Grading System
Fall (CH461/561):
The first 2 exams are worth 15% and 25% of the final grade.
The third exam (take-home) is worth 30%.
The final exam is worth 30% and is comprehensive.
Spring (CH462/562):
The first 2 exams are worth 30% of the final grade.
The final exam is worth 40% (35% for CH562) and is comprehensive.
CH562 students: 5% of grade comes from a presentation
Note: the exams for CH461/462 students will be different from the exams
for CH562/562 students.
For each exam, a grade distribution will be calculated separately for CH461
and CH561 students. Based on this distribution, a linear equation will be
formulated to map the raw scores for each exam to a grade point. This grade
point system will be the same as that used by the University to translate
letter grades into grade points:
|
Letter grade |
Grade points |
|
A+ |
≥4.17 |
|
A |
3.83-4.17 |
|
A- |
3.5-3.83 |
|
B+ |
3.17-3.5 |
|
B |
2.83-3.17 |
|
B- |
2.5-2.83 |
|
C+ |
2.17-2.5 |
|
C |
1.83-2.17 |
|
C- |
1.5-1.83 |
|
D+ |
1.17-1.50 |
|
D |
0.83-1.17 |
|
D- |
0.5-0.83 |
|
F |
<0.5 |
(Thus, the division between A/B is 3.5, between B/C is 2.5, and
between C/D is 1.5)
To calculate your grade points, multiply your raw score (not the percentage score) by the slope value and add the intercept
value.
Example: You
are a CH461 student who scored a 75 (out of 96) on Exam 1.
For this exam, slope = 0.0625, intercept = -1.400
Your score = (0.0625)(75) - 1.400 = 4.688 - 1.400 = 3.288 (letter grade = B+)
Your final grade will be merely a weighted average of these numbers.
The factors to use in Fall 2006:
|
Exam |
CH461 |
CH561 |
||||
|
slope |
intercept |
distribution |
slope |
intercept |
distribution |
|
|
1 |
0.0625 |
-1.400 |
20
A, 11 B |
0.0500 |
-1.400 |
2 A,
1 B |
|
2 |
0.0588 |
-1.100 |
18
A, 8 B |
0.0476 |
-1.100 |
1 A,
2 B |
|
3 |
0.0694 |
-1.6667 |
21
A, 9 B |
0.0694 |
-1.6667 |
2 A,
1 C |
|
Final |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Exam |
CH462 |
CH562 |
||
|
slope |
intercept |
slope |
intercept |
|
|
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
|
|
|
|
|
Final |
|
|
|
|
For those who received a score below 2.50 (below a B) and feel that this does
not reflect their level of knowledge, they may elect to take an oral follow-up
to improve their grade up to a maximum grade of 2.50 points.
You must signal your intention to take the follow-up within 1 week of the
day the graded exams were returned and make an appointment with the
instructor. The follow-up must be taken
within 2 weeks of the day the exam was returned. If you miss the appointment
without re-scheduling in advance, you have missed your only opportunity to
improve your grade; no exceptions will be made. You must bring your exam to the
follow-up. During the follow-up, you will answer questions and work problems on
the board about the material covered in the exam. Normally, each question would
be worth 0.1 points, and you would be given enough questions such that if you
answered all correctly, your score would be about 2.50.
Example: If your score was 1.7 (C-),
you would be given 8 questions. If you answered 5 correctly, your score would
be 2.2 (C+), an improvement of half a letter grade.
Note: this option will not be
available for the take-home or final exams.