Midterm Blues

Midterm was Thursday. I posted lots of failing grades. I have had more tension headaches this past few weeks than in the last three months. Now that I am the sole A&P instructor on campus, all eyes are on me. Several weeks ago, I was visited by my Academic Dean who worried that I was failing way too many students. I showed her my results from Fall, a shimmer of success, and told her that I was doing my best to help them succeed: fewer practicals, lots of quizlet, more practice activities in lab. 

She told me to be more intrusive in aiding weak students. We have success coaches now and a new app called AVISO. I waited too long to pull the trigger this semester. I think it is too late now to get them up to speed. What do you do with the absentees? Flu and colds knocked out weeks of attendance in February. They don't catch up.

I have known for a long time that the best way to learn is the study how you are tested. Practice by answering questions. So for years I have given them recall-level assignments on material we covered just an hour before during lecture. They work in groups but I am amazed how few of them remember anything. It is like all of them never picked up the same things. That strongly indicates that I failed in lecture or they were not paying attention. Practice time then becomes frustrating for both of us. I start giving them hints (e.g. the word starts with an "A"). My reading assures me that the frustration is helpful in memory consolidation. I tell them that the struggle is good.

Today I thought about scaffolding my practice sessions. I have been throwing them into the deep end of the pool right off the bat. I am thinking of starting with recognition-level practice and then later move into recall. However, some of my frustration arises from practice assignments on material from the previous week. Stuff that they ought to know. Material that should already be at recall-level but often it is not. I realize they haven't studied it. That is when I get punitive. "Didn't bother to study, well maybe after sitting with a blank sheet in front of you for 20 minutes might make you study next time." It may feel like justice, but it rarely works, and gets old fast.

Lab time is a tricky balance. I have to have enough practice planned so they stay the entire time. Students rarely take the time to review the practical specimens. If I give them time, they waste it, or leave early. This semester I have eliminated it completely. They have the lecture and the practical review set on Quizlet. In addition, I started having a 16 question practice practical at the start of every lab. They have been doing it with their groups. I guess it has been helpful, but there are always the weak students trailing their group and not engaging during the activity. I don't know what to do about them. Riding coattails has always been a problem in my classes. It won't help them pass though.

There has been grade inflation for so long that students getting a C is a tragedy. Unfortunately, really important things like, program entry, and scholarships, are tied to grades in classes. For STEM classes, I think C's shouldn't be look down upon. STEM is tough and A's are very hard to earn. Our programs must be more realistic about mastery and academic ability. But I am disheartened when programs like Ultrasound rely so heavily on high grades. They must consider the course and who taught it. Regretfully, a C student in my class my be given an A by a different instructor. Unfair.