I have found that attendance can be a problem. One of the ways I have tried
to overcome this both on first and final year units is to include a small
percentage of the overall coursework or unit mark for the completion of a
portfolio of exercises. These range from producing a mind map of key points
following a lecture, or an writing an abstract for a text that relates to
that weeks topic to the outcome of a practical exercise (i.e. the completed
map in ArcView). This is however more intensive on staff marking that
students. As for the students it just requires a small percentage of time
each week to complete the task providing it is done each week.
Sharon Brown
Surveying Subject Area
UeL
-----Original Message-----
From: A forum for critical and radical geographers
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Pete North
Sent: 05 March 2004 10:07
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: class assignments/pedagogy/tyranny of grading
I'm also experimenting with class assignments on a new YEAR 3 course
"Development and Protest in Latin America". Students have to provide a
presentation, an executive summary, and a 'policy brief' on the activities of
a social movement or development NGO from either the perspective of activists
or those they are attempting to influence/change/overthrow/resist etc.
Its going very well and the students are really getting into it, but the
problem I (may) have is that students tend to come only to the lectures that
relate to their policy brief. While drop off in lecture attendance is always
an issue in year three, has anyone got any suggestions for how to minimise
this - assuming its a problem?
Pete
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Peter North
Department of Geography
University of Liverpool
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