College Professor Taught the Wrong Course For a Full Semester (1 Viewer)

[joffer]

Intro to Chem is typically General Chem, just different names for the same thing.

Students at a Houston college are complaining that they were forced to learn more than they wanted when their professor accidentally taught them a more advanced curriculum.

The professor, who was new to teaching at Lonestar College, was supposed to teach a basic Introduction to Chemistry course. But her students ended up with a lot more chemistry than they paid for.

One of Nguyen's students, Lauren Firmin told local news station KHOU that she went public with her complaint because her final grade—a B—ruined her "perfect 4.0 average." When she appealed her grade, Lonestar ruled against her.

"I was getting 40's on every test," said Firmin. "I studied as hard as I could, did everything in my power to try." Then, shortly before the class' final exam, Firmin claims teacher Thao Shirley Nguyen admitted something.

"She told her mistake in class to all of the students," Firmin told the KHOU 11 News I-Team. And the mistake: "She was teaching general chemistry, another course, all semester."

"4.0 students, we are really stressed out altogether, but this just added to it to see what I have been working for, for two years destroyed," she told KHOU.

Another student confirmed that Nguyen admitted to the class they had learned a more advanced course than they signed up for. In exchange, she added extra credit to all the students' grades.

A spokesperson for Lonestar told KHOU, "They were taught the right class." But the head of college's science department apparently admitted Nguyen's mistake in an email, saying it was unintentional.

 

[Ilov80s]

I'm not calling a first year college class Intro to Chem. That's the point. Someone accepted to college should already have that course in high school.

Why? Lots of colleges have courses called Introduction to Chemistry. Here's one from a pretty good school.

As a general principle, college "intro" courses are pitched significantly above the HS level.

Then maybe this is just semantics. When I see "Intro to Chem", that sounds like it's for someone who has never taken it before.

I doubt if Intro to Chem would transfer to any real degree.

It's the first requirement for a Chem major.

But that is the issue. These students are in an uproar because they got General Chem instead of Intro to Chem...there should not be a huge difference, but the Intro to Chem course must be code for here is a ridiculously easy science course so we can give you an associates degree.

Yeah, sometimes schools have 2 separate for majors and non or they will do a fast paced (1 semester) vs slow paced (2 semester). I just thought it was weird that people were mocking intro chem courses.

 

[Homer J Simpson]

I'm not calling a first year college class Intro to Chem. That's the point. Someone accepted to college should already have that course in high school.

Why? Lots of colleges have courses called Introduction to Chemistry. Here's one from a pretty good school.

As a general principle, college "intro" courses are pitched significantly above the HS level.

Then maybe this is just semantics. When I see "Intro to Chem", that sounds like it's for someone who has never taken it before.

I doubt if Intro to Chem would transfer to any real degree.

It's the first requirement for a Chem major.

But that is the issue. These students are in an uproar because they got General Chem instead of Intro to Chem...there should not be a huge difference, but the Intro to Chem course must be code for here is a ridiculously easy science course so we can give you an associates degree.

An intro class and a general class can be very different things in all subjects. Why shouldn't non-science majors have a more basic course to satisfy their prerequisites?

 

[Ilov80s]

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_chemistry

General chemistry (sometimes called "gen chem" for short) is a course often taught at the high school and introductory university level. It is intended to serve as a broad introduction to a variety of concepts in chemistry and is widely taught

 

[Christo]

 

[Ilov80s]

I know I'm in a ####ty mood arguing over something I don't care about and knowing I am offen wrong because it varies from school to school.

 

[TenTimes]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

awesome

 

[Sarnoff]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Intro to Chemistry doesn't sound like something that should be taught in college

I heard Intro to Math was a real bear.

You laugh, but at my college (a four year regional university), "college algebra" is the minimum math requirement, and it's considered one of the more difficult courses in the university. I hear stories all the time from advisors in other deparments -- e.g, Journalism, Theater, Visual Arts, Music -- about students who fail this class three times and have to petition to get a fourth try. All over a class that probably would have been considered remedial when all of us were in school. It still blows my mind to think about this.

In other words, don't just assume that all high school graduates have minimally proficient math and science skills. A disturbingly large proportion don't.

Ahhh, College Algebra.

I was supposed to take College Algebra because of a deficit in my HS math curriculum...and by that I mean I flunked a semester of Algebra II my senior year. Yes, I'm mathematically re###ed and I'm aware of that. So my HS math teacher said if I got a C over the 2nd semester that it would average out and I'd get credit for a full year. And trust me, I had done the research to make sure what I needed to avoid taking ANY math class in college.

Anyway, I never noticed until my senior year in college that my HS transcripts were a 1/2 a math credit short because my teacher was a spiteful little pr*ck and lied to me about getting full credit. I decided to follow the real Homer Simpson's advice and just crawl under a pile of coats and hope everything turned out ok. I would have literally dropped out rather than take College Algebra. Luckily, the History department didn't communicate with the registrar or something and everything turned out honky dory. Except I learned far too late how useless a History degree is.

tl;dr -- I actually shouldn't have my college degree.

