She Earned an F

Crusader,

In my 26 years teaching university economics, only one student ever appealed the grade I assessed him with. His argument was with my having given him a score of zero on two of his answers on the final exam. He argued that because he had written something down (i.e., not left them blank) that he certainly deserved SOME credit (that is some positive number as his score). I have to say that I was pleasantly surprise that the university appeal's committee was completely unimpressed with his reasoning. The appeal failed at the first possible stage.

As for students suing professors for bad grades, I am unaware that this is something that happens to a non-trivial number of professors. I have not heard of it happening at my institution and, as I said, I've been here 26 years. Can you provide any information regarding the frequency of such suits?

I wonder how much it would cost to bail everyone out and just start over?

What behavior? What are you talking about? God is all knowing and certainly doesn't obsess over me.

you have to be moral not because of men, but because of god.

Prove it.

Martin - you can try to justify your behavior all you like. But at the end of the day, god knows what you've done.

... people like Martin ...

I'm not even me. I'm a person like me.

... you have to be moral not because of men, but because of god.

Humanity lost paradise when we started calling things "good" and "evil", for the Bible tells me so. God makes the lion roar, but He takes no credit for men's words in my way of thinking, even when men credit their words to Him.

jim - when students can sue professors over bad grades, there is no more freedom to assign penalty.

methinks - people like Martin don't understand that you have to be moral not because of men, but because of god.

Don,

It is unfortunate that there seem to be so many professors who do not assign grades that fully penalize shortcomings in learning outcomes. I am fortunate to be in a department where the norm is objective assessment; the average grade for a student in principles-level classes is a C. But the average grades earned by students in beginning-level classes outside my discipline are generally higher; in the data I compiled in about 50% of the core classes in other disciplines (non-econ) the average student was given a B- or higher. It really helps that my department chair shares your integrity; good post.

Martin,

Two things. The first is just to let you know how much I love it when you're driven to sarcasm. The second, is that you and I are both incredibly stupid not to have levered to infinity and then just stopped paying on our loan while holding our hands out crying poverty. I will forever be kicking myself for not driving myself and my company into the ground with too much leverage and hubris, thus winning in good times (via luck) and in bad times (via handout). Prudence never pays and I will never learn that lesson. Thank God I don't have children to teach another generation dumb values like that.

Am I crazy or did HRC say 2 million home owners owe $3 trillion in debt. That comes out to $1.5 million per homeowner. Why would anyone want to bail these guys out?

You're just heartless. Former and would be millionaires need love too, not to mention taxpayer bailouts.

Hillary obviously never learned simple division as well as you. I'd like to know where she got these telling figures and how accurate they are.

The writing is on the wall. As my three kids leave the nest in the next few years and I start saving even more earnestly, I'll be slapped with a huge tax bill stealthily carefully crafted in recent decades by the Central Committee of the Republicatic Party, and my kids will be slapped with it too.

I've obviously erred by not borrowing a monstrous sum of money on incredibly stupid terms to mortgage a house I can't afford. My kids will know better.

When HOLC is finally liquidated in 1948, he said it will show a net profit of some $11,000,000"

Riiiight.

"Most government excursions into the field of private enterprise have cost taxpayers money. So when the Home Owners Loan Corp. was created, Congressional sibyls prophesied that the Government would lose at least $1 billion. Last week HOLC's spry old board chairman, John Henry Fahey, produced figures to show how wrong they had been. When HOLC is finally liquidated in 1948, he said it will show a net profit of some $11,000,000"

From Time Magazine, 1946

You can't make your students smarter anyhow. I think you meant to say you can't make them more educated.

Am I crazy or did HRC say 2 million home owners owe $3 trillion in debt. That comes out to $1.5 million per homeowner. Why would anyone want to bail these guys out?

Don, you're mean. You should show your empathy for your students just as Hillary shows hers for the poor. Damn the consequences.