Doing Homework

Sorry for the lack of blogging – this has been a busy semester. One project I have been working on is incorporating elements of game design into the grading policy for my intermediate algebra class. Students earn points on each exam based upon their exam score and their homework/quiz status.

Students who have scores of at least 90% on each homework assignment and at least 70% on each quiz are said to have satisfactory scores. (I probably need a better name for that than ”satisfactory”.) Students in this category have done pretty well when it comes to passing the exams.

• Test 1: 33 out of 38 (87%)
• Test 2: 24 out of 28 (86%)
• Test 3: 19 out of 25 (76%)

Students who do not have satisfactory scores have not performed as well on the exams.

• Test 1: 7 out of 9 (78%)
• Test 2: 13 out of 19 (68%)
• Test 3: 11 out of 21 (52%)

So, students doing the homework are doing better on exams. Now I understand that I cannot go on to claim that doing the homework leads to better performance, but there is an association here. One thing I am concerned about is that the number of students earning satisfactory scores is dropping as the semester progresses. However, the fourth exam is today and it appears that there will be 32 students with satisfactory scores and 14 without – a good sign.

In upcoming blogs I will try to explain the game design dynamics, and include student thoughts on the policies of the class.

- George

I am a math instructor at College of the Sequoias in Visalia, CA. If there’s a particular topic you’d like me to address, or if you have a question or a comment, please let me know. You can reach me through the contact page on my website – http://georgewoodbury.com.

 

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