Exact opposite here. Took AP Calculus in senior year of HS. Teacher told us we could have our parents submit some kind of permission slip and for $50 we could have the course applied to the local state school for their math requirements. Calc just didn't click with me after the first couple of months. Got totally lost in November and was deep in the weeds by Christmas. Tried my best, worked with the teacher, but just couldn't get through it. Bombed the course pretty bad, but, most of my class did, too. For the "honors" class we were all in deep over our heads in this stuff, and it was the same teacher we had in junior year for pre-calc, so he knew where we were all starting from.

Anyway, teacher tried his best all year, too. A couple kids were standouts who got it but most of us were dead in the water. End of senior year, he makes a deal with the class... just try on the AP test (which can be used to get out of having to retake courses in college) and he'll give us a C in the course no matter what our score is. Get a 5/5, get an A, get a 4/5, get at least a B, but get a 1, 2 or 3 and he'll bump our grade up to a C if it's below that. So, like a free shot at passing for just taking the AP test. I took it. Bombed it. 1 out of 5, the lowest possible score. Teacher held up his end of the bargain, though, and passed me with a 70.

Fast forward to college. Went to a big-name out-of-state private university. Applied as a new student, show up on my first day and I get handed a transcript with what college courses carried over from high school for credit based on my AP test scores. Had the ones I expected, AP English, AP History, aced those tests. Then I look and AP Calculus is on there. I look again, and, for some reason I'm classified as a "transfer student".

Turns out that $50 that I forgot about at the beginning of senior year meant that even though I bombed the AP test, my 70 "C" counted for college credit at my local state school. Completely unbeknownst to me, the local state school had somehow sent that 70 to my out-of-state university as transfer credits. Since it was a full-year course in HS, it counted for 2 semesters. Calc I & Calc II. 8.0 credits total. Throwing in the extra stuff and it made me able to skip a whole year of college. Didn't have to take any "hard math" courses because Calc II fulfilled the requirement.

tl;dr: Nice Guy calc teacher saved me a year of college despite my F because of paperwork magic that I had no idea happened.

 

[Homer J Simpson]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Intro to Chemistry doesn't sound like something that should be taught in college

I heard Intro to Math was a real bear.

You laugh, but at my college (a four year regional university), "college algebra" is the minimum math requirement, and it's considered one of the more difficult courses in the university. I hear stories all the time from advisors in other deparments -- e.g, Journalism, Theater, Visual Arts, Music -- about students who fail this class three times and have to petition to get a fourth try. All over a class that probably would have been considered remedial when all of us were in school. It still blows my mind to think about this.

In other words, don't just assume that all high school graduates have minimally proficient math and science skills. A disturbingly large proportion don't.

Ahhh, College Algebra.

I was supposed to take College Algebra because of a deficit in my HS math curriculum...and by that I mean I flunked a semester of Algebra II my senior year. Yes, I'm mathematically re###ed and I'm aware of that. So my HS math teacher said if I got a C over the 2nd semester that it would average out and I'd get credit for a full year. And trust me, I had done the research to make sure what I needed to avoid taking ANY math class in college.

Anyway, I never noticed until my senior year in college that my HS transcripts were a 1/2 a math credit short because my teacher was a spiteful little pr*ck and lied to me about getting full credit. I decided to follow the real Homer Simpson's advice and just crawl under a pile of coats and hope everything turned out ok. I would have literally dropped out rather than take College Algebra. Luckily, the History department didn't communicate with the registrar or something and everything turned out honky dory. Except I learned far too late how useless a History degree is.

tl;dr -- I actually shouldn't have my college degree.

Exact opposite here. Took AP Calculus in senior year of HS. Teacher told us we could have our parents submit some kind of permission slip and for $50 we could have the course applied to the local state school for their math requirements. Calc just didn't click with me after the first couple of months. Got totally lost in November and was deep in the weeds by Christmas. Tried my best, worked with the teacher, but just couldn't get through it. Bombed the course pretty bad, but, most of my class did, too. For the "honors" class we were all in deep over our heads in this stuff, and it was the same teacher we had in junior year for pre-calc, so he knew where we were all starting from.

Anyway, teacher tried his best all year, too. A couple kids were standouts who got it but most of us were dead in the water. End of senior year, he makes a deal with the class... just try on the AP test (which can be used to get out of having to retake courses in college) and he'll give us a C in the course no matter what our score is. Get a 5/5, get an A, get a 4/5, get at least a B, but get a 1, 2 or 3 and he'll bump our grade up to a C if it's below that. So, like a free shot at passing for just taking the AP test. I took it. Bombed it. 1 out of 5, the lowest possible score. Teacher held up his end of the bargain, though, and passed me with a 70.

