<p>My AP Calculus teacher gives 100% on the final if you can answer every single question wrong; however, if you get even one right, you get that score of 5% or something. The chances of getting them all wrong by straight guessing are about 1/1000, but I figure if one knows the material it could be doable. However, if I mess up and get one question right, my grade in the class drops to an F or possibly D-; I need only an 83% on the test to keep an A-. If I try this and fail miserably, will MIT be understanding if I explain to them the reason for the low grade?</p>
<ol>
<li>Your Calc teacher sounds like an incredibly cool dude.</li>
<li>If you’re already getting an A- in the course then you probably know the material good enough to do well on it anyway.</li>
</ol>
<p>Conclusion: Try actually getting every question correct on the final of your Calc class which is taught by a really cool guy.</p>
<p>Haha, I think MIT might find it amusing.</p>
<p>Your chances of being able to choose 1 incorrect response for every answer on the test are statistically much higher than your chances of being able to get a really high grade; it’s a lot easier to know something is wrong than to know it’s right. I’d make the decision when the test was in front of me, so I’d know immediately whether I was confident that I either can or cannot miss every possible question.</p>
<p>Also, did he explicitly rule out handing in a blank test?</p>
<p>If you have an A- in the class, an 83% on the final shouldn’t be difficult. You can get a lot more wrong than you can get right and have a good grade. Go for correct answers.</p>
<p>I think you should risk getting every question wrong. You seem very intelligent.</p>
<p>And it seems pretty amusing.</p>
<p>On the other hand, all your teacher has to do is put one tricky problem especially designed for people trying to get them all.</p>
<p>Or perhaps there will be one question where all the answers are correct.</p>
<p>If I try this and fail miserably, will MIT be understanding if I explain to them the reason for the low grade?</p>
<p>Maybe… maybe not? It’s always easier when there’s nothing to explain; get the A- the normal way.</p>
<p>This is really amusing! 
Think twice before taking the risk. </p>
<p>@differential - I agree!</p>
<p>um…why don’t you just try to get every problem right?</p>
<p>I wish I had a teacher like yours! However, considering MIT’s emphasis on Calculus, I think you’d better not risk and take a regular 83%.</p>
<p>I agree with collegealum314- why not try to do well of your own accord? If you want to do well at MIT, you’re going to have to learn the material eventually anyways.</p>
<p>My H had a teacher in college who said that. It was impossible to get a zero. Too big a risk in my opinion. MIT will not care why you got the F - just that you did.</p>
<p>If you fail to fail ;-), and end up with an F in the class, you could try and explain it to MIT, but they might not be too impressed with the explanation. It would look like someone who would choose a shortcut, rather than learn the material.</p>
<p>Is this a joke?</p>
<p>just write the answers on a sheet of scratch paper while you are taking the test. If you are sure about almost every one, then go for the 0%. if not, then do it normally. That way, both options are open.</p>
<p>If it’s multiple choice, just fill in E when there are only 4 options. If there are 5 options just fill in two bubbles.</p>
<p>i saf go for the f</p>
<p>Get 100% the old fashioned way, then you can go around your friends that got 5% and mock them (not really but it is gratifying getting 100% the normal way and watch people stare in awe) :)</p>
<p>MetalDragon2400: That’s a silly idea. Scantron’s can easily be given an answer key that will accept multiple answers for a question.</p>
<p>So all the teacher has to do is in maybe 99/100 questions with E as a correct answer (along with A or B or C or D) and then the OP is screwed.</p>
<p>Now if you actually want to be a badass and impress people (people who can do serious integrals, not some of your friends), then get a 100 on the exam the old fashion way without using your pencil to do anything but bubble in answers. That’s right, do the integrals and derivatives in your head. It can be done. :-)</p>
<p>LOL differential - my AP calculus teacher would have given a 0 for that. she wanted every single step written out exactly the way it was done in the notes. and if she didn’t like you, she took points off anyway. <em>argued with her a LOT during the first few terms, got used to it after a few months</em> <em>“Why did you take points off? this is right.” “But that’s not how we did it in class.” "But it’s equivalent explains why</em>" “Well if you know all that, who cares if you get the points for it?” <em>that was a fun class…</em></p>