I'll be honest, I was expecting the first week back from spring break to be a breeze. It's a four day week and there shouldn't be any big projects to do. But, for some strange reason, my calculus class has a ridiculous amount of work. There is a quiz every day of the week except for Monday, only because it goes against the rules to schedule one on the first day back. The quizzes will be on material that wasn't covered in class. Our teacher strongly suggested that we look at some AP problems over the break. Unfortunately, doing math homework over spring break wasn't a priority for me.
So now that we're being quizzed consecutively three times, I am under prepared. I could study for them if I didn't have to do the math homework, which is a lot. Also, the homework is on a completely different topic, so by doing the homework, I am not studying the right material at all. I just get a little angry when our teacher does things like this. Of course, there are a few people who have done the work she suggested, so they will get perfect scores. But for anyone who didn't work over the break, it's hard to keep up. I feel like the no work over break rule should be enforced.
The other rule that my calculus teacher disobeys is the thirty minutes of homework rule. She assigns ridiculous amounts amounts of work that take well over thirty minutes. When we spend a period working on homework problems on the board, she will solve the problems herself. In the fifty minute period, she often has trouble finishing the four or five problems that we ask her about. In addition, she is the teacher and knows how to solve the problems already. For the students, the problems will undoubtedly take longer as we don't have as much experience. So the forty or fifty questions we usually have in a week take way longer than we should have to spend on calculus. Even if we work for an hour a day, that's only seven hours a week; completing the whole calculus assignment can take me even longer.
When you add these two factors together, the excessive homework and quizzing on work done over spring break, you get one unhappy camper. The general consensus across all the calculus students seems to agree with me in saying that we are getting unfair amounts of work. Even after many students have complained, nothing has changed. Luckily, we're on the final stretch, the last quarter of the year.
I agree that lots of calculus homework seems very unfair - but it is nice that the teacher helps you prepare for the AP; it makes it so much easier to do well when you are prepped in class. So there is always a silver lining...
ReplyDeleteYeah, the whole 4th quarter is easier thing seems to be a myth. Teachers seem to cram in lessons, quizzes, and tests before the final exams. It's pretty much impossible to do calculus homework in 30 minutes. Even if you're already familiar with the material, the problems are so involved and there are so many of them that it ends up taking an hour or more a night. Good post,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that I never had to take Calculus. So glad. I know that doesn't make you feel any better. But do sympathize with the too-much-homework problem. That's a drag.
ReplyDeleteCalculus this year sounds terrible. I'm so glad that I am in advanced topics right now, although I;m dreading calc next year. Hopefully the work load won't be as bad then. Keep pushing, the school year is almost over.
ReplyDeleteI fully agree. With all of the other subjects we have, it is crazy the amount of homework we get. On top of that, I'm starting to get junioritis. However, we only have like a month of crazy amounts of calc hw left, and then its SUMMMMMMERRRRRRR
ReplyDeleteOh man. I hate calc as much as you do. The only class that I've ever truly worried about my grade in. It's a saddening thing.
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