I need to vent. Last week, I was feeling pretty good about my economics class. I plugged everything into a final exam calculator, and it told me that if I did well on the final, I could still pull a B in the class. I had a clear target: 87% on the final. I made a study plan, I was feeling motivated. Then, yesterday, the professor sends out a mass email. "Due to a clerical error, the weighting of assignments in the syllabus was incorrect. The correct weighting is as follows..."
My homework, which I'd done pretty well on, was now worth less. The final exam was worth more. I rushed back to my final exam calculator, my hands actually shaking. I re-entered all the numbers. My target score for a B had jumped from 87% to 94%.
My hope deflated like a sad balloon. It's not impossible, but it's a lot harder. The calculator went from being my friend and ally to a bearer of terrible news in about 30 seconds. It's not the calculator's fault, I know. It's just the messenger. But man, that was an emotional rollercoaster I was not prepared for.
Has a syllabus change ever wrecked your final exam calculator predictions?
My homework, which I'd done pretty well on, was now worth less. The final exam was worth more. I rushed back to my final exam calculator, my hands actually shaking. I re-entered all the numbers. My target score for a B had jumped from 87% to 94%.
My hope deflated like a sad balloon. It's not impossible, but it's a lot harder. The calculator went from being my friend and ally to a bearer of terrible news in about 30 seconds. It's not the calculator's fault, I know. It's just the messenger. But man, that was an emotional rollercoaster I was not prepared for.
Has a syllabus change ever wrecked your final exam calculator predictions?
