This post was inspired by this news article. Do check it out before reading on.
- At an NUS Council meeting, with Head Dean and a number of Professors.
Head Dean: "The media has been complaining about some of our practices. Apparently those damn CNM students who love to write in to the papers have wrote in to complain! They said that we do not have enough transparency in the way we display module information!"
Professor Choa: "Sir, they always complain, we shouldn't listen to them."
Head Dean: "The media is hounding our backs! We have to! Professor Lee, your module Sing and Tell (SNT1688) is in question. Other modules that they have complained about are Hub of the Stars (AS1633) and Armed Ones (SD1627)"
Professor Nail: "What are they complaining about? What is wrong with my Hub of the Stars module? It is an excellent contribution to the Astrology Department!"
Head Dean: "They say that you only reveal the top marks of the module, which is misleading and not reflective of the entire cohort! Students need more information to know how difficult the module is. For example, you could reveal the average scores of each cohort!"
Professor Koi: "But Sir, it is impossible to define an average score! The scores of the students vary from semester to semester, depending on whether we put our lectures at 8AM or not, whether the lecturers are good or not - there are just too many factors!"
Head Dean: "However, the students need to know the truth in order to make an informed choice. If there are so many variables affecting the average score, please let the students know. Otherwise, they will say that what we are doing is tantamount to 'public deceit'!
We should also release the mode, the most common score obtained, as well as the median, which is the central mark of all the marks. If you are unclear about how to do this, go consult Prof Cheung, he is in charge of PL2131, a basic statistics module for Psychology."
Professor Nail: "With all due respect sir, this is still ridiculous. I don't see what the difference is. When we release the top mark, the students are upset when they get a mark below it and say that it is misleading. But if we release the average mark, and students get a mark below it, we can just say that they are below average? What difference does it make?"
Head Dean: "Nail, it is because average marks is what students are really getting. The top mark is what normal people may never get - it's a theoretical maximum. It is what only the
Additionally, we should consider releasing the 'Minimum Guaranteed Mark', or whatever grade you are marking as the lowest end of your bell curve. This way, students know the 'worst case scenario', or how badly that module may pull their CAP down.
I think this will be a smart move by us, and will make ensure students don't get 'conned' by our professors into bidding for modules that they don't really want."
Professor Choa: "Yes sir, that certainly does sound brilliant. I will have a meeting with my Sing and Tell department to roll out new module descriptions with the additional information displayed. We may also have bundle deals such as allowing students to bid for two modules concurrently!"
Head Dean: "That's great. Remember, at the end of the day, we want to be fair to everyone."
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P.S. The numbers, module names, and prof names used were NOT random. If you still can't figure out what they were derived from, drop me a message :)
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