pedogogical wizards with the pay theyre offering you, and if they do demand a degree, few FAO do a background check so you can just print your own, anyway.

If you actually teach them something and get some job satisfaction, it's a bonus. My least satisfaction came at a rich high school in which I taught 3 IELTS classes of 20 students. Apart from 2 kids who got a six, most couldnt care less ((since dad's loaded). I was told not to worry as the parents want them there, rather than at home. Its all about getting bums on seats and collecting the extra moola. What they really meant was the overall school grades would have been dragged down if these students sat for the government senior 3 exams. I tried to impress upon them that not everyone is capable of mastering a second language but that just brought about blank stares.

Much as I hate to admit it, three trips to China have done little for my resume. Not that it mattered much in my case being in semi-retirement mode but I hope youre not expecting much leverage on return. You may have a different outcome, but a China teaching background would seem of little interest to western educators and probably less so to other employers.
_____________________________________________________________
A perpetual holiday is a good working definition of boredom.
Wo zhu ni hao yun.

[lf_aristotle69]