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ladyslvr at 08:35pm on 11/10/2003
ladyslvr at 08:35pm on 11/10/2003The students just finished their first draft of their second paper. Second drafts will probably be due on Friday.
I collected their journals for the second time this semester. While reading them, I came to a realization: I need better journal topics for them. Only one assignment was really good, and even that, a bunch of students did only minimally. In fact, so minimally that they might as well not have had the assignment. The journals were very disappointing this time around.
So I seek journal ideas. Those of you who took Freshman Comp (or something equivalent), were you ever given a journal topic that you happen to remember and I could steal?
I have one student who has now been absent 9 of the last 10 class sessions. He hasn't dropped the class. He has missed the first and second journal collections (100 points lost of 1000), both drafts of the first paper including two days worth of peer reviewing (20 points of 1000 since the drafts aren't graded), and the first draft of the second paper with peer review day (another 20 points). The peer review days and journal collections can't be made up. Rumor has it he's planning to return to class on Monday. Considering that he doesn't even know about the second paper, this ought to be interesting. The bulk of the students' grades will come from a final portfolio in which they revise two papers, one from the first eight weeks and one from the second. This student has not done a paper in the first eight weeks, which means he doesn't have one to revise, which means he's automatically down another 300 points on that assignment.
I collected their journals for the second time this semester. While reading them, I came to a realization: I need better journal topics for them. Only one assignment was really good, and even that, a bunch of students did only minimally. In fact, so minimally that they might as well not have had the assignment. The journals were very disappointing this time around.
So I seek journal ideas. Those of you who took Freshman Comp (or something equivalent), were you ever given a journal topic that you happen to remember and I could steal?
I have one student who has now been absent 9 of the last 10 class sessions. He hasn't dropped the class. He has missed the first and second journal collections (100 points lost of 1000), both drafts of the first paper including two days worth of peer reviewing (20 points of 1000 since the drafts aren't graded), and the first draft of the second paper with peer review day (another 20 points). The peer review days and journal collections can't be made up. Rumor has it he's planning to return to class on Monday. Considering that he doesn't even know about the second paper, this ought to be interesting. The bulk of the students' grades will come from a final portfolio in which they revise two papers, one from the first eight weeks and one from the second. This student has not done a paper in the first eight weeks, which means he doesn't have one to revise, which means he's automatically down another 300 points on that assignment.
(no subject)
You might point out that with missing so many classes he'd have to get 100% on everything to get a C- in your course. Which would be almost impossible.
On the issue of journaling, the only successfull journaling I ever did was for Acting class. One exercise we had to pick someone out that was a stranger and follow them for a bit. Then we had to make up a story about them using discriptors about their dress, they way they moved, and their demeanor. I actually did that one before 10 minutes before class.
(no subject)
Alas, no. I also don't have the ability to do administrative drop. But I have been advised by several faculty members that I just need to either flunk the kid flat out, and/or pull him aside and very strongly recommend that he take the class some other semester when he's better ready for college.
BTW, he missed class again today without notification. And the rumor mill (aka another student in my class with whom he shares another class) said that this student was planning on being sick again today because he doesn't think my class is important.
(no subject)
(no subject)
As I told the students, I want this to be one of their first college classes, not one of their last. Yet this student has used, abused, and shredded my patience. I can't flunk him until we do semester grades. But at this point, I can't imagine any way he'll not get flunked.
(no subject)
He might be the first idiot to take your freshman comp class, but hopefully he won't be the last. You'll get about 1 of those a semester.