Fast forward to college. Went to a big-name out-of-state private university. Applied as a new student, show up on my first day and I get handed a transcript with what college courses carried over from high school for credit based on my AP test scores. Had the ones I expected, AP English, AP History, aced those tests. Then I look and AP Calculus is on there. I look again, and, for some reason I'm classified as a "transfer student".

Turns out that $50 that I forgot about at the beginning of senior year meant that even though I bombed the AP test, my 70 "C" counted for college credit at my local state school. Completely unbeknownst to me, the local state school had somehow sent that 70 to my out-of-state university as transfer credits. Since it was a full-year course in HS, it counted for 2 semesters. Calc I & Calc II. 8.0 credits total. Throwing in the extra stuff and it made me able to skip a whole year of college. Didn't have to take any "hard math" courses because Calc II fulfilled the requirement.

tl;dr: Nice Guy calc teacher saved me a year of college despite my F because of paperwork magic that I had no idea happened.

GB bureaucratic errors.

Although it can suck when it doesn't work in your favor. I had tested into the highest English level before Freshman year, which meant I only had to take one English class. Found out after I took it that I could have done another essay and tested out completely. Worked out in my favor though...the professor was a flaming homo and absolutely loved me. I ended up taking three more Lit classes of his and got A's while doing about 25% of the work.

 

[dickey moe]

Confident the students will all get a refund for their tuition back.

 

[gianmarco]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Intro to Chemistry doesn't sound like something that should be taught in college

I heard Intro to Math was a real bear.

You laugh, but at my college (a four year regional university), "college algebra" is the minimum math requirement, and it's considered one of the more difficult courses in the university. I hear stories all the time from advisors in other deparments -- e.g, Journalism, Theater, Visual Arts, Music -- about students who fail this class three times and have to petition to get a fourth try. All over a class that probably would have been considered remedial when all of us were in school. It still blows my mind to think about this.

In other words, don't just assume that all high school graduates have minimally proficient math and science skills. A disturbingly large proportion don't.

Ahhh, College Algebra.

I was supposed to take College Algebra because of a deficit in my HS math curriculum...and by that I mean I flunked a semester of Algebra II my senior year. Yes, I'm mathematically re###ed and I'm aware of that. So my HS math teacher said if I got a C over the 2nd semester that it would average out and I'd get credit for a full year. And trust me, I had done the research to make sure what I needed to avoid taking ANY math class in college.

Anyway, I never noticed until my senior year in college that my HS transcripts were a 1/2 a math credit short because my teacher was a spiteful little pr*ck and lied to me about getting full credit. I decided to follow the real Homer Simpson's advice and just crawl under a pile of coats and hope everything turned out ok. I would have literally dropped out rather than take College Algebra. Luckily, the History department didn't communicate with the registrar or something and everything turned out honky dory. Except I learned far too late how useless a History degree is.

tl;dr -- I actually shouldn't have my college degree.

Exact opposite here. Took AP Calculus in senior year of HS. Teacher told us we could have our parents submit some kind of permission slip and for $50 we could have the course applied to the local state school for their math requirements. Calc just didn't click with me after the first couple of months. Got totally lost in November and was deep in the weeds by Christmas. Tried my best, worked with the teacher, but just couldn't get through it. Bombed the course pretty bad, but, most of my class did, too. For the "honors" class we were all in deep over our heads in this stuff, and it was the same teacher we had in junior year for pre-calc, so he knew where we were all starting from.

Anyway, teacher tried his best all year, too. A couple kids were standouts who got it but most of us were dead in the water. End of senior year, he makes a deal with the class... just try on the AP test (which can be used to get out of having to retake courses in college) and he'll give us a C in the course no matter what our score is. Get a 5/5, get an A, get a 4/5, get at least a B, but get a 1, 2 or 3 and he'll bump our grade up to a C if it's below that. So, like a free shot at passing for just taking the AP test. I took it. Bombed it. 1 out of 5, the lowest possible score. Teacher held up his end of the bargain, though, and passed me with a 70.

Fast forward to college. Went to a big-name out-of-state private university. Applied as a new student, show up on my first day and I get handed a transcript with what college courses carried over from high school for credit based on my AP test scores. Had the ones I expected, AP English, AP History, aced those tests. Then I look and AP Calculus is on there. I look again, and, for some reason I'm classified as a "transfer student".

Turns out that $50 that I forgot about at the beginning of senior year meant that even though I bombed the AP test, my 70 "C" counted for college credit at my local state school. Completely unbeknownst to me, the local state school had somehow sent that 70 to my out-of-state university as transfer credits. Since it was a full-year course in HS, it counted for 2 semesters. Calc I & Calc II. 8.0 credits total. Throwing in the extra stuff and it made me able to skip a whole year of college. Didn't have to take any "hard math" courses because Calc II fulfilled the requirement.

tl;dr: Nice Guy calc teacher saved me a year of college despite my F because of paperwork magic that I had no idea happened.

