Category: Student Assessment

So for the past century or so, I’ve used variations on a review game when it’s time for students to think back across an entire course. It works for large introductory courses, medium-sized advanced courses, even PhD comprehensive exams! Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? Before you think I’m selling the academic term-end equivalent of snake oil, I implore you, gentle reader, to download our latest Tip Sheet; it describes the game in its simplest form. While it’s too late in the term to ask students to come up with key terms (ideally week 10 is a good time to start), there is still value in trying the game in the last class, or recommending it to students for post-class, pre-exam study groups. Continue reading The Coolest Exam Review Game in the Universe? – Trevor Holmes

I once had a student in a class I was teaching tell me that although he found my course interesting, he was dropping it so that he could instead take another he thought would be easier. He was concerned that my class, being offered by the Faculty of Mathematics, would lower his overall average, and might affect his chances of getting into a pharmacy school after he graduates. His decision was made after only my second lecture in the first week of the semester, and I am still wondering to what extent he made the right choice. Continue reading Is Grade Inflation at UW Affecting How Our Students Choose Their Courses? – Greg Mayer