Sad.
Angry.
Like a failure as a teacher.
Like becoming a drinker. (Not really, Mom - don't freak out.)
Here are some tips I wish I had thought to emphasize BEFORE they wrote this garbage:
- If you're going to use a big word, make sure you understand what it means first
- Your cover page and your reference page are not included in the page requirement (I did say this, but apparently not loudly or often enough)
- When I say 4 Supreme Court cases are required, I mean 4 actual cases decided by the Supreme Court. You also need to refer to them by the case name and not "that one case with the kid"
- Repeating all the facts of the case and giving the vote count - without stating which side the court sided with, nor why - is not an adequate case discussion
- If your paper is on, say, the right to privacy, it is not adequate to write 5 pages giving your opinion on birth control, abortion, or homosexuality, then mention right to privacy in the final sentence. Your 5 pages need to actually be on the topic of right to privacy
- Last but not least, while citing fully quoted paragraphs from a source for half of your paper will get you out of a plagiarism charge, it does not get you credit for actually writing the paper
1 comment:
I'm just thinking I probably made some of my favourite professors feel the same way. It was all about putting in exactly the amount of effort required--no more, no less--to get the necessary grade in the class.
Post a Comment