Should I continue in the course

[undergrad_2015]

The drop date is this Thursday. I just know 15% of my grades. I have also done a 25% paper 2 weeks ago, but the prof will return it next week. Upcoming stuff to do include 20% paper and 40% final project. I don't know if I should continue in the course or not? I've emailed the prof asking about my progress, and the prof replied just listing what I've submitted and what I've yet to submit. Nothing about if I'm doing good, or not good, or whatever. Prof mentioned again that the 25% paper will be returned next class (next week)....can this be a good sign?

Edited March 15, 2016 by undergrad_2015

[pro Augustis]

I have no idea how to answer this, because, unless I am reading incorrectly, you haven't said what you earned on any of these assignments, merely how much they were worth. Whether you should drop also probably depends on how important the class is for what you are studying. 

[undergrad_2015]

Thank you for your reply. I got a 70% for the 15% assignment, which is the only grade I have in the course so far. Ive just emailed the prof "would you recommend me to continue with the course?", and response was somewhat, "you must make the decision yourself. contact the program director and/or your faculty advisor for guidance". This course is not mandatory. I know I can work hard and do well in the course, but it seems like the prof has bias in marking (there are no rubrics for the assignments). In comparison with other professors, this prof has been unhelpful.

[fuzzylogician]

Is this an undergraduate course? In that case this question shouldn't be posted in this section. If it's a graduate course, the question is what skills you'll learn from the class, whether they are necessary for your education and/or research, and whether they are other ways to acquire them. You say the course isn't mandatory, but is it recommended or something that you agreed with your advisor that you would do, even if it's not technically a requirement? The professor is right the s/he can't tell you what to do, it's your choice, in consultation with your academic advisor. If you feel like you can work hard and be successful, then why all these thoughts about dropping the course? 

[undergrad_2015]

Thank you for your reply. The course has nothing to do with my advisor. I was hoping this prof was going to tell me, "there are opportunities to still do well in the course", or something to encourage me to continue. I don't understand what I am supposed to discuss with the program director and/or faculty advisor....how would they know how I am doing in the course?

[Apogeee]

What do you want the professor to tell you? What, exactly, are you hoping to get from the professor? The professor's job is to help you to learn how to think critically about the course content. Your academic advisor can give you academic advice regarding what courses to drop or not, and you should make an appointment with that person if you are unable to decide on your own what you should do next. They will know how you are doing in the course because you will tell them how you are doing. Is this a graduate course? If so, you should be meeting with your advisor on a regular basis. If it's an undergraduate course, you're in the wrong place but you have been given good advice here and by your professor.

[undergrad_2015]

Thank you for your reply. I was hoping the prof would provide some hint about whether that 25% assignment was good or bad, so then I can decide whether to drop or not. I don't find the class challenging, just that I'm not confident in my assignments and how they are assessed. The assignments did not have any rubrics.

[fuzzylogician]

44 minutes ago, undergrad_2015 said:

Thank you for your reply. The course has nothing to do with my advisor. I was hoping this prof was going to tell me, "there are opportunities to still do well in the course", or something to encourage me to continue. I don't understand what I am supposed to discuss with the program director and/or faculty advisor....how would they know how I am doing in the course?

You answered exactly none of my questions, so I don't see how I can be of more help. You don't find the class challenging yet you got only 70% on your one assignment. This really sounds like a bad excuse. We still don't know if it was an undergraduate or graduate class, required/recommended/useful for research or not, agreed upon with an advisor or not. You basically want the professor to tell you if you're going to succeed or not, which s/he is not in a position to do because frankly it is up to you. If you want someone here to just blindly tell you what to do, here you go: if you are worried that you will fail and you don't need the class, then drop it. Otherwise, shape up and get the work done. 

[undergrad_2015]

It's a graduate course; not required; not recommended; not agreed upon with advisor. I do want to succeed, and I will try my best, but can it be guaranteed that I did pass on that 25% assignment? Has it happened where profs can change weigh of assignments if students improve in the course?

Edited March 15, 2016 by undergrad_2015

[fuzzylogician]

Of course it can't be guaranteed that you passed that assignment. How could we possibly guarantee that? 

If a syllabus has been published with a breakdown of the grade, usually it's not possible for the professor to change it mid-way through the semester, as that would not be fair to the other students. Questions regarding your school's policies should be addressed to someone at your school; the best that we can do here is give you generalizations, but not address specifically your case. As an instructor, I would personally find it unfair to other students to give just one student a higher grade based on a different grade rubric than everyone else. Unless there were special circumstances, I would not consider doing this. 

[Apogeee]

1 hour ago, undergrad_2015 said:

Thank you for your reply. I was hoping the prof would provide some hint about whether that 25% assignment was good or bad, so then I can decide whether to drop or not. I don't find the class challenging, just that I'm not confident in my assignments and how they are assessed. The assignments did not have any rubrics.

