Job Discussion Forums

[SimonM]

One of my third year University English Majors shows up on my doorstep this morning. Yesterday she had asked for an extension on an essay that was due yesterday. Of course yesterday was, in fact, an extension from the original due date a half week previous.

I told her that, because she was a new student and had been added to the class much later than I would have preferred, I would allow her to hand it in no later than 5:00 PM today.

So when she turned up this morning I assumed it was to hand in the paper.

I was wrong. She did hand me a paper though. A note she wrote explaining to me why her essay was not going to be ready in time for the second extension!!!

A freaking note!!!

I said to her that if she had a problem she could tell me herself rather than writing a note.

�Oh well my speaking English is very poor�� She replies.

This from a third year university English major!

Her note explained that her essay was late because I didn�t understand China.

See her family is poor therefore she can�t use a keyboard like all of her classmates (many of whom come from poor families) and it�s my fault her essay is late because I wanted it typed.

So I asked her if she had a handwritten copy and she said she did but it was less than half the word length I had set.

Aargh!!!

[Roger]

Interestingly, lots of FTs won't believe that they should monitor their students' absences/presence in class!
I have been taking attendances from all my university students for the last couple of years; when the new term began I was handed a note by my superior that stressed the IMPORTANCE of not allowing students to miss any class...
OF course, no rule is without exceptions; I find myself breaking this rule all the time...because my students really won't let up with their energetic demands for special consideration for their particular situation...
I wouldn't mind if the students would try their damnedest to make up for the time they were not in class and if they would try to accept some responsibility for their missing out on something. Some actually do now that they have found out I mean business, and nothing but business! Others are still taking chances. Witness some of their written "excuses" for their absences:

- Dear Mr. S.,
so sorry that I can't attend your class...because there is a
basketball match I must go and play...It is an important final
match to me, Please forgive my absence, Thank you very much!

- Dear Mr. S.,
Please excuse me for being absent for today because I represent
for school to join the province performance. Hoping for your
favorable consideration on this matter...

- Dear Mr. S.,
I am terribly sorr that I shall be unable to attend this afternoon two
periods of English Class due to our graduating class affair.
I have to take a photo for graduation. I trust my absence will not
cause you any serious inconvenience,

- Dear Sir,
My name is (name). I'm the student of class 5. There is an important
speech on the skill at being interviewed by foreign enterprises for
our graduates this afternoon...

- Dear Mr. S.,
Please excuse me for today's absence because there is something
wrong with my eyes and I had dated a doctor this afternoon.
Wish to receive your permit,...
(seemed to be a legit cvase even if I didn't go along with his
"dating" of an ophtalmologist!).

- Dear sir:
I won't go to your class today because an office vacancies will
be hold in Zhongshan University at that time and I will go to.
HOpe you permit me to leave...

- Dear teacher,
Please excuse me for being absent for today. because I have to join
the dress rehearsal which is for the province performance. Hoping for
ytour favourable consideration on this matter...

- Dear Roger, (arrrgr! This guy obviously flunked the lesson in which
taught my class my name and how to address me!)
I'm so happy to have your lesson. but I have something important
to do this afternoon. so I have to ask leave to take part in a
meeting in our school headquarters.

- Dear Mr. S.,
We (four names inserted) are from Electronic Business 2002 and will
go to 106 to take pictures for the graduate information related with
the graduation certificate during (time of the lessons). So we must be
absent once.
(Bad luck: the photo-taking was held in the groundfloor of the teaching building and I saw it in progress; it took a student 2 minutes - no reason to be absent for 2 hours...!).

The revealing thing about these naive "permits for leave" (sas they usually are titled) is this: obviously, the most obvious pretext is a good enough reason to skip class...and even more stupendously: these students get away with such "excuses" even with their Chinese teachers who perhaps prefer not to read them too well...

[SimonM]

Since I wasn't given a class list until the last week of classes I wasn't particularly effective at monitoring attendance... Ah well, the students are only shooting themselves in the foot when they skip, I am not a particularly easy marker.

Anyway it was the double whammy of

1: Her turning up on my doorstep and acting like a mute when she is supposed to be a 3rd year university english major. I expect people with that much experience to be able to speak English.

2: The fact she tried to blame me for her inability to meet the deadline. I was to blame because I didn't understand that in China there are poor areas with no computers!!!

I've been to Rural China. I know that there are poor areas with no computers. But you know what? I also know several people from those places who learned how to use a computer because I am not the only teacher who requires students to type essays at this university. I have a friend in fourth year who will regularly borrow access to my computer for research and she comes from a village dug out of the side of a hill with no paved roads or indoor plumbing in the whole place.

However when this girl inevitably gets a poor mark, her essay is MABEY half the minimum required length, I know she will try to claim it's not her fault even though she got an extra day more than all of her classmates. As she was leaving I suggested to her that she really study hard for the final exam and made her write down the information I have publicized about the exam composition. After all I only went over that in class in detail twice so if she doesn't know about it it's probably my fault too eh?

[7969]

barring any legitimate reason for the late paper (doctor, illness, other emergency) just do what happens in a lot of western universities. she turns the paper in a week late, best possible grade is a B+. between one and two weeks late best possible grade is a C+. any later than two weeks and she fails. dont forget to wish her a merry christmas.

roger, your students excuses are not very creative..... looks like they even plagiarize excuses. i was hoping for some interesting stories there.

7969

[SimonM]

Actually I do it basically the way my university did:

1 day late: -15%
2 days late: -25%
3 days late: -35%
4 days late: -45%
5 days late: -55%
6 days late: -65%
7 days late: -75%
8 days late: -85%
9 days late: -95%
10 days late: automatic 0 on paper.

I take this (admittedly heavy handed) approach for basically the same three reasons I decided to give plagirized papers a 0:

A: These are university students. I treat them as such - the good and the bad. I refuse to treat 22 and 23 year olds like children.

B: Late papers really mess with my marking schedule. OK so this is a bit different than reason B over plagirism IE: it waists my time to read other peoples material rather than something writen by a student.

C: I gave them more than a month to do this assignment for crying out loud and it was hardly a long one.

I have only gotten one late paper since the start of the year. This was it.

Of course if a student has a legitimate reason for lateness I will grant an extension. I had granted this girl one already. Two if you count the one I gave everyone. She wasn't getting a third. There is a limit to how far I can accomodate one student.

[brsmith15]

I use a formula: 100 - 2(n^2) + 2n where "n" is the number of days late. If they're late by one day they still can get 100 maximum. But.....

if a student is 4 days late, their max mark is

100 - 2(4^2) +(2)( 4) = 100-32+8 = 76

7 days late is

100 - 2(7^2) + (2)(7) = 16

[Roger]

[SimonM]

"Yes, sorry."

I mean the facial expression alone was enough to tell me that he had listened in class, understood that what he was doing was wrong and then consciously decided to plagirize anyway.