<p>@preamble1776 - There are a lot of different things that factor into the grade. The four major essays are the biggest chunk of the grade at 40%. We have minor assignments such as reading quizzes which are “fluff” points, a short video skit about a grammar lesson, which really isn’t hard; it has to be two minutes long. We also have an attendance grade, which is worth 10% of my grade. She will not put in the attendance points until the end of the semester, so that should bump me up because I have not missed a single class and don’t plan on missing any of the next five classes. We also have a “journal” grade, which is basically a “gimme” grade as well. As long as we do each assignment, we get the points for it; she doesn’t grade on the content. </p>
<p>So, all in all, the only thing of which I should be concerned is the essay assignments because those are the “hardest” points to get. All the other stuff is really “fluff.” </p>
<p>Hopefully, those “fluff” grades will help me at the end of the semester. </p>
<p>I don’t think my professors technically “curve”, either. My math professor drops the lowest test and quiz scores, so that takes the place of a curve. My chemistry professor changed the grading scale to make a 90% an A instead of a 93%. He also made the curve so that a student can get a 50% and still be considered passing. The traditional scale is anything below a 60% is failing, but he made it so that students can get half the material right, get their GEN ED credit, and get out. That’s the nice thing about “non-technical” GEN EDS. </p>
<p>I think all of my professors told me that they will consider attendance and participation when calculating final grades. My sociology professor will add five points for good attendance. </p>
<p>Advice please:
Both of the professors I have for my MWF classes stated that they would be holding class on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving - however, both also stated that attendance would not be taken, so we would not be penalized for not attending. On that day, I start at 9:00AM and finish at 10:50AM. </p>
<p>If I didn’t go, I’d realistically be at home with my father and sister, packing for our weekend trip, helping with last minute preparations. If I did go, we’d just be discussing some of the material we reviewed - actually going to class is not any sort of hardship (unless public transportation decides to be weird or something). </p>
<p>I’m kind of conflicted - on the one hand, I wanna have an extra day off. On the other, I kind of want to just pull through and make it to class, since it wasn’t actually cancelled, and I don’t have any concrete reason to not attend (some kids can’t go because they need to catch flights, etc). Thoughts? Opinions? </p>
<p>@teenbodybuilder Both classes have about 20 students - the professors had originally anticipated 75%+ attendance but today, when both asked who isn’t showing up, more than half said they weren’t - which is why they decided to make attendance optional. They did say that if we showed up and there was only like 2 kids, they’d cancel class, but my commute is an hour and I’d rather not go all the way there just to find out both classes are cancelled.</p>
<p>You should definitely take the day off, haha. I remember that there were always a crazy number of absences the day before Thanksgiving in high school, and that was when attendance was mandatory. </p>
<p>@Coriander23 - The day before Thanksgiving at my high school was the pep rally - which was supposedly a “big deal” (cough, cough). I ended up skipping the pep rally my senior year, lol. We had early dismissal that day (10am) - I don’t think there was ever attendance or anything but some people were super into the whole school pride thing so they showed up anyways. My family always goes away for Thanksgiving so I try to get home as soon as possible to pack my stuff and whatnot. </p>
<p>I’m like 80% probably not going to go to class next Wednesday. I might have some sudden urge to show up the morning of, though. I’m really weird like that. Plus one of my TAs is very handsome and makes showing up to class even more enticing. (lol, I’m pathetic.) </p>
<p>My high school had this thing called the “Winter Olympics” on the last day before Christmas break. We would all sit in the gymnasium and watch the athletes compete in different games. I skipped it my freshman and sophomore year, and I went my junior year. It wasn’t anything exciting. I went to homeroom on that day my senior year, got marked down for attending, and then when the bell rang, I just walked out the back door. That was the first time I ever walked out of school, so I was really nervous. I’m surprised I didn’t get caught. I figured that I’d show up for homeroom because I hate getting marked absent for a half of a day. The dismissal time was at 11, so I didn’t want to get marked absent for three and a half hours. </p>
<p>@NewBeginnings3 - I walked out of the school for my senior pep rally and I was nervous I was gonna get caught… I actually walked out of the front door, right by the Main Office. Luckily, literally everyone, including all the administrators, were in the gymnasium, so I went unnoticed. </p>
