It a fairly common joke among academics in discussing “campus life” policies that we should just let students pick their own grades. University of Georgia professor Dr. Richard Watson appears to have taken such suggestions seriously with his new “stress reduction policy.” Under that policy, students who “feel unduly stressed” can simply choose their own grades.
For his business courses, Watson has posted a concern of how “emotional reactions to stressful situations can have profound consequences for all involved.” After what must be exhaustive study, Watson concluded that students can feel “unduly stressed by a grade for any assessable material or the overall course.” In such a case, they are allowed to “email the instructor indicating what grade [they] think is appropriate, and it will be so changed.” There will be no demand for explanation. Better yet, all tests will be “open book and open notes” and students are assured that they will only be tested “to assess low level mastery of the course material.” As for in-class presentations, “only positive comments” in class will be allowed and “If in a group meeting, you feel stressed by your group’s dynamics, you should leave the meeting immediately and need offer no explanation to the group members.”
At first, I assumed that this was meant as a rather biting but poignant critique of new policies to impose more and more generous grading curves and to protect students from any possible source of stress. However, Watson has not indicated that this is meant as a joke. He did say that he is implementing changes but that no such policy is currently posted. However, the College Reform site posted details from the syllabus reportedly given to students.
If this policy is implemented, I can certainly understand how letting students choose their grades would reduce their stress but it hardly prepared them for life in the business world or any where else. Our effort to reduce every possible stress runs counter to our academic duty to ready our students for the pressures and conditions of life. One of the most important lessons is how to process and deal with stress. Otherwise you have knowledge but not the wherewithal to use it.
If you want your kid to have a good education then consider the University of Missouri St. Louis. UMSL It is in north St. Louis County in a town called Ferguson. You folks may have heard of my home town in the news. When your kid graduates perhaps he or she can go to work at Emerson Electric. It is also located in Ferguson.
“I ain’t got no. You ain’t got no. We all ain’t got no.”
Let all the graduates of that so called “university” graduate with a 4.0 average out of 4.0 max. Then the employers of the world can pick and choose by lottery. Joe Bob will say: But I was better in English than Fred Dork. And Fred will say: it is all in the manner of speech. Then he will say: “I ain’t got no. You ain’t got no. We all ain’t got no.”
And that is the end of the story about University of Georgia. “They all ain’t got no.”
What’s distressing is he’s on the business school faculty.
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Higher education is hideously bloated (the share of youth cohorts attending 4-year schools is now above 40%; it was half that in 1980. It was 6% in 1928). The baccalaureate degree, wherein north of 30% of a student’s time is squandered on collecting distribution credits, is a bad institution, as is the associates’ degree. Arts and sciences faculties, teachers’ colleges, social work faculties, and library schools are shot through with programs which are humbug (when the whole ball of wax is not humbug). In arts-and-sciences, departments trading in serious disciplines are commonly badly corrupted (with sociology, anthropology, American history, and social psychology in the worst shape). Law schools are bloated; you could cut their enrollments by 1/3 and readily staff the legal profession. And you have wretched stupidity in the student affairs apparat. The trustees are largely hollow men who do nothing to repair matters.
One other thing: studio art is a scandal. You’d have to scrounge to find a program you shouldn’t close. Tomorrow.
Damn, I coulda had a 4.0 and went to Harvard!! Then I’d be as clueless as our UGA prof.
Mr. Turkey, I humbly disagree with your last statement. These students will have neither the knowledge, nor the wherewithal to use it. If given the opportunity to choose their own grade, take open book tests and walk out on group meetings, the student will not study, will do the minimum amount of work, and surely retain too little of the class to later prove they have any knowledge of what was taught. Why not just give a University $250,000 for a degree and try to enter the workforce 4-6 years earlier? That would be a better education for these kids.
This is getting more like a tabloid newspaper. Trump is probably figuring out how to work this in right now, between tweets.
And as always your whining about President Trump bring nothing to the conversation. Isn’t there a Canadian blog you could subscribe to.
He’s a political gadfly. 😉
This is and always what JT does when the news is bad for Trump, post other stories. Not to worry he will feed the beasts soon with something out of the blue. As for picking your own grades, why not the corporations and the rich can pick what taxes and how much they will pay.
So….apparently everyone gets a trophy….the usa today recently had an article that most everyone gets an “a” anyway. Here I thought my kids were smart! Nope …. it’s all about the money….buy me an “a” at georgia. Nope kids wont go there. What a lazy grading loser. Then again how do the kids rate themselves….i’d hire the one who judged themself…
Why don’t they just cut to the chase,
And let us buy their sheepskin diplomas on their website.
Let’s hope the University doesn’t have a medical school!
I’m sorry, but where the hell is this country going?
And everyone also gets a trophy…cupcakes if they get an A+
Lacking rationality.
Maybe the football team can start choosing their own score??? And the Bulldog Mascot can be swapped in for a less stressful one, perhaps a non-cisgender non-white person in a Snowflake Costume???
Oh, and this Professor can just start handing out blank checks when he goes shopping, and let the stores fill in whatever amount stresses them out the less???
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
This is very different from the stress reduction policies I adopted when I was in college.
I’m sure he will get online reviews that are exceptional.
Nice thinking.
He will keep his job.
Maybe even get a bonus.
Do I get to choose the winning lottery number!
Life is nothing but a bowl of cherries.
Lazy SOB.
He should let us set his salary.
Close, but you seem to have just a little confusion about implementing the policy.
The corresponding policy, to be implemented along with the grade policy, is to let workers choose there salary.
There now, doesn’t that reduce the stress?
Yes, yes it does – much better now.
Thanks for pointing that out, Mike. Prof. Watson has proven himself unfit as a business instructor.