How is it possible to fail a literature review assignment

[undergradstudent]

Hi everyone, I'm stuck in a situation in which I failed a literature review assignment (worth 35% of course) resulting in a fail in the course. I do not know the grade yet, but I think it is less than 65% because anything higher than that would give me a 70% (a pass at my school). I feel so shocked and disappointed because I did take initiative to provide an outline and request for feedback prior to writing the essay. How is it possible to fail a literature review assignment?

There was no rubric, just this instruction: "the final paper will be a literature review based on a topic relevant to the course. Students are encouraged to develop their own ideas and write a paper that will assist them in their future goals or career aspirations. The paper will examine at least 12 citations from peer-reviewed publications within the last ten years". 

Criteria for evaluation included: APA style, quality of writing, scholarship, and level of critical thinking.

I know I have touched upon everything (APA style, proper citations, many peer-reviewed articles to support "why" in my research question, etc).

Any advice for this situation? It is a Master's course, not PhD. Thank you very much in advance.

[fuzzylogician]

It's impossible for us to answer this question. You need to get the assignment back, look at the feedback and where you lost points, and then probably schedule a meeting with your professor to go over anything that wasn't clear. We can't tell you what went wrong when we don't have access to your assignment or the comments you got. But yes, I can see how a student could get a low grade on such an assignment in general, e.g. if they missed foundational work in the area they are writing about, misunderstood arguments made in said paper, failed to do any synthesis of ideas and simply listed what others have said without showing that they've actually digested any of it, failed to use appropriate citation etiquette, to name just some things that might go wrong (which may or may not be relevant for you!). Again, you need to see the actual paper and actual comments and then talk to your professor about the assignment and if there is any way to fix it. If this paper is going to be the basis of future work, you want to bring it to a more acceptable level anyway, and you could ask your professor to help with that.  

[undergradstudent]

Fuzzylogician, thank you for your insight. Would it be possible to ask for a re-grade? I feel that grading can be subjective without a rubric. My paper was actually graded by someone else other than the professor. (Long story short, my professor suspected plagiarism in my paper, but the panel went against everything the prof said, and thus my paper was graded by an unknown person. The reason my prof suspected plagiarism was just because "as a B- student, I don't think you wrote this paper"). I am still shocked and disappointed because I have always been a student in good academic standing, and have passed other courses except this one . If I appeal further, should I talk to the program's director or the dean of all programs? Thank you.

Edited November 13, 2016 by undergradstudent

[fuzzylogician]

Well that certainly changes things. It's also still a bit mysterious to me how this all happened. If they suspected that you are a B- student and therefore did not write the paper in question, it would presumably have to be an A paper, not a failing paper. So I don't understand how it's possible that the problem is with the grading. I would expect that this is a punishment for suspected plagiarism, so asking for a regrade would not do you any good. It seems to me that the bigger problem is possible broken relationships with your professor and any other faculty members who are aware of what happened, and that if you want to fix it, you need to have a meeting with the professor and demonstrate real knowledge of the material and a desire to mend the relationship. It goes beyond this one grade. But in any event I am not sure I can give you good advice here, because I have the feeling that I still don't have (or understand) all the facts. 

[undergradstudent]

Fuzzylogician, thank you very much again for your insight. I also honesty don't know why my professor has acted this way. I never make trouble in class, am a quiet student, and always say "hi" in the hallways. During the meeting with panel to discuss the "plagiarism", my prof made accusations that I did not cite, that there was 30% match through Turnitin, etc. Luckily, the panel went against the prof because I did cite all sources, match should have been less than 10%, etc. I even provided them all my drafts. The panel also agreed that it should have been the prof's duty to provide evidence of plagiarism. At this point, I am too scared to talk to the professor. Since I have been in touch with the dean's secretary, can it work to talk to her? I am hoping for a re-grade, not on individual basis, but in comparison with other students' papers. The prof did not even grade my paper prior to the accusation. Also, can I appeal on "procedural error" basis, or "compassionate" basis? Thank you.

