Frazz by Jef Mallett for October 02, 2016
October 01, 2016
October 03, 2016
Transcript:
Caulfield: You graded on a curve? Seriously? I understand pass/fail might not incentivize some people beyond adequacy, but by turning it into a zero-sum game, you're guaranteeing a poor grade to a certain segment, and what kind of motivation is that? At the same time saddling the higher achievers with the kind of you-or-me scenario......That might encourage healthy competition, but could just as likely discourage risk-taking and could conceivably be responsible for the kind of self-centered, paranoid boobishness we're seeing in today's stratified culture. I repeat: A curve? Seriously? She still gave me an A+ but I can't cash it in until grad-school econ. Frazz: Oh, like a report-card savings bond.
Night-Gaunt49[Bozo is Boffo] about 8 years ago
I do like his thinking process. He needs at least one college level class to make the row to hoe much harder to go.
Bilan about 8 years ago
It’s not easy to find things to complain about when you’re as smart as Caulfield.
Phred Premium Member about 8 years ago
What grade is this kid in?
magicwalnut about 8 years ago
He’s right, you know. If the curve is low, blame it on the teacher.
Dr.DocSmith about 8 years ago
Grading on a curve. Just in case the teacher is doing nothing….
ChukLitl Premium Member about 8 years ago
The curve paints a target on the kid who knows this stuff. “Dude, you’ve got to miss a few questions so Dave can pass. There’s a big game Friday.”
Michael Ritter about 8 years ago
I had trouble following the exact order of the strip so I’m relieved that life is graded on the curve.
markzwaan about 8 years ago
I guess Caulfield has been reading the Wikipedia entry for curved grading:
“However, curved grading can increase competitiveness between students and affect their sense of faculty fairness in a class. Thus, curved grades cannot be blindly used and must be carefully considered and pondered compared to alternatives such as criterion-referenced grading. Furthermore, constant misuse of curved grading can adjust grades on poorly designed tests, whereas assessments should be designed to accurately reflect the learning objectives set by the instructor.”
rekam Premium Member about 8 years ago
Boy, Caulfield’s vocabulary is really something!
patlaborvi about 8 years ago
I picked up my second college degree a few years ago (an associates degree to upgrade my computer skills) and one elective I took in the last semester was a history class (I’ve always enjoyed history). When I stopped to get my grade on the final exam the instructor told me that I had the highest grade in the class, 90% on the test, an A with straight grading, an A+ on the scale, I figured I won either way.
JP Steve Premium Member about 8 years ago
Loved the Biochem Prof I had who marked on the curve. Six kids in the class and I was the only one who wasn’t a Biochem major… (I did pass — barely!)
hippogriff about 8 years ago
Night-Gaunt49I know the feeling. Back in the late Pleistocene, when I was that age, there were no children’s books on dinosaurs, so my dad’s geology text had to do. Granted, I went on my first field trips when still horizontal, family legend claimed I cut my teeth on fossils, and my dad had three upper cretaceous discoveries to his credit.