<p>I don’t really go to lectures, haha. Like ever. I find it a lot easier to learn (or in my case, review, as I’ve already received AP credit for the material in my one traditional class) from the convenience of my dorm room than in a packed lecture hall of almost a thousand students. Next quarter, though, I’ll be taking several classes in subjects new to me, so I’ll most likely be going to class regularly And sophomore year, some of my classes will take place on an actual farm, so then I won’t * want * to skip! </p>
<p>Edit: This post makes me feel like a truant. I’d like to quickly add that I always to go required labs and discussion sections, and never missed a day at my early arrival program. Only when I feel that attending would be counterproductive to learning do I not go! </p>
<p>I think I’ve skipped more engineering classes than I’ve attended… benefits (and faults) of a course that’s mandatory pass/fail. I almost never skip calc because I really like my teacher (and the material is completely new to me). I almost always skip philosophy because I just hate that class.</p>
<p>I’m too paranoid to skip - I’m worried that if I miss class, it’ll happen to be a day where there is some tremendously important event that I cannot miss (but that’s never actually the case.) One of my classes doesn’t have an attendance policy (there’s a couple of kids who went AWOL like a month ago but they still do the homework) – and my other classes have allotted absences that I have yet to take advantage of. </p>
<p>It is also worth mentioning that, as I’ve probably said a hundred times before (lol), I’m a commuter and my commute is an hour - I have about 2-3 hours of class on any given day, so it doesn’t make sense for me to commute all the way there, only to decide to attend one class and miss the other. If I don’t go altogether, I have to forego attending all the classes that fall on that day. But commuting doesn’t stop a lot of people at my school from skipping. One girl I know drives 1.5 hours from Middleofnowhereville - and she won’t go to two or three classes. She’ll just sit in the cafeteria with her friends and chat.</p>
<p>I skipped my first day last Friday. I had three classes, and I figured I’d just not go. Since I go to a small campus, most professors do take attendance, and it usually counts as part of your grade. My professors on MWF don’t award points for attendance, but both my TR professors do. I don’t want to lose easy attendance points.</p>
<p>I got the “skip class” bug out of me in my senior year of high school. I missed like 40 days total. My high school was a joke; there were never any repercussions for too many absences. Plus, my senior year classes were blow-offs, basically. I had all my necessary credits satisfied, so my classes were all electives for the most part. </p>
<p>Switching gears, I can’t believe that the semester is almost over. I have two weeks of classes after next week, and then I have three finals. I just can’t believe how fast time is moving. I hope the spring semester moves just as fast. I’m really looking forward to the long summer! My last day of classes will be April 30th. </p>
<p>Aww man, that really sucks. Are there any other professors you can take the class from? That’s pretty scary that your entire grade hinges on your performance on one test, but hopefully the fact that you’re taking it P/F will make it better.</p>
<p>And I agree that time seems to be flying by–it’s hard to believe fall quarter is almost over. In less than a month it’ll be winter break! Last year, around this time I was waiting for ED decisions, and it seemed like every minute was a microwave minute. </p>
<p>@Coriander23 - There are other professors, but they aren’t much better - and the classes are offered at weird times, like weekends and at night. Sometimes I question the validity of negative professor reviews at my school - we are certainly no scholastic giant, with abysmal test averages and a very low graduation rate - so I sometimes wonder if people complain about a professor because the professor expects a certain level of work when the students just want to skate by. </p>
<p>I have no qualms dedicating large amounts of time to studying Calc, even if I’m only taking it P/F. I dunno. I guess the upside of knowing that the final exam is 100% of the grade is that I won’t shift into autopilot towards the end of the semester and I’ll keep working/putting in effort. </p>
<p>I remember this time last year very clearly - I was about to send in my first round of applications (priority scholarship consideration) – I think I sent them the Friday before the week of Thanksgiving. The first school I applied to was BU. The second application I sent in two minutes later was for the school I’m currently attending. It’s crazy to think that at the time, I had absolutely no idea where I’d be 12 months later. I find it so fascinating. </p>
And sophomore year, some of my classes will take place on an actual farm, so then I won’t * want * to skip! </p>
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