If "what is the grade I earned on my paper" is the question you want to ask the professor, then ask that question. The professor isn't a mindreader. "Can it be guaranteed?" No. Nothing in school is guaranteed until you get it in writing. If you are given an assignment without a rubric, then it is up to you to do your absolute best, and spend as much time as you possibly can to do it well. If you are not confident in the way you are doing the assignments, you could hire a tutor, or you could spend more time on them. By being so frugal with information about this issue with the people who are trying to help, you present yourself as someone who is unwilling to work hard for what you earn. This may not be the case, but that is the presentation. It seems that you are still in a high school mindset, where the teacher is supposed to tell you exactly what you must do, provide rubrics so that you can work within that framework just as hard as it takes to get the grade you are aiming for on that assignment, then you regurgitate the assignment - and then you get handed a grade. That's not the way school is supposed to work, and it is not the way graduate school will work. You have to work much harder than the professor if you want to learn all you can. That's just reality. Look at the syllabus again. What are the course goals? Are you there yet in the course goals? What do you have to do to get yourself there?

If the course is not challenging, then you would have earned all the possible points on the assignments. You should re-examine your thinking on what "challenging" means.

Edited March 15, 2016 by Agrippina
hit enter too soon.

[undergrad_2015]

Thank you everyone for the advice, I do understand. What if the prof cannot tell me the grade? In the initial email, when I asked what is my progress in the course, the prof just listed what I've done and what I've yet to done. Prof also added "your 25% assignment will be given to you at next class".

Edited March 15, 2016 by undergrad_2015

[fuzzylogician]

2 hours ago, undergrad_2015 said:

What if the prof cannot tell me the grade?

Then you will have to make your decision without this information. 

[pro Augustis]

2 hours ago, undergrad_2015 said:

Prof also added "your 25% assignment will be given to you at next class".

That seems pretty clear to me: the assignment will be returned at the next class meeting. Is that too late for you to make your decision? If not, you could try asking before then, but there is obviously no guarantee that the professor will give the information before then.

[undergrad_2015]

Yup it's way too late, but I will try asking. Thank you.

[GradSchoolTruther]

The OP seems to have issues with how academic writing is structured. Don't know if this is the same class mentioned in the other thread, but in graduate school, professors shouldn't have to hold their students' hands through every step, including whether to continue on.

Also, you can improve. I started out on a couple of assignments in two courses with Cs and worked to earn As or A-s for my final grade.

Edited March 16, 2016 by GradSchoolTruther

[undergrad_2015]

Yup, I do want to improve. I was planning to email the prof, but the prof actually sent another email, "I have graded your paper and we should meet on Friday to discuss it. It may inform your decision". Should I go to the meeting? Does this sound bad? 

[ashiepoo72]

You said the drop date is on Thursday, so if you want to drop the class you need to do it before the meeting with your professor. Yes, you should go to the meeting. He is taking the time out of his busy day to help you, so even if you drop the course you should meet with your professor...that is, if you really do want to improve.

Why exactly are you so concerned about this paper? Did you do a poor job on it? Is there something else going on with this assignment that you're not telling us? I have never met a graduate student who had literally no idea whether or not they were passing a class, and most people I know have at least a vague idea of the grade they are going to earn on a paper, so this is highly unusual in my opinion.

[undergrad_2015]

I don't really know how to explain it. I feel I did good, but at the same time also unconfident. Ever since I started graduate school, I have never received any compliments from professors.....and so I feel I am still not good enough. This paper is worth a lot too...25%...which could affect a lot I think.

[fencergirl]

The fact that he is suggesting a meeting makes me think it isn't good news. It's unfortunate that he suggested the meeting for after the drop-date. You probably should have asked to meet earlier. I would drop the course at this point unless I was very confident in my work.

[undergrad_2015]

I had that feeling too! Thank you.

[undergrad_2015]

I still have time to decide. I have met with the professor who said I failed the assignment (anything less than 70).....but grade has not been assigned. Which means this could be 60s, 50s or even lower! Was this to pressure me to drop the course?

[GradSchoolTruther]

What happens if you get a C or lower in the course? Are you in danger of losing funding or being kicked out of your program?

[undergrad_2015]

At my school students are kicked out if they fail 2 courses. I'm doing well in others, just not this course. I do want to continue, but prof hasn't assigned a failed grade for the paper. If it's 69, then I can do well....but if it is something esle like 30...omg. I've asked the prof if I can keep the paper and read over comments, but that was a no. The issue with the paper is that I missed discussing some stuff (like 2 out of 10 items). There was no rubric for this paper.

Edited March 18, 2016 by undergrad_2015

[fuzzylogician]

2 hours ago, undergrad_2015 said:

I still have time to decide. I have met with the professor who said I failed the assignment (anything less than 70).....but grade has not been assigned. Which means this could be 60s, 50s or even lower! Was this to pressure me to drop the course?

Your reactions really confuse me. The professor has nothing to lose from you dropping the class. You have a lot to lose if you don't and then you fail. I don't understand why you think he is pressuring you one way or the other. He went out of his way to give you this information and meet with you in time for you to make a decision. It seems to me that you are not doing well, and worse, you are having a serious communication failure (is this the same prof whose comments you were not understanding in the other thread?). I would seriously consider dropping the course at this point, since you say it's not required and the consequences of failing seem bad.