OpEd: Credit Where Credit Is Due
Posted in: English Department, Faculty News
explores the true motives of students asking for extra credit and the results of instructors giving it. Read an excerpt of his OpEd below or the full piece on
“Last week, when I returned the latest batch of assignments in a short story class, the inevitable happened. A student approached me and asked, 鈥淐an I do extra credit?鈥
This request flummoxes me more than it should. It鈥檚 not that uncommon these days, and on the surface it sounds reasonable. Given the confines of the course, why not push the boundaries and go deeper or broader? Do something extra special!
Of course, that鈥檚 almost never the underlying impulse, as any educator knows. As we discussed extra credit鈥攚hich is to say, as I tried to explain why that wasn鈥檛 an option in this class鈥攖he true motive emerged: I鈥檓 not happy with my grade, and this will improve it.”