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[zuzu_]

I am in an odd position of having a class with six students who are retaking my class this semester (online) due to failure last semester (on campus). These students do not have a fundamental problem with the course material; they simply did not turn in large chunks of coursework from last semester and/or didn't show up exam(s), etc.

The coursework and exams are essentially the same. I am inclined to give them credit for the larger writing assignments and exams on which they earned a passing grade last semester. This cuts down on my workload, but more importantly it also seems like a fair and reasonable thing to do.

I would make them redo "practice" type homework assignments, and they would need to complete online discussion (which is essentially in lieu of in-class exercises that I have them do in the on campus class.) I would also make them redo anything on which they earned a C or lower, and of course they would still need to do anything they skipped last semester.

Do you see any problems with this plan?

[polly_mer]

While your heart seems to be in the right place and I sympathize with the possible lower grading load, I think this is a bad plan.

I can't remember what you teach, but when I think of practice homework, that's exactly the stuff that someone who has no problem with the material could skip.  In contrast, the exams and major assignments show that someone has mastered the work.

I'm projecting based on my experiences so I might be wrong, but I'll write it for your consideration: I see in this situation people who failed the class the first time by not doing enough of the right work.  As a second go, they have to do even less work, but what remains to be done is all the practice work that they didn't need (and couldn't have been that important in my fields if students can pass the tests without it) with even less motivation to do it.

That seems wrong to me, but that's only because of the kind of classes that I teach where doing the practice work helps be able to pass the tests.  People who can pass the tests without the practice work shouldn't be penalized too heavily for not doing it in those scenarios.

For classes that are mostly practice, I then don't see the point of giving students a pass on the handful of things they did last time.  They need X amount of practice for other reasons, right?  That's why they failed last time, isn't it?

[tee_bee]

I agree. It's a bad plan. Giving them credit for prior work rewards, in effect, their slack. They failed the class; they should take the class again.

Frankly, it's a shame that they get an on-line do-over. I'd prefer that they actually have to show up for a real class; after the third or fourth iteration, they may learn something about adult responsibilities. I fear that if you let them do what you plan, the word will go forth that students can goof off in your class, and then all will be forgiven.

[zuzu_]

Good points.

Let me add...it is still a huge hassle for these students to retake the course. Believe me, even if they get some credit for these writing assignments, the online course is a pain in the a$$.

I teach comp at a CC, but this particular course is more of a business-writing-ish course for students in vocational programs. It is 100 level, and it does not transfer to four-year colleges. The assignments really don't "build" on each other too much (although they do a little).

I'll give you an example. One of the assignments is to write a resume. So they already wrote a good resume last semester--I don't see any benefit to having them write an entirely new resume three months later.

However one of the "practice" assignments is to find good online samples of other peoples' resumes who are seeking similar sorts of jobs and explain why they are good. I DO see the benefit in having them do this again, since they can easily find entirely different resumes to analyze.

Perhaps the exam issue is more straightforward. Maybe I'll make them retake the exams but give them credit for writing assignments.

Thanks for the feedback. Keep it coming.

[bigghostdini_tha_don]

You should definitely make them redo all the assignments.

[fiona]

I think they should take the course over again, every assignment. I'm sorry if it's inconvenient for you, but it's a terrible message to them if you don't.

The Fiona

[ffbush54]

I am going to disagree with the other posters on this.

I teach a two semester A&P at a CC. for the past few years I have added a special section of the first semester for those students who did not pass it in the Fall. They can only take this class with my permission. They have to have passed at least 3 of the 7 tests. I carry over any test score that was a passing grade, but they have to do everything else, including lab assignments, that they didn't pass.

I only do this from Fall to Spring, continuous semesters.

The students have to pay for the full class, something I wish I could change.

A surprising thing is that I haven't had a lot of takers for this option. I had one student who got a B in the class who came back to take a couple of tests and push her grade up to an A. She felt she needed it to be accepted into a Physical Therapy program.

If they have demonstrated that they can do the work, why make them do it again?

[biologist_]

I would make them complete all of the work. 

If a student completed a good resume last semester and had the good sense to save the file, the student can turn in the same resume for a similar grade this semester.  The students should take the exams again in order to demonstrate that they know the material.  Hopefully, they will earn better grades and/or need to study less for each exam this time.

[proftowanda]

I think that this is a problematic idea, too, but perhaps a compromise -- in part because I suspect that you do not see the value of your time in seeing the same work again?

