Hi Jessica,
I agree with your statement about extra credit not being used to make up for missed or poor assignments or bad test scores. I like to use it as evidence of what they have learned beyond just the core curriculum.
Gary
Hi Dave,
This is the approach I use for extra credit as well. I have had very good results with adding a couple of questions at the end of a test where I let them tell me something they learned that I didn't test them on. I get great answers and I learn a lot about what the students have been learning beyond what I had assigned.
Gary
Hi Jhonson,
Extra credit can be used to bring students into activities that they might not participate in but by capturing their interest and offering credit they can see how they can learn and earn credit.
Gary
I am not a big fan of extra credit, because often the students that do it are already near the top of the class, and it also creates extra work that us as insturctors have to do for some but not all.
I agree with David. Every time I have designed an extra credit assignment it is always ignored by those who need the enrichment the most. I have also tried adding a few extra exam questions and I have witnessed similar results.
I like to offer small amounts of extra credit throughout the quarter to give the students the opportunity to go above and beyond the regular assignments and projects.
I have noticed that the students that go for the extra points usually aren't the students doing poorly in the class, but the one's that would have done well anyway.
I also agree that extra credit shouldn't be used as a substitute for hard work and learning, so I don't offer extra credit to make up for poor assignments or bad test scores.
I feel like extra credit is completed by students who don't need it and ignored by those who do. I am not crazy about extra credit so if I use it I'll add a question or two to an exam so that everyone will at least attempt it.
I feel that extra credits are ways to enbale students to have a better understand of the material which they are lacking skills in.