GB bureaucratic errors.

Although it can suck when it doesn't work in your favor. I had tested into the highest English level before Freshman year, which meant I only had to take one English class. Found out after I took it that I could have done another essay and tested out completely. Worked out in my favor though...the professor was a flaming homo and absolutely loved me. I ended up taking three more Lit classes of his and got A's while doing about 25% of the work.

I'm afraid to ask how you got the other 75% done.

 

[Homer J Simpson]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Intro to Chemistry doesn't sound like something that should be taught in college

I heard Intro to Math was a real bear.

You laugh, but at my college (a four year regional university), "college algebra" is the minimum math requirement, and it's considered one of the more difficult courses in the university. I hear stories all the time from advisors in other deparments -- e.g, Journalism, Theater, Visual Arts, Music -- about students who fail this class three times and have to petition to get a fourth try. All over a class that probably would have been considered remedial when all of us were in school. It still blows my mind to think about this.

In other words, don't just assume that all high school graduates have minimally proficient math and science skills. A disturbingly large proportion don't.

Ahhh, College Algebra.

I was supposed to take College Algebra because of a deficit in my HS math curriculum...and by that I mean I flunked a semester of Algebra II my senior year. Yes, I'm mathematically re###ed and I'm aware of that. So my HS math teacher said if I got a C over the 2nd semester that it would average out and I'd get credit for a full year. And trust me, I had done the research to make sure what I needed to avoid taking ANY math class in college.

Anyway, I never noticed until my senior year in college that my HS transcripts were a 1/2 a math credit short because my teacher was a spiteful little pr*ck and lied to me about getting full credit. I decided to follow the real Homer Simpson's advice and just crawl under a pile of coats and hope everything turned out ok. I would have literally dropped out rather than take College Algebra. Luckily, the History department didn't communicate with the registrar or something and everything turned out honky dory. Except I learned far too late how useless a History degree is.

tl;dr -- I actually shouldn't have my college degree.

Exact opposite here. Took AP Calculus in senior year of HS. Teacher told us we could have our parents submit some kind of permission slip and for $50 we could have the course applied to the local state school for their math requirements. Calc just didn't click with me after the first couple of months. Got totally lost in November and was deep in the weeds by Christmas. Tried my best, worked with the teacher, but just couldn't get through it. Bombed the course pretty bad, but, most of my class did, too. For the "honors" class we were all in deep over our heads in this stuff, and it was the same teacher we had in junior year for pre-calc, so he knew where we were all starting from.

Anyway, teacher tried his best all year, too. A couple kids were standouts who got it but most of us were dead in the water. End of senior year, he makes a deal with the class... just try on the AP test (which can be used to get out of having to retake courses in college) and he'll give us a C in the course no matter what our score is. Get a 5/5, get an A, get a 4/5, get at least a B, but get a 1, 2 or 3 and he'll bump our grade up to a C if it's below that. So, like a free shot at passing for just taking the AP test. I took it. Bombed it. 1 out of 5, the lowest possible score. Teacher held up his end of the bargain, though, and passed me with a 70.

Fast forward to college. Went to a big-name out-of-state private university. Applied as a new student, show up on my first day and I get handed a transcript with what college courses carried over from high school for credit based on my AP test scores. Had the ones I expected, AP English, AP History, aced those tests. Then I look and AP Calculus is on there. I look again, and, for some reason I'm classified as a "transfer student".

Turns out that $50 that I forgot about at the beginning of senior year meant that even though I bombed the AP test, my 70 "C" counted for college credit at my local state school. Completely unbeknownst to me, the local state school had somehow sent that 70 to my out-of-state university as transfer credits. Since it was a full-year course in HS, it counted for 2 semesters. Calc I & Calc II. 8.0 credits total. Throwing in the extra stuff and it made me able to skip a whole year of college. Didn't have to take any "hard math" courses because Calc II fulfilled the requirement.

tl;dr: Nice Guy calc teacher saved me a year of college despite my F because of paperwork magic that I had no idea happened.

GB bureaucratic errors.

Although it can suck when it doesn't work in your favor. I had tested into the highest English level before Freshman year, which meant I only had to take one English class. Found out after I took it that I could have done another essay and tested out completely. Worked out in my favor though...the professor was a flaming homo and absolutely loved me. I ended up taking three more Lit classes of his and got A's while doing about 25% of the work.

I'm afraid to ask how you got the other 75% done.

"Modeling"

 

[gianmarco]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Intro to Chemistry doesn't sound like something that should be taught in college

I heard Intro to Math was a real bear.

