BES 301B

Grading

To help alleviate stress, I grade all my assignments as pass/fail. My instructions for each assignment will be clear, so you can grade your own work before turning it into to guarantee that you'll pass it. In case you have questions beforehand, we’ll go over assignments in class before they are due. If you pass the assignments, you are guaranteed a grade of 3.0.

The main focus of this course is completing a scientific research project, all the way from coming up with a research idea to writing up the results in a scientific paper. Completing all of the work to meet this goal is required, and it will earn you a grade of 3.0. This is the bolded stream in the figure below:

If you want to explore who becomes scientists and how science functions in society, and you want a higher grade, then you can complete Option A: Science and Society. Completing these assignments will add another 10% to your grade, giving you a 3.5.

If you want to have a deeper research experience, for example by learning more statistics tests and reading more primary literature, and you want a higher grade, then you can complete Option B: More Thorough Research. Science and Society. Completing these assignments will add another 10% and 0.5 points to your grade.

So, those of you who are seeking a 4.0 will need to complete the required assignments, Option A, and Option B.

You determine your grade for this course by fulfilling a contract that spells out in advance the requirements as well as the penalties for not fulfilling the terms of your contract. The advantage of this approach is that you decide how much work you wish to do this quarter. If you complete your work on time and satisfactorily, you will receive the grade for which you contracted. This means planning ahead, thinking about all of your obligations and responsibilities this quarter, and also determining what grade you want or need in this course. All of the required assignments are intended help you pass the final assignments, which are the final paper and cover letter. I respect your choice about whether or not to complete Options A and/or B.

Let’s focus on the required assignments for a moment:

Every day that we meet, you’ll complete some activities in your digital lab notebook, a google doc that you share with me. At the end of class, please go to the first page of your digital lab notebook and check off whether you’ve done the work. These exercises are 10% of your grade. I'll drop your two lowest participation grades.

You have required assignments to complete each week that help you complete your final research product. These account for 30% of your grade. I'll drop your two lowest short assignment grades. Because this is a hybrid course, there are a lot of them to compensate for the time we're not in class. These assignments typically take 6-12 hours a week.

Your data analysis exam is 10% of your grade.

All of these other activities culminate in writing a scientific paper about your research. That, and a cover letter of the sort that scientists submit with revisions of their papers they send to scientific journals, will make up your final project. That’s 30% of your grade.

Late Policy

Because I prepare for class by grading your homework, it’s important for you to turn things in on time. Homework assignments are due by end of the day (midnight) every Friday. You have an automatic grace period of 2 days for each homework assignment with no penalty. After these two days, I will not accept late work.