Have them resubmit past assignments with revisions for improvement.  "Good" resumes are not enough, these days -- I know this all too well, with children out in this terrible job market -- and can be improved, certainly, and especially after they have looked at other examples (a very good assignment, so good for you).  Or if the resumes really are not just good but excellent and ready to go, can you (if you have not done so) line up your career placement center staff (or anyone else on campus with relevant work) to have students submit the resumes for their feedback, in addition to yours?  There never can be too many eyes on resumes.

Or, there can be value in having a couple of different sorts of resumes; for example, I helped a sibling to do this (and this is not new, as it was decades ago) to apply for jobs in teaching art and jobs in graphic design, when both fields had few openings, so he was open to either.  But the two different sorts of employers expected very different sorts of information and, especially, format.

Or do replacement assignments that take them up a step, too.  With the same example, have them set up websites with their resumes and other relevant information; these are almost requisite in some fields, anyway.  (Weebly is a fast one to teach.)

I imagine that they have done cover letters, too, since you assign resumes?  Even so, cover letters also can always be improved -- and often have to change, dependent upon the ads and job descriptions, so as to set off the bells and whistles with the important buzzwords these days, when these are scanned by machines.

Just some thoughts, and thank you for this assignment.  I always am surprised that we send out so many students who have not really had their resumes reviewed.  But I also had to figure out the importance of this, after I stressed resumes and cover letters so much to my students when I first started teaching.  So they started asking me to review theirs, of course.  Finally, I figured out to make it part of a course, since I was spending so much time "grading" their resumes and cover letters, anyway.

[ohnoes]

I make encore performers complete all assignments in the current semester.

It's only fair; I can't reuse all my lolcat images and brilliant jokes.

[egilson]

I don't understand why it would be a good idea to remove these students' opportunity to learn that it's usually more painful to have fix something that was done half-assed than it is to do all of it the first time.

[ffbush54]

I think I see what you are getting at, egilson.


I look at it as a Master Learning class. Keep repeating something until you get it right, then move on.

Some of the stuff they got right. Just have them repeat what they got wrong this semester.

[polly_mer]

I look at it as a Master Learning class. Keep repeating something until you get it right, then move on.

Some of the stuff they got right. Just have them repeat what they got wrong this semester.

Well, that depends.  Is the point of the class to teach X skills or is the point of the class to prepare people to function in a workplace?

For something that is purely skills and skills that are competent/incompetent, then what you write makes sense.  I am still qualified on third-grade arithmetic, for example.

For someone who is teaching meta-skills, doing something half-assed and then doing it again is a valuable lesson, as is keeping stuff for a reasonable period of time.  I would accept a good resume that was submitted a second time with perhaps no changes (fresh copy, though), but people should submit it a second time since that's part of the lesson.

The question is: must students show certain skills once or does the class have meta-lessons about education and knowledge?  Only the OP can answer that one for herself and perhaps the answer is "show certain skills once", however many classes are required to demonstrate enough of the skills to pass.

[f_talbot]

Some programs have specific language about "recycled" work that deems it academically dishonest. You might want to check with the head of the program about this matter.

[spectacle]

The only time I do this is if the student gets an Incomplete (and it's pretty hard to get approved for I grades at my school).

If a student has to retake the class because they failed or withdrew, they have to re-do all the work.  In fact, I specify that they are not permitted to turn in work they've already submitted for the course, whether they took it with me or someone else.  I try to make up as many new assignments as possible each semester partly for this reason. 

I agree with others - if it's the kind of course where assignment flexibility is hard to manage, I'd come up with other assignments for them - "find two advertisements for jobs that you would like in in the newspaper or on employment websites and write targeted cover letters," for example. 

This is just my take on it, of course, and it's not just that I'm trying to "teach them a lesson" about failure.  When a student fails a course, it is rarely about doing one or two assignments badly or failing to turn in a couple of papers.  It's about their work patterns over the course of the term.  By allowing them to submit work that they did last semester, they're basically getting 30 weeks to do 15 weeks of work, which seems unfair to the other students.

Also, in my classes, it's not just about passing a list of assignments - it's about passing the course as a whole. And that means completing the body of work within an allotted time, according to a schedule and with the community of the class. 

Also, for the record, I have never once had a student fail a class face-to-face, retake it online and pass.  I've had a lot of students try to pull that off and it never works.

So, good luck with those six, zuzu.  I'll be really curious to hear how they do.