You laugh, but at my college (a four year regional university), "college algebra" is the minimum math requirement, and it's considered one of the more difficult courses in the university. I hear stories all the time from advisors in other deparments -- e.g, Journalism, Theater, Visual Arts, Music -- about students who fail this class three times and have to petition to get a fourth try. All over a class that probably would have been considered remedial when all of us were in school. It still blows my mind to think about this.

In other words, don't just assume that all high school graduates have minimally proficient math and science skills. A disturbingly large proportion don't.

Ahhh, College Algebra.

I was supposed to take College Algebra because of a deficit in my HS math curriculum...and by that I mean I flunked a semester of Algebra II my senior year. Yes, I'm mathematically re###ed and I'm aware of that. So my HS math teacher said if I got a C over the 2nd semester that it would average out and I'd get credit for a full year. And trust me, I had done the research to make sure what I needed to avoid taking ANY math class in college.

Anyway, I never noticed until my senior year in college that my HS transcripts were a 1/2 a math credit short because my teacher was a spiteful little pr*ck and lied to me about getting full credit. I decided to follow the real Homer Simpson's advice and just crawl under a pile of coats and hope everything turned out ok. I would have literally dropped out rather than take College Algebra. Luckily, the History department didn't communicate with the registrar or something and everything turned out honky dory. Except I learned far too late how useless a History degree is.

tl;dr -- I actually shouldn't have my college degree.

Exact opposite here. Took AP Calculus in senior year of HS. Teacher told us we could have our parents submit some kind of permission slip and for $50 we could have the course applied to the local state school for their math requirements. Calc just didn't click with me after the first couple of months. Got totally lost in November and was deep in the weeds by Christmas. Tried my best, worked with the teacher, but just couldn't get through it. Bombed the course pretty bad, but, most of my class did, too. For the "honors" class we were all in deep over our heads in this stuff, and it was the same teacher we had in junior year for pre-calc, so he knew where we were all starting from.

Anyway, teacher tried his best all year, too. A couple kids were standouts who got it but most of us were dead in the water. End of senior year, he makes a deal with the class... just try on the AP test (which can be used to get out of having to retake courses in college) and he'll give us a C in the course no matter what our score is. Get a 5/5, get an A, get a 4/5, get at least a B, but get a 1, 2 or 3 and he'll bump our grade up to a C if it's below that. So, like a free shot at passing for just taking the AP test. I took it. Bombed it. 1 out of 5, the lowest possible score. Teacher held up his end of the bargain, though, and passed me with a 70.

Fast forward to college. Went to a big-name out-of-state private university. Applied as a new student, show up on my first day and I get handed a transcript with what college courses carried over from high school for credit based on my AP test scores. Had the ones I expected, AP English, AP History, aced those tests. Then I look and AP Calculus is on there. I look again, and, for some reason I'm classified as a "transfer student".

Turns out that $50 that I forgot about at the beginning of senior year meant that even though I bombed the AP test, my 70 "C" counted for college credit at my local state school. Completely unbeknownst to me, the local state school had somehow sent that 70 to my out-of-state university as transfer credits. Since it was a full-year course in HS, it counted for 2 semesters. Calc I & Calc II. 8.0 credits total. Throwing in the extra stuff and it made me able to skip a whole year of college. Didn't have to take any "hard math" courses because Calc II fulfilled the requirement.

tl;dr: Nice Guy calc teacher saved me a year of college despite my F because of paperwork magic that I had no idea happened.

GB bureaucratic errors.

Although it can suck when it doesn't work in your favor. I had tested into the highest English level before Freshman year, which meant I only had to take one English class. Found out after I took it that I could have done another essay and tested out completely. Worked out in my favor though...the professor was a flaming homo and absolutely loved me. I ended up taking three more Lit classes of his and got A's while doing about 25% of the work.

I'm afraid to ask how you got the other 75% done.

"Modeling"

 

[The Z Machine]

So you're saying that some of their knowledge was in excess.

 

[Zow]

Seems like a lot of the elements of these two classes would be the same. Instead of invoking such a stark reaction, seems like the solution would have been to offer a second semester with the missing material as a sort of compound course.

 

[jon_mx]

Seems like a lot of the elements of these two classes would be the same. Instead of invoking such a stark reaction, seems like the solution would have been to offer a second semester with the missing material as a sort of compound course.

The problem wasn't missing material, the problem was the teacher taught them too much.

 

[Zow]

Seems like a lot of the elements of these two classes would be the same. Instead of invoking such a stark reaction, seems like the solution would have been to offer a second semester with the missing material as a sort of compound course.

The problem wasn't missing material, the problem was the teacher taught them too much.

O H

 

[SIDA!]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

I found college courses the 2nd go around in my 30s to be a lot easier than when I was fresh out of HS, not sure why. I also find once you get through the required classes, the ones specialized for your major seem to also get easier and easier or maybe they are more interesting.

