Upcoming: Negotiating Student Expectations about Grades and Goals (1/26)

Posted by Rhett Mcdaniel on Wednesday, January 19, 2011 in Events.

Time & Date: 4:10-5:30 p.m., Wednesday, January 26
Format: Conversation on Teaching
Facilitators: Derek Bruff, Assistant Director, CFT
Audience: Faculty, Students (Undergrad and Graduate), and Staff

Should grades measure effort or performance? Should they measure improvement over time or final results? Should a student be graded against fixed criteria or relative to other students? Should students feel free to question the grades they receive or does that imply a lack of trust in the instructor’s professionalism and fairness? And should A grades be scarce or relatively plentiful?

Students and teachers often have very different answers to these questions, but conflicting answers can lead to frustration and disappointment for all involved. How can instructors learn about their students’ expectations and clarify their own? No matter what your thoughts on grades are, negotiating student expectations about grades and learning goals can be a difficult task. Join us for a roundtable discussion among faculty, students, and staff as we explore this challenge.

This conversation is part of the CFT’s ongoing work on the topic of student and instructor expectations for teaching and learning. The conversation is intended as a roundtable and thus exploratory in nature. You may not leave with lots of concrete strategies for negotiating expectations, but you should take away a better understanding of the issues and challenges involved.

Register Now!