Thoughts on things to change.
- Drop learning targets from 24 to 20. That means there will be 5 per units.
- We will spend 10-11 days on each unit, and have 2 quiz days for each unit. The first quiz day will appear the day after the unit ends. The second will occur one week later.
- This accounts for 48-52 class periods.
- To get a C or higher, you must pass 80% of the objectives. We'll only do single passes.
- There will be 9 quizzes. The first quiz after each unit will only contain the learning targets from that unit. The quiz that happens the week after will have all learning targets, up to that point, on it.
- I would prefer to have the quiz in the testing center. You get Mathematica and one pages of handwritten notes. The sheer act of making notes helps solidify and reinforce learning, helping with long term retention.
- I would prefer they have Mathematica on something other than their computer, so they cannot just open up a file they already made that automates things for them.
- To get a B or higher, they also need 80% of the median participation score of the class (they need to be part of the community and share on a regular basis). They also need to complete 2 SDL projects.
- To get an A, they need 4 SDLs, and have 4/5 objectives passed from each unit. So they can't blow off the last unit of the semester.
- Someone who is happy with a B+ can almost completely ignore the last unit. They can get 3 SDL projects, and reach 16/20 objectives. That will get them to a B+.
- The final exam will be the last quiz. It will have all 20 learning targets on it. You need to get 40% or higher on the final exam to keep your current grade. Higher than 70% will result in a half grade letter boost. So I guess you could get an A- this way without knowing much about 1 of the units.