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Your grade will be based on five parts, totaling 500 points: Exam grades will be normalized as described below, and all subsequent calculations are based on the normalized scores. The purpose of normalization is to weigh each of the hour exams equally and to rank students in the class fairly. There is no set quota for any grade. It's possible for everyone to get an A if you all do well. At the end of the term, we will (automatically) calculate your grade two ways, and give you the higher score. The quizzes will count as one fifth of your grade in both methods. In the first method, each of the four exams, including the final, will count one fifth (i.e. each of the hour exams, the quizzes, and the final will each count 20%; the final will count the same as the hour exams in this method). In the second method, the final will count as 40% of your grade, and the lowest mid-term exam will be dropped. Selection of whichever method gives you the higher score overall will be automatic. An average of 88 (440 out of 500) will guarantee an A, 76 (or 380) a B, 64 (or 320) a C, and 52 (or 260) a D.
However, it is possible for these thresholds to be lower (but not higher), if we feel that everyone has performed well. In order to make a fair comparison among different exams and students, we will normalize the scores for each of the five parts to a mean of 80 and a standard deviation of 10. Your normalized score for each exam will be: (10/s)(X-m+8s) = 80 + (X-m)(10/s) where X is your score, m is the mean, and s the standard deviation. Bottom line: Normalization is about weighting all exams equally and ranking students in the class fairly. Your final grade will be based on a subjective evaluation of your performance that takes into consideration your ranking in the class. Quizzes(20%). |