[fuzzylogician]

The secretary isn't the right person to talk to about this; she can't make any decisions about grades. She might know who the right person to talk to would be, or what are the best next moves, but she won't actually be the person you should talk to. The specific grounds for an appeal sound school-specific so you need to figure out when they are appropriate and whether your case fits. My guess at this point is that you should do one of two things, maybe both. First, if you didn't have any representation during the panel process, this would be a good time to find out if you could get representation. Schools will often have a law clinic with law students who volunteer to help students precisely in these kinds of situations. They will have experience in how to handle the case and who to talk to. If you did have representation, go talk to them about the next steps. Second, you might reach out to the ombudsperson at your school. S/he would again have ways of figuring out how to approach the problem and who to talk to, and they might be a good person to help you mend the relationship with the professor, too. 

[undergradstudent]

Fuzzylogician, thank you very much for your help, you have made my day a whole lot better! 

[fuzzylogician]

Good luck. 

[undergradstudent]

Sorry for another question. If possible, could you please direct me to some sources that explain about format for writing literature reviews? Is there a standard for social sciences? Also, do you think that grading literature reviews can be subjective? Thank you.

[AP]

For formats, check journals in your field and talk with a reference librarian (because it seems you won't talk about this with your professor). As regards grading, all assessment is subjective. Your question implies that subjective grading is somehow wrong, bad, or inadmissible. It can be that way if it is temperamental or unfounded. But I guess you are asking something different. Maybe you could rephrase the last question?

[rising_star]

In general, something like this (http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/literature-reviews/) should give you a broad overview of what a literature review entails. The best short answer I can give is that the literature review is not just a review of the literature but uses the sources to make a point about the topic under consideration.

[undergradstudent]

2 hours ago, AP said:

For formats, check journals in your field and talk with a reference librarian (because it seems you won't talk about this with your professor). As regards grading, all assessment is subjective. Your question implies that subjective grading is somehow wrong, bad, or inadmissible. It can be that way if it is temperamental or unfounded. But I guess you are asking something different. Maybe you could rephrase the last question?

Thank you, you have actually answered my questions. I am hoping for a re-grade due to everything that just happened.

[undergradstudent]

1 hour ago, rising_star said:

In general, something like this (http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/literature-reviews/) should give you a broad overview of what a literature review entails. The best short answer I can give is that the literature review is not just a review of the literature but uses the sources to make a point about the topic under consideration.

Thank you for this source, I will look into it. It looks very useful to use as evidence against the failing grade I was given.

[undergradstudent]

Hi again everyone, I'm going to ask my school to give me my original graded paper. Would I be able to take home the paper, and also deny them to keep a copy of it? Also, what kind of external professionals can I ask to review my paper and provide feedback, which maybe can be useful for future appeals? And, if the school start asking me uncomfortable questions, would it be rude to just leave the room (further break bridges)? Thank you in advance. I'm so stressed as I have never been in this situation before throughout my schooling years.

Edited November 14, 2016 by undergradstudent

[fuzzylogician]

3 hours ago, undergradstudent said:

Hi again everyone, I'm going to ask my school to give me my original graded paper. Would I be able to take home the paper, and also deny them to keep a copy of it? Also, what kind of external professionals can I ask to review my paper and provide feedback, which maybe can be useful for future appeals? And, if the school start asking me uncomfortable questions, would it be rude to just leave the room (further break bridges)? Thank you in advance. I'm so stressed as I have never been in this situation before throughout my schooling years.

Please seek more help. Find the law clinic or schedule a meeting with the ombudsperson. I thought from previous posts that you'd already gone in front of a committee and it's too bad no one made sure that you had someone to protect your rights during that process. But since is not over yet, it's not too late to get help. 