Seems like most depending on the course and college primarily are midterm, final, and a paper or two somewhere along the way. College Algebra, obviously not gonna write a paper in that class but I found it easier at the college level along with Trig/Calc than what I experienced in HS. There are a lot of factors involved with all of this. Quality of the professors was night and day compared to the HS teachers I had which were not terrible but nothing like what I experienced in college.

 

[jon_mx]

It is funny that this even made national news. I guess only because some chick who could only manage to get 40 percent on a basic 100 level course complained to the media that her ''F" was only raised to a "B".

 

[Tom Servo]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Intro to Chemistry doesn't sound like something that should be taught in college

I heard Intro to Math was a real bear.

You laugh, but at my college (a four year regional university), "college algebra" is the minimum math requirement, and it's considered one of the more difficult courses in the university. I hear stories all the time from advisors in other deparments -- e.g, Journalism, Theater, Visual Arts, Music -- about students who fail this class three times and have to petition to get a fourth try. All over a class that probably would have been considered remedial when all of us were in school. It still blows my mind to think about this.

In other words, don't just assume that all high school graduates have minimally proficient math and science skills. A disturbingly large proportion don't.

Ahhh, College Algebra.

I was supposed to take College Algebra because of a deficit in my HS math curriculum...and by that I mean I flunked a semester of Algebra II my senior year. Yes, I'm mathematically re###ed and I'm aware of that. So my HS math teacher said if I got a C over the 2nd semester that it would average out and I'd get credit for a full year. And trust me, I had done the research to make sure what I needed to avoid taking ANY math class in college.

Anyway, I never noticed until my senior year in college that my HS transcripts were a 1/2 a math credit short because my teacher was a spiteful little pr*ck and lied to me about getting full credit. I decided to follow the real Homer Simpson's advice and just crawl under a pile of coats and hope everything turned out ok. I would have literally dropped out rather than take College Algebra. Luckily, the History department didn't communicate with the registrar or something and everything turned out honky dory. Except I learned far too late how useless a History degree is.

tl;dr -- I actually shouldn't have my college degree.

Exact opposite here. Took AP Calculus in senior year of HS. Teacher told us we could have our parents submit some kind of permission slip and for $50 we could have the course applied to the local state school for their math requirements. Calc just didn't click with me after the first couple of months. Got totally lost in November and was deep in the weeds by Christmas. Tried my best, worked with the teacher, but just couldn't get through it. Bombed the course pretty bad, but, most of my class did, too. For the "honors" class we were all in deep over our heads in this stuff, and it was the same teacher we had in junior year for pre-calc, so he knew where we were all starting from.

Anyway, teacher tried his best all year, too. A couple kids were standouts who got it but most of us were dead in the water. End of senior year, he makes a deal with the class... just try on the AP test (which can be used to get out of having to retake courses in college) and he'll give us a C in the course no matter what our score is. Get a 5/5, get an A, get a 4/5, get at least a B, but get a 1, 2 or 3 and he'll bump our grade up to a C if it's below that. So, like a free shot at passing for just taking the AP test. I took it. Bombed it. 1 out of 5, the lowest possible score. Teacher held up his end of the bargain, though, and passed me with a 70.

Fast forward to college. Went to a big-name out-of-state private university. Applied as a new student, show up on my first day and I get handed a transcript with what college courses carried over from high school for credit based on my AP test scores. Had the ones I expected, AP English, AP History, aced those tests. Then I look and AP Calculus is on there. I look again, and, for some reason I'm classified as a "transfer student".

Turns out that $50 that I forgot about at the beginning of senior year meant that even though I bombed the AP test, my 70 "C" counted for college credit at my local state school. Completely unbeknownst to me, the local state school had somehow sent that 70 to my out-of-state university as transfer credits. Since it was a full-year course in HS, it counted for 2 semesters. Calc I & Calc II. 8.0 credits total. Throwing in the extra stuff and it made me able to skip a whole year of college. Didn't have to take any "hard math" courses because Calc II fulfilled the requirement.

tl;dr: Nice Guy calc teacher saved me a year of college despite my F because of paperwork magic that I had no idea happened.

After going through both Chem and AP Chem in high school, I took the AP exam and only got a 3. I was bummed because I couldn't test out of chem at my now alma mater. It ended up working out because the college chem course was so easy compared to high school that I breezed through it with little to no work.

(Inorganic) chemistry stud.

 

[flysack]

I took an upper level Poli Sci class with a professor and enjoyed it so signed up for another class with him. Although the class was supposed to be different when he handed out the syllabus it was 80% the same as the class I just took. I complained to the department and withdrew even though I could have just skated and gotten another A with little work.

Moral of the story- Professors can be lazy or incompetent bastards and generally the administration doesn't really care that much.

Sounds like the perfect job for a self-styled artist-slacker. I should look into this.

 

[jon_mx]

I know several college professors, and most work very long hours and are very competent. I am not sure I would lump all college professors in with this example from a second rate community college.

