Monday May 5, 2014

I had originally planned to play some mariachi music to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, but heard Bolero over the weekend and thought that might be better.  Then while perusing YouTube to find a version to play in class I stumbled up the Flash Mob at Copenhagen Central Station version.  I later found Griegs Peer Gynt performed in the Copenhagen Metro (both videos feature the Copenhagen Philharmonic).

The course evaluation was conducted during the first 15 or 20 minutes of the class today. 

Grade summaries were also distributed.  An example is shown below.

Doe_J
quiz1 -44 (175 pts possible) 74.9%
quiz2 -48 (150 pts possible) 68.0%
quiz3 -47 (175 pts possible) 73.1%
quiz4 -38 (175 pts possible) 78.3%
1.4 EC points (3.0 pts possible)
writing scores: 33.0 (expt/book report) + 38.5 (1S1P pts)
writing grade: 89.4%
average (no quiz scores dropped): 76.7% + 1.4 = 78.2%
average (lowest quiz score dropped): 78.9% + 1.4 = 80.3%
you DO need to take the final exam


Moving from top to bottom you'll find your percentage grade on each of the 4 quizzes. 

The next line lists the number of extra credit points you have earned during the semester on Optional Assignments.

The score on your experiment report and the number of 1S1P points you have earned is listed next.  To figure out your writing percentage grade I add your experiment report score to the number of 1S1P points you have earned this semester then divide the result by 80 so it is possible for the writing grade to be over 100%.

Two averages are then computed.  The first is the average of your 4 quiz scores and your writing percentage grade.  Any extra credit is added to the average.  This is the number that has to be 90.0 or above to get out of the final exam.

If you do have to take the Final Exam (and note the grade summary explicitly says whether you DO or DO NOT have to take the exam) a second average is computed.   In this case your lowest quiz score is dropped. 

Your overall grade in the class will depend on this second average (with the lowest quiz score dropped) and your score on the Final Exam.

We did a couple of example calculations that determine what score you would need on the final to either raise your grade or to preserve the grade you currently have.

Let's look at the first situation.


In this case I try to maximize the benefit that the Final Exam can have on your overall grade.  40% of your overall grade is determined by the Final Exam score.

In this example we assume your current grade is 77.5%, a C+.  You want to raise your overall grade to a B (80%).  The calculation shows that you would need to score 83.8% on the exam to end up with a B.

The other option is that you're happy with your current grade.  What do you need on the exam to keep that grade?

In this case the exam score is only 20% of your overall grade.  This is to minimize the damage it can do.

We'll use the same 77.5% for the current grade and figure out how badly you can do on the exam and still end up with a C.


The calculation shows you only need to earn 40% to keep the C.

The Final Exam for this section of the class is scheduled for Wed., May 14 from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm in MCPRK 105 ( the same classroom we have been using all semester).  You are welcome to take the exam with the other section of the class provided you let me know ahead of time.  The Section 1 final is Friday May 9 from 3:30 - 5:30 pm in ILC 140.

Several reviews for the Final Exam are planned beginning on Wednesday at our normally scheduled class time.

Be sure to have a look at the Final Exam Study Outline particularly the small section at the bottom which has some information about the makeup of the exam.