These research ethics processes can vary by school and they usually have very strict rules, so we can't answer these questions for you. You should have been provided with the guidelines when the plagiarism allegation was made and before you defended yourself to the committee, and those should be very clear about the process. If I had to guess, I would guess that you should have access to a graded version of the work but that they will insist on also keeping a copy for their records. I'm not sure what you mean by them asking uncomfortable questions (I thought you'd already gone in front of the committee), but this is why I say you should not do any of this alone, you should have someone calmer and more experienced with you who has your interests in heart making sure that everything is done right. If there is an official hearing you may refuse to answer a question but there will be inferences that the committee will draw from that. And yes, it would be rude to just leave the room, and again, this is what you have an advocate for, to protect your rights, counsel you, and even ask for a break if you need one. As for who to ask for feedback, that's really hard to say. This is too specific to be able to answer without knowing who's involved. I doubt anyone from your school will want to provide a second opinion if they aren't required to, it's a messy situation and no one will want to be a part of it if they don't have to be. 

[undergradstudent]

3 hours ago, fuzzylogician said:

Please seek more help. Find the law clinic or schedule a meeting with the ombudsperson. I thought from previous posts that you'd already gone in front of a committee and it's too bad no one made sure that you had someone to protect your rights during that process. But since is not over yet, it's not too late to get help. 

These research ethics processes can vary by school and they usually have very strict rules, so we can't answer these questions for you. You should have been provided with the guidelines when the plagiarism allegation was made and before you defended yourself to the committee, and those should be very clear about the process. If I had to guess, I would guess that you should have access to a graded version of the work but that they will insist on also keeping a copy for their records. I'm not sure what you mean by them asking uncomfortable questions (I thought you'd already gone in front of the committee), but this is why I say you should not do any of this alone, you should have someone calmer and more experienced with you who has your interests in heart making sure that everything is done right. If there is an official hearing you may refuse to answer a question but there will be inferences that the committee will draw from that. And yes, it would be rude to just leave the room, and again, this is what you have an advocate for, to protect your rights, counsel you, and even ask for a break if you need one. As for who to ask for feedback, that's really hard to say. This is too specific to be able to answer without knowing who's involved. I doubt anyone from your school will want to provide a second opinion if they aren't required to, it's a messy situation and no one will want to be a part of it if they don't have to be. 

This is very informative, thank you very much for your help!  Yup, I did win the false accusation, but am now just overthinking and worried about what will come next when I go ask for the graded paper. I will definetely take your advice to schedule a meeting with the ombudsperson. Thank you

[fuzzylogician]

23 minutes ago, undergradstudent said:

This is very informative, thank you very much for your help!  Yup, I did win the false accusation, but am now just overthinking and worried about what will come next when I go ask for the graded paper. I will definetely take your advice to schedule a meeting with the ombudsperson. Thank you

Please talk to the ombudsperson before you do anything else. What you should really be concerned about is not so much this one grade and more so your reputation within your program and your relationships with your professors. It's very easy to say or do the wrong thing, and you are obviously upset and worrying a lot, so don't do something now that you will regret later. Even though you were exonerated, the professor who made the allegation may still believe it has merit and may still be upset. You want to get to the point where you agree to have a truce, even if you never speak to each other again, because you stand to lose a whole lot more than s/he does. Be slow and smart about how you go about getting the grade you deserve without creating more tension than necessary. You may be entirely in the right and the professor entirely in the wrong, but s/he still has the power to hurt you by talking about this to other professors in a way that's not how you would like. (Note again: I am not talking at all about blame and who is right, just about what is smart to do.) So, get an outside opinion about the best next moves from someone who actually knows the school and the procedures. If the paper was ruled to be original work and the allegation was that it was too good to be yours, it doesn't make sense that it got an F. You want to bring that up with the ombudsperson, and at the same time talk about how best to mend the relationship with the professor, or at least part on decent terms. Please take care of both; I understand that you worry more about the grade, but in the bigger picture it's the relationship that matters more. 