 

[NCCommish]

Why not? What if you had never taken chemistry in high school?

That seems like a problem

So if a kid took Physics and Anatomy instead of Chem, you think that is a major problem?

I don't get it either. Seems reasonable to have an intro level course to make sure that transfers, students changing majors, and those who just need a basic science pre-req are covered.

Right. Say you took Chem in high school and did well. After high school, life happens, you end up working instead of going to school. Then you are 26 and decide to re-enroll and you need to take a science class like Chem or Physics. You are expected to just be able to jump right off from what you learned in high school 10 years earlier? Ok. I'd love to see some people in the world that don't work in the field of science dropped into a 2nd year college Chem course like Organic Chem. Good luck.

This wasn't organic chem.

 

[Jobber]

The whistleblower sounds like a real winner. I'm sure this public complaining will prove fruitful in her future endeavors.

 

[NCCommish]

The whistleblower sounds like a real winner. I'm sure this public complaining will prove fruitful in her future endeavors.

She had carefully planned out her real easy A average and now she got a B because she actually took a real course. That she apparently flunked and still got a B. Way for her to out herself as an ungrateful idiot.

 

[Parrothead]

Numbers- Friends or Foes?

3.0 Credits

 

[flysack]

I know several college professors, and most work very long hours and are very competent. I am not sure I would lump all college professors in with this example from a second rate community college.

What's this garbage? You're supposed to be a republican and thus onboard with irrational demonizing of academics. Get with the program, Karl.

 

[hagmania]

You guys are making a mountain out of a molehill.

 

[Sweet J]

This is the damnedest thing. Students are supposedly in college to learn. One kid takes a class, does well in the class (gets a B), and learns. But complains that she's mad because, essentially, she learned more than she signed up for. It's one thing if the kids were complaining that the class was so hard that they couldn't even understand it, and therefore didn't learn a thing. But I don't get that this was what happened.

Effing Millenials.

 

[Ilov80s]

Why not? What if you had never taken chemistry in high school?

That seems like a problem

So if a kid took Physics and Anatomy instead of Chem, you think that is a major problem?

I don't get it either. Seems reasonable to have an intro level course to make sure that transfers, students changing majors, and those who just need a basic science pre-req are covered.

Right. Say you took Chem in high school and did well. After high school, life happens, you end up working instead of going to school. Then you are 26 and decide to re-enroll and you need to take a science class like Chem or Physics. You are expected to just be able to jump right off from what you learned in high school 10 years earlier? Ok. I'd love to see some people in the world that don't work in the field of science dropped into a 2nd year college Chem course like Organic Chem. Good luck.

This wasn't organic chem.

I know, that post was just part of a poinless argument in response to people's comments that colleges shouldn't offer a basic chem class.

 

[Sand]

You guys are making a mountain out of a molehill.

X

Please put that into equation form and resubmit.

 

[hagmania]

You guys are making a mountain out of a molehill.

X

Please put that into equation form and resubmit.

Pretty sure the tenth to the twenty-third best performing students in the class would have no idea what this meant.

 

[kutta]

These students were in a Nguyen situation.

Pretty darn good for the first response in the thread.

 

[johnjohn]

Everyone in that class should be given an A as the differences between the two are HUGE. One class doesn't require a certain math knowledge and the other one does. Trying to take a class that requires math knowledge that have you never learned is like trying to learn to run before learning to walk

 

[Sand]

Everyone in that class should be given an A as the differences between the two are HUGE. One class doesn't require a certain math knowledge and the other one does. Trying to take a class that requires math knowledge that have you never learned is like trying to learn to run before learning to walk

Pfft. Getting thrown in the deep water is a good exercise for everyone to go through once. You know, they should be grateful.

(Now I'm gonna have nightmares of having to take my first thermo course as a graduate level class - from the guy that wrote the book. :shudder

 

[johnjohn]

Everyone in that class should be given an A as the differences between the two are HUGE. One class doesn't require a certain math knowledge and the other one does. Trying to take a class that requires math knowledge that have you never learned is like trying to learn to run before learning to walk

Pfft. Getting thrown in the deep water is a good exercise for everyone to go through once. You know, they should be grateful.

(Now I'm gonna have nightmares of having to take my first thermo course as a graduate level class - from the guy that wrote the book. :shudder

Another example would be an English class expecting people to write a 15 page paper in a language they have never learned, since math is like its own language.

Knowledge is gradually learned, expecting people to make big jumps is unreasonable and its very embarrassing for that school that it happened.

 

[cstu]

Your 4.0 doesn't mean a whole lot if you can't even get an A in a General Chemistry class.

Still, that's a colossal mistake. Not sure how you really fix that. Hopefully they fired the prof too.

Trying to take the easiest courses possible to get their Associates Degree.....with honors.

