R. Clayton (rclayton@monmouth.edu)
Wed, 1 Nov 2000 11:04:57 -0500 (EST)
I had another visit from the Committee of Concerned Students last night, and
they made some suggestions about how I might improve the way 438-505 is being
run. After giving the matter some thought, I'm proposing a final set of
changes to the way 505-438 will run for the rest of the semester. First I'll
describe the changes and then I'll describe what your part in all this is.
1 The final grade consists of an unweighted average of the seven highest
grades; that is, the lowest test or assignment grade is dropped.
2 There is no penalty for missing the deadline on the third assignment.
3 The deadline for the fourth assignment is hard: if you don't submit your
fourth assignment by 2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, 13 December, you needn't bother
submitting it because it won't be accepted.
4 Nothing else about the schedule is changed.
Before going on, let me point out some important features about these changes:
1 You still have four tests and four assignments. However, now you have the
option of blowing one of them off and having the resulting 0 dropped as your
low grade.
2 You still have a deadline for the third assignment; in particular, if you
submit your third assignment after the deadline, you only get one shot, so
you better make sure it's a good one.
3 As a practical matter, because I won't give an assignment back until all
assignments have been handed in, you should assume that you won't be getting
your third assignment back until the end of the semester (you will, however,
be able to get your grade anytime after the assignment's been graded). For
the same reason, you should also assume that you won't be seeing my code for
the third assignment until it's too late.
4 The way groups are handled are still the same.
5 There still is a penalty for missing the deadline on the second assignment.
Having made my final proposal, and in keeping with the spirit of this time of
year, I'll now put these changes up to a vote. What I need from each class is
a simple majority of yes votes for these changes. Here are the voting rules:
1 The deadline is 2:00 p.m. next Wednesday, 8 November. Any votes received
after the voting deadline will be ignored.
2 You must vote either "Yes, I want the changes." or "No, I don't want to
change." You cannot vote for some changes and not others, nor can you
suggest alternatives. Your vote is either "Yes, I want the changes." or
"No, I don't want to change."
3 Each class must carry a simple majority to have the changes adopted; that
is, more than half the class must vote yes. If half the class or less vote
yes, the changes will not be adopted; for example, if 7 people vote yes and
7 people vote no, the changes will not be adopted. As another example, if,
in a class of 14 people, only 5 vote at all, the changes will not be
adopted.
4 To have a vote count, the student must be on the class roll as it appears at
2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, 8 November.
5 Once given, a vote may not be rescinded. Vote wisely.
This vote, whatever the outcome, is the last time I'm going to consider changes
to the way 438-505 is being run this year. While I am still interested in
hearing suggestions from the Committee of Concerned Students, and other
students, all such suggestions will be considered only in the context of next
year's courses.
Let me know if you have any questions.
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