Hi Victor:
You've hit on a strong point of interest here - extra credit may end up allowing a student to pass a class when they really haven't demonstrated they fully understand the material.
Regards, Barry
I make it my policy not to award extra credit. Too often extra credit is used as a reward for bad behavior. I believe extra credit should be given only to those students who have gone above and beyond.
I believe that extra credit has it place. I use it in the following cases. If a student is board-line d or c. I believe it is a good policy to give the student the chance to raise their grade. I will give them assignments that will give them enough credit to raise their grade to a passing grade.
In one course I teach I award extra credit for students who make an effort on their own to improve their writing and only give a small amount of points. This way they are are taking ownership of their grade and their writing. I only offer this option in the last few weeks of class when they need more help than I can give (the EC option is to attend a 1/2 hour session in our university's writing center) with a specific draft for an extended amount of time. This works wonders for them and me and I think the points I give pale in comparison to the improvement in their writing.
I am not a fan of extra credit. I really do not see it as being purposeful. Students look at it as a fix for poor performance and in my view- succeeding at the existing course requirements is where a student’s focus needs to be.
I also am not an advocate of too much extra credit. I feel that the student should be successful at getting the main class assignments done and work finished.
Hi Amy,
Agreed, it should be something given out to everyone, but one concern many have about extra credit is that it might allow a student who is not passing the chance to do so.
Regards, Barry
Teresa,
I am with you. I feel the same way. Additionally, when I see students failing in the beginning of the semester, I sit down with them individually to 1) Find out why they are struggling, and 2) Come up with a strategy to help them study better, or look into their time management strategy or lack of.
I once sat down with a student that was failing one of my classes. I found out that he works every night until mid-night. Feeling sorry for him I suggested maybe studying during the day, between classes or during lunch. I asked him what he had after my early morning class. He replied "Nothing". Then I asked him what time he goes to work. He said "4PM". Then I asked him what he normally does between the end of my class at 10:30 AM and 4 PM. Are you ready for this? He replied "I usually just hang out". I told him "Well there is your window of time to study". Its amazing to me that I had to point this out to him.
So, like you, I find students that are failing usually don't study, make poor time management choices, or lack motivation. I try to help with all of the above. However, I think it is our responsibility as teachers to take the time to sit down with failing students to find out what is going on and help them come up with a plan to help them succeed.
Hi Barry,
I'm not a big fan of extra credit. Maybe I am wrong, but I feel it is unfair to the other students that put the effort in to study for quizzes and tests, do the homework assignments and complete projects.
I feel if students come to class, read the text book, and complete all assignments, and study for tests there should be no need for extra credit.
I also take the time to sit down with students that are off to a bad start to 1) Find out what is wrong and what they are struggling with, and 2) Come up with a strategy to help them do better in my class - study ideas, time management, etc.
Am I wrong to think this way??
Renato
Hi Gregory:
The only concern with using it is it might allow students who aren't passing the chance to do so. What message would that send to students who are excelling?
Regards, Barry
Extra credit is given for particular sections or for particular reasons and is given to all the students. It usually is a small point value, no more than 5 points, but the students like having that opportunity to gain extra credit. I don't agree with giving so many extra credit points that a student could possibly pass the class just using extra credit points and not doing the work. I like to make sure the students not only learn the subject matter but understand it also.
I do not use extra credit. If your curriculum is complete then students should be able to pass satisfactorily, the course. Do you want an individual who passed through extra credit helping on your surgery?
I do believe in rewarding motivated students that are willing to put forth quality extra effort with extra credit projects. However, the extra credit should not move their final grade more than 1 or 2 points.
Hi Sarah:
That sounds like a fair process. I think its importanat that if we decide to use extra-credit, it should be made available to everyone, and the expectations for these kinds of activities or assignments be laid out as close to the beginning of class as possible.
Regards, Barry
I have a saying I tell students.....I don't give grades, you earn them. I let them know that extra credit = above and beyond what we are doing. This usually puts things into perspective and let's them know they just can't turn in a bunch of extra credit without first doing the required work.
Hi Kurt:
Great idea! Most institutions are under the idea that the use of extra credit that impacts the grade is not an effective way to reinforce learning.
Regards, Barry
Hi Halina:
And for the reason you described, most institutions do not allow it. It possibly creates a scenario where the student can pass the course without actually learning the main concepts.
Regards, Barry
I offer only a few extra credit opportunities in my course for exams, and in each case, I tell the students that the maximum score is 100% whether you do the extra credit or not. I further explain that the purpose of the extra credit is that if you feel you did not do as well as you would have liked, you can do the extra credit question to boost your score. In a way, it's an alternate question that can replace any other question of the same point value. I think that whether this is the right or wrong way to go about it is predicated on the nature of the exam being administered. In my case, the exams in question are divided into categories of proficiency. The extra credit would be a single question that is outside any particular category -- a general question. I only use the extra credit question when the value of the extra credit turns out to be relatively small, perhaps 5 points out of 100 -- but enough to change a B- to a B or a B+ to an A-.
This is why I've learned to give EC sparingly and keep the score values low.
Hi James:
Absolutely - on the other hand, the risk of using it indiscriminantly is that it may allow a student to pass a course who has not sufficiently demonstrated they have an understanding of the main topics.
Regards, Barry
