Please Help! I have a grade dilemma!

AugustRain · Dec 8, 2009

The tenth of a point misses are the worst! I always told myself it was better than a tenth of a point that kept me from passing, but it still made me nuts. Unfortunately, there's nothing you can do about it...just as your professor can't go against policy to round down, they can't round up either. But congrats on making it through the class!

As far as changing answers, do you know why you do it? Is it a moment of panic or do you think you may have misread a question or answer the first time?

It helped me to eliminate the choices I knew were wrong and keep them out. Then, if I'd debated a bit and still wasn't sure, I'd mark the question on the test paper and give myself permission to go back to it at the end of the exam. At the end of the test, if it wasn't already marked, I didn't even let myself look at it again. The only time I changed an answer was if I had something concrete that I'd overlooked before (ie. suddenly remembered normal ranges for a lab value, etc).

FLmomof5 · Dec 8, 2009

Be grateful that you don't attend my nursing school!

We do NOT get rounded.... I had a 92.7 (93% is an A)...got a B for the course.

80 is passing in my school and it is a C. You need 85% to get a B. :eek:

llg, PhD, RN · Dec 8, 2009

I think it would be worth talking with the instructor -- in a very nice way -- seeking help without begging for a better grade or putting the instructor on the defensive.

Tell her that you are disappointed in yourself and that you are want to be a better student and learn to be a better test-taker. Explain that you feel you know the material, but that you second guess yourself and end up choosing the wrong one. Ask if she can give you any guidance or point you in the direction of some good resources.

It's unlikely that she will change your grade -- particularly if your grades are calculated as the simple mean of your test scores. There is no leeway there. But she might give you some help that will improve your future grades. If your course grade includes other activities in addition to test scores (such as a paper, class discussion grade, etc.), she might be able to find a reason to bump it up a notch if you take the initiative of speaking with her.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Dec 8, 2009

My instructors don't round and their is no bargaining. I missed a B in Pharm by 2 points. I had a lot of stuff going on at home and let it effect 3 of my exams. I changed so many right answers to wrong ones and so on to. But I rocked the final and got 100% but still missed a B by 2 points which comes out to missing it by a 10th of a % as well.

It is what it is.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Dec 8, 2009

Be grateful that you don't attend my nursing school!
We do NOT get rounded.... I had a 92.7 (93% is an A)...got a B for the course.
80 is passing in my school and it is a C. You need 85% to get a B.

You need an 85 at mine as well and 94 for the A but 77 to pass.

mRpeNa · Dec 8, 2009

dont get caught up with the letter grades. i know how frustrating it can be to be so close to what you want but i'm sure there are some people in your class who are not going to be able to move on and wish they would have received the grade you got...

congratulations on passing!

Study24/7 · Dec 10, 2009

I found myself changing alot of correct answers early on in the program and met with my clinical instructor to discuss strategies. She suggested I take practice NCLEX questions one hour a day and focus on the available answers before reading the questions, looking for similaries and differences in my answer choices, then read the question.

It took a month and a half of being true to this method, but now my test scores have improved by 10pts. The really amazing thing is I go and take NCLEX and ATI tests on subjects we haven't covered and I consistently score in the 80's.

I know holiday break is coming so what have you got to lose? Give it a try.