[undergradstudent]

23 hours ago, fuzzylogician said:

Please talk to the ombudsperson before you do anything else. What you should really be concerned about is not so much this one grade and more so your reputation within your program and your relationships with your professors. It's very easy to say or do the wrong thing, and you are obviously upset and worrying a lot, so don't do something now that you will regret later. Even though you were exonerated, the professor who made the allegation may still believe it has merit and may still be upset. You want to get to the point where you agree to have a truce, even if you never speak to each other again, because you stand to lose a whole lot more than s/he does. Be slow and smart about how you go about getting the grade you deserve without creating more tension than necessary. You may be entirely in the right and the professor entirely in the wrong, but s/he still has the power to hurt you by talking about this to other professors in a way that's not how you would like. (Note again: I am not talking at all about blame and who is right, just about what is smart to do.) So, get an outside opinion about the best next moves from someone who actually knows the school and the procedures. If the paper was ruled to be original work and the allegation was that it was too good to be yours, it doesn't make sense that it got an F. You want to bring that up with the ombudsperson, and at the same time talk about how best to mend the relationship with the professor, or at least part on decent terms. Please take care of both; I understand that you worry more about the grade, but in the bigger picture it's the relationship that matters more. 

Thank you for your advice, fuzzylogician!  I got my paper back today....it was 43%  ....and comments were typed rather than graded on the paper (majority of comments is about grammar). There was also no breakdown of how citation, scholarship, critical analysis, etc. equaled to 43%. My program director said it was graded by someone within the program. Following your advice, I have not appealed yet, and have met first with the ombuds people to show them my paper. They also thought there is a huge gap between my prof's perception and the third grader's perception regarding my paper, and adviced that I ask my program (rather than dean) for a re-grade because my prof did not grade it prior to the third party's assessment. Do you happen to know why it was recommended to not appeal to the dean yet? I feel maybe it is related to what you mentioned in your previous post (i.e. deeper issue with relationship with the program)? Also, the ombuds asked if they could speak with my student advocate, who has attended the panel hearing....is there a reason for this? Thank you!

Edited November 16, 2016 by undergradstudent

[fuzzylogician]

18 minutes ago, undergradstudent said:

They also thought there is a huge gap between my prof's perception and the third grader's perception regarding my paper, and adviced that I ask my program (rather than dean) for a re-grade because my prof did not grade it prior to the third party's assessment. Do you happen to know why it was recommended to not appeal to the dean yet? Thank you!

Yep, the reason is that there are rules and procedures, and it's never a good idea to go over someone's head to their boss without talking to them first. If you go to the dean, the first thing s/he will do is ask if you've tried talking to your department first and resolving this problem in-house. A grading issue will eventually need to be resolved by the department, not the dean, so there is no avoiding talking to them and getting their opinion on it. It's always better if you resolve things locally rather than escalate (which going to the dean would be interpreted as!). When you take drastic measures, you want documented proof that you've tried to do things the right way first and your efforts were rebuffed or ignored, otherwise your actions may be misinterpreted as overreacting and not following institutional norms, which will hurt your case that you are in the right and they are in the wrong. At the end of the day, grades are subjective and it's hard to believe that someone will force your professor to give you a grade they disagree with, so it's important to stay calm and document that there is a real issue here. You want to appear as someone calm and reasonable, who has a real issue, and is doing everything by the book to get it solved.  

[undergradstudent]

6 hours ago, fuzzylogician said:

Yep, the reason is that there are rules and procedures, and it's never a good idea to go over someone's head to their boss without talking to them first. If you go to the dean, the first thing s/he will do is ask if you've tried talking to your department first and resolving this problem in-house. A grading issue will eventually need to be resolved by the department, not the dean, so there is no avoiding talking to them and getting their opinion on it. It's always better if you resolve things locally rather than escalate (which going to the dean would be interpreted as!). When you take drastic measures, you want documented proof that you've tried to do things the right way first and your efforts were rebuffed or ignored, otherwise your actions may be misinterpreted as overreacting and not following institutional norms, which will hurt your case that you are in the right and they are in the wrong. At the end of the day, grades are subjective and it's hard to believe that someone will force your professor to give you a grade they disagree with, so it's important to stay calm and document that there is a real issue here. You want to appear as someone calm and reasonable, who has a real issue, and is doing everything by the book to get it solved.  

Thank you very much, fuzzylogician! have a great day