Has anyone here ever had a grade lowered for participation? Forum

[flcath]

I think this is going to happen to me. Most profs--the one's who put a line in their syllabus about "I reserve the right to..."--are bluffing, I think. Unfortunately, my prof seems like the type who'd actually do it, and there's a pretty good little section on it in his syllabus.

Has anyone here ever had this happen, or know of someone to whom this has happened? Lastly, should I approach him preemptively about it: this could either result in me talking him out of it, or remind him to ding me if he didn't already remember (both of these are relatively remote, but I don't mind doing this kind of embarrassing shit if I think it'll benefit me).

[Mce252]

You're probably not going to talk the prof out of it by showing up after the semester ends. If you deserve to lose credit, than just leave it and see what happens.

[AlexanderSupertramp]

I have two professors who do it. One gave everyone in the section -1 last year because one day she called on 6 people and none were prepared. Another docks those who are obviously unprepared during cold calls. None of htem do it for not raising your hand or something.

[Guchster]

I think this is going to happen to me. Most profs--the one's who put a line in their syllabus about "I reserve the right to..."--are bluffing, I think. Unfortunately, my prof seems like the type who'd actually do it, and there's a pretty good little section on it in his syllabus.

Has anyone here ever had this happen, or know of someone to whom this has happened? Lastly, should I approach him preemptively about it: this could either result in me talking him out of it, or remind him to ding me if he didn't already remember (both of these are relatively remote, but I don't mind doing this kind of embarrassing shit if I think it'll benefit me).

If this happens, I'm fucked. I never speak in class--but i'm decently prepared when cold called. I prefer to bask in the glory of the douche-nozzles and LOL @ some of the crazy shit my classmates say.

[Unitas]

I have two professors who do it. One gave everyone in the section -1 last year because one day she called on 6 people and none were prepared. Another docks those who are obviously unprepared during cold calls. None of htem do it for not raising your hand or something.

If the class is curved for letter grades then -1 to everyone on the raw score does nothing. Or did the professor do it post curve? which seems wrong and definitely worth a visit to the dean of students

[AlexanderSupertramp]

I have two professors who do it. One gave everyone in the section -1 last year because one day she called on 6 people and none were prepared. Another docks those who are obviously unprepared during cold calls. None of htem do it for not raising your hand or something.

If the class is curved for letter grades then -1 to everyone on the raw score does nothing. Or did the professor do it post curve? which seems wrong and definitely worth a visit to the dean of students

It was before the curve, so, yeah, made absolutely no difference. She was just mad.

[Ludo!]

I think it may have happened to me in torts last year. The teacher hated me and I barely ever went to class. I got the lowest grade I've ever gotten in a law school class even though I studied for it just as much as the others. I still think I may have gotten the bump down but I never want to talk to that teacher again so I never asked. Of course I could have just done poorly because I never went to class. Oh well.

[flcath]

Unfortunately my prof's policy is perfectly reasonable, and concrete. Basically the class is divided into 7 "panels" and each day a different panel is on-call; if you're going to be absent when you're on-call you have to email ahead of time.

I had a CB in Nashville during an on-call day (and didn't realize it) and I got called on. The day after (once someone told me I got called on), I talked to him and sent him an email confirming my CB (forwarded him the firm schedule), but he sent me one back saying he needed it in advance and that I would need to try to participate voluntarily extensively to avoid the grade drop.

It's really quite demoralizing being pretty sure this is going to happen.

[ben4847]

I doubt you will actually have your grade lowered unless it is really egregious.

I had a CB in Nashville during an on-call day (and didn't realize it) and I got called on. The day after (once someone told me I got called on), I talked to him and sent him an email confirming my CB (forwarded him the firm schedule), but he sent me one back saying he needed it in advance and that I would need to try to participate voluntarily extensively to avoid the grade drop.

That doesn't sound very egregious.

[shoeshine]

Yeah I had one this semester that definitely does it. It isn't a surprise because he put it in the syllabus and past students have usually warned everyone about it. It isn't a hard threshhold to meet to get full participation points. I think you just need to successfully answer two cold calls.

But I met a couple of students who said that they got 0% participation grades last year and it really hurt them. Apparently he doesn't negotiate the participation requirement.