Originally Posted by Alchemist11

Making it more likely that the professor SHOULD know what he/she is doing? That's my point exactly: they're supposed to be good at what they do considering they've been good enough to get a phd. Being lazy and not getting others to check over work before using it for tests/assignments/whatever should not be excused, just because they've passed undergrad; something ridiculously easy to do anyway (although getting a phd is clearly more difficult to successfully complete).

All I'm saying is that they've already shown that they can do it. It's kind of like when you're in first grade learning addition, you can't use a calculator, but then later once you're past that they give you a calculator because they assume you remember how to do the basics, and aren't testing you on it anymore.

Not saying it's excusable on an exam though, especially when it confuses students.

Yeah, they can do 'it' as they've shown. I just think that a professor should be able to write an exam, and if it's difficult it should be because of the material, not because of the wording, or typos.

On one of my tests this year, they spelled nucleus incorrectly, and had to take the question off the test because people thought they meant nucleolus. That's a waste of the invigilators time finding out what the true meaning was, and everyone else's time for being concerned about what the question means.

Writing an exam successfully however, does not correlate to their ability to synthesize proteins or make advances in the field of neural plasticity or interpret Shakespeare. It's part of their job, like lecturing. Yes, they may be research Einsteins in their particular field but if they can't meet the competency requirements of the job, they are to be held responsible.

It's kind of like me saying "I know how to make those fries at McDonald's, but ...I'm not going to cook them for long enough because I'm just that experienced." That's great but that customer does not care how well I know it. What they care about is the end product and if they get indigestion, they'd be cooking up a storm.

Or a more relevant example, me not answering the questions right on the exam instantly results in a bad grade. It doesn't matter if I knew it; if I couldn't measure up to the task, the end product matters. And students aren't even getting paid to do well. That's a future incentive, not a present one (unless your parents give you money for 11s and 12s). If you're paying somebody to do a job well, it would be nice to have it done.

I had the same prof for gemstones and our exam was not too terrible but I was constantly frustrated with her for coming to class late, cancelling classes and only uploading notes a couple of hours before class. I think shes a nice person but it just gets frustrating sometimes.

Originally Posted by goodnews.inc

It's part of their job, like lecturing. Yes, they may be research Einsteins in their particular field but if they can't meet the competency requirements of the job, they are to be held responsible.

You're absolutely right, but are snarky comments on the class message boards a good way to go about holding profs accountable? If the students in this class have a legitimate beef, why not bring it to the prof personally. Barring that, bring it to the department's chair, the dean or the ombud's office? What does anyone think whining on the message board is going to achieve other than the prof shutting it down (which is what she did).

Secondly, lets be honest here, profs aren't held responsible for their teaching unless their research output is marginal. Think that's silly? Perhaps, but look at this from the Dean's perspective. Imagine you have two profs. One's the best teacher around, a candidate for a 3M Teaching Award who has a very poor research record. The other prof sucks at teaching, but brings in a couple hundred thousand dollars in grants each year and is incredibly respected and revered in their field. You only have the money to keep one. Who do you think gets selected?

Your answer should dispel any misconceptions about the priorities of the university and our role in it.

Originally Posted by Alchemist11

Yeah, they can do 'it' as they've shown. I just think that a professor should be able to write an exam, and if it's difficult it should be because of the material, not because of the wording, or typos.

On one of my tests this year, they spelled nucleus incorrectly, and had to take the question off the test because people thought they meant nucleolus. That's a waste of the invigilators time finding out what the true meaning was, and everyone else's time for being concerned about what the question means.

HAHA that was the best part of that test.

The discussion board for Earth Sc 2WW3 was closed after the exam as well. The prof explained that this done so that none of the information shared about the exam goes to people who deferred their exams. So yes, I think it's fair. If you feel like your exam was unfair, I'm sure you could always email her?

One of my Earth Sci classes had its discussion board taken down so the answers cannot be discussed. This is completely fair and is probably the reason the natural disasters board was taken down, people are just assuming it is because of the unfair exam and the comments that were made. Unless you have legitimate proof that something was unfair just move on, the course is over.

I remember a prof did the same thing last term. So it's not unheard of!

It's quite within their rights to do so.

- Abhijeet