 

[NCCommish]

Everyone in that class should be given an A as the differences between the two are HUGE. One class doesn't require a certain math knowledge and the other one does. Trying to take a class that requires math knowledge that have you never learned is like trying to learn to run before learning to walk

Pfft. Getting thrown in the deep water is a good exercise for everyone to go through once. You know, they should be grateful.

(Now I'm gonna have nightmares of having to take my first thermo course as a graduate level class - from the guy that wrote the book. :shudder

Another example would be an English class expecting people to write a 15 page paper in a language they have never learned, since math is like its own language.

Knowledge is gradually learned, expecting people to make big jumps is unreasonable and its very embarrassing for that school that it happened.

Oh come on I took AP Chem in 10th grade which should be fairly equivalent or maybe tougher than this basic class was. It isn't like you have to be Hawking to pass it.

 

[johnjohn]

Everyone in that class should be given an A as the differences between the two are HUGE. One class doesn't require a certain math knowledge and the other one does. Trying to take a class that requires math knowledge that have you never learned is like trying to learn to run before learning to walk

Pfft. Getting thrown in the deep water is a good exercise for everyone to go through once. You know, they should be grateful.

(Now I'm gonna have nightmares of having to take my first thermo course as a graduate level class - from the guy that wrote the book. :shudder

Another example would be an English class expecting people to write a 15 page paper in a language they have never learned, since math is like its own language.

Knowledge is gradually learned, expecting people to make big jumps is unreasonable and its very embarrassing for that school that it happened.

Oh come on I took AP Chem in 10th grade which should be fairly equivalent or maybe tougher than this basic class was. It isn't like you have to be Hawking to pass it.

alright I give up, you are right

 

[joffer]

Everyone in that class should be given an A as the differences between the two are HUGE. One class doesn't require a certain math knowledge and the other one does. Trying to take a class that requires math knowledge that have you never learned is like trying to learn to run before learning to walk

Like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division?

 

[Brony]

You guys are making a mountain out of a molehill.

Basically.

 

[Keerock]

Yeah, you guys are flat out wrong on this Organic Chem thing. If you are a chem major that comes Intro or Gen Chem.

http://www.canisius.edu/chemistry/courses/#one

I have no idea what you're trying to say anymore1. Intro to Chemistry - what I would expect you get in high school.

2. General Chemistry - 1st year college course, or what you could expect to test out of with AP chem in high school.

3. 2nd year college specialized courses. Organic, Physical, Inorganic, etc.

My son is a sophomore Physiology major and took Organic Chem 1st semester.

 

[joffer]

Yeah, you guys are flat out wrong on this Organic Chem thing. If you are a chem major that comes Intro or Gen Chem.http://www.canisius.edu/chemistry/courses/#one

I have no idea what you're trying to say anymore1. Intro to Chemistry - what I would expect you get in high school.

2. General Chemistry - 1st year college course, or what you could expect to test out of with AP chem in high school.

3. 2nd year college specialized courses. Organic, Physical, Inorganic, etc.

My son is a sophomore Physiology major and took Organic Chem 1st semester.

Good for him

 

[Keerock]

Yeah, you guys are flat out wrong on this Organic Chem thing. If you are a chem major that comes Intro or Gen Chem.http://www.canisius.edu/chemistry/courses/#one

I have no idea what you're trying to say anymore1. Intro to Chemistry - what I would expect you get in high school.

2. General Chemistry - 1st year college course, or what you could expect to test out of with AP chem in high school.

3. 2nd year college specialized courses. Organic, Physical, Inorganic, etc.

My son is a sophomore Physiology major and took Organic Chem 1st semester.

Good for him

Just proving your point.

 

[jon_mx]

I am a bit flabbergasted there is such a thing as a college level chemistry course which requires zero mathematical abilities.

 

[johnjohn]

I am a bit flabbergasted there is such a thing as a college level chemistry course which requires zero mathematical abilities.

That's because you have limited thinking

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

It is funny that this even made national news. I guess only because some chick who could only manage to get 40 percent on a basic 100 level course complained to the media that her ''F" was only raised to a "B".

She had carefully planned out her real easy A average and now she got a B because she actually took a real course. That she apparently flunked and still got a B. Way for her to out herself as an ungrateful idiot.

The article in the original post doesn't say 40 percent. She may have gotten 40 out of 45, though it's more likely out of 50. It could be out of 100, but I wouldn't just assume it.

 

[jon_mx]

I am a bit flabbergasted there is such a thing as a college level chemistry course which requires zero mathematical abilities.

That's because you have limited thinking

I prefer to limit my thinking to non-really-stupid things.

 

[jon_mx]

I am a bit flabbergasted there is such a thing as a college level chemistry course which requires zero mathematical abilities.

Why? This isn't physics. Anybody with even a rudimentary HS math background should have no problem in basic chemistry.

And that is my point. Chemistry math is very basic. Johnjohn wants to tell us this math is too much to expect from some college students and they should be able to take a non-math chemistry class.