What Students Say about a Hard Grader
What Students Say about a Hard Grader
by Patrick Moore
Associate Professor of English
University of Arkansas at Little Rock
(Revised July 16, 1997)
Many of my students at the University of Arkansas at Little
Rock (UALR) consider me a hard grader. I have long believed that college
students should know, ,
how to spell, punctuate, and use correct grammar. If students cannot execute
the fundamentals, I lower their grades, and, in the worst cases, I do not
pass them.
For years, I have lowered students' grades a notch for
every unintentional sentence fault they wrote: comma splice, fragment, run-on.
I do allow intentional sentence faults if the student tells me about them.
I use this policy because I believe a college student should know how to
write a sentence and consistently punctuate sentence boundaries correctly.
In response to this policy, some students have dropped my classes in a huff
and/or have complained loudly that their freshman composition teachers said
that &grammar is not important.& But many knuckled down and learned
(if they did not already know) correct punctuation.
Today in my course syllabus I include a section titled,
&Policy on Grade Inflation and
Work Load,& which reads in part as follows:
I do not inflate grades. Grade inflation
is a kind of lying. But, for a variety of reasons, some faculty members
find it useful to inflate grades, and so do some of their students. Thus,
in the remote case that you expect me to inflate your grade, that is, lie
about your ability, drop this course now or change your expectations.
I also assign more work than some students like. A student once complained
that I gave more homework than she had in high school. If you are not prepared
to work hard, drop this course now or change your expectations. You will
write an equivalent of approximately 20-25 pages (double-spaced, typewritten)
in this class in the next 15-16 weeks.
I started using statements like this (it
used to be much longer) four or five years ago because I had been concerned
about the behavior of students who wanted their grades inflated. One student
twice threatened to run me down with his car if he did not get the grade
he wanted (he got a D; I'm still kicking). Others complained that they would
lose their scholarships, grants, or loans if they did not get good grades,
which meant I would be complicit in an act of fraud if I inflated their
grades. Some students (read further) were furious in their evaluations that
their errors had consequences.
Writing mistakes do have consequences.
For several years, I collected articles about the effects of such mistakes
in my local newspaper. One article said that &a misplaced comma that
incorrectly showed a pig farmer used 73 million pounds of food scraps a
year could cost this rural township $70,000.& Another article was headlined,
&Misspelled word taints LR's [Little Rock's] absentee ballots.&
The word &capital& had been misspelled as &Capitol&
in a ballot about capital spending. The ballot erroneously appeared to be
about raising funds for the legislature building. Over the years I have
insisted that students pay attention to the details of spelling, grammar,
and punctuation in their writing. After all, if you spend a lot of money
to contract for &nursing home care,& you may be surprised about
what you purchased if you read that phrase as &nursing-home care,&
when the salesperson meant &nursing home-care.&
Although some students have become very
angry about having their grades docked for a sentence fault or for several
misspellings and/or grammatical mistakes (or for any reason), I have found
over the years that many students respect my belief--it is
widely shared, if not widely applied--that colleges, even less selective
colleges like my own, should have high standards. Such students do not get
fair representation in articles about academic standards.
Articles about academic standards typically--and
justly--focus on the decline of standards in higher education in the United
States. When faculty members write such articles, one of their frequent
topics is how insulting students can be if their grades are not inflated
or their classes not dumbed down. I am always glad to see those articles,
because they are right and because I need to know--preferably every week
of every term--that I am not alone out here.
Unfortunately, I have never seen an essay
praising or even revealing the existence of the many students who crave
challenging courses with high standards. I have frequently heard students
at my own university complain about how easy college is. One student, a
transfer from the University of Georgia system, swore that she was returning
to Georgia after one semester at my college because UALR was too easy. Another
student, who had transferred to the University of Houston, called me out
of the blue one day to thank me for having high standards. She said all
of her classes at Houston were tough, and she would have flunked out if
it had not been for me and a UALR history professor who had been demanding.
Such students get short shrift in the literature about inflated grades and
dumbed down classes.
My purpose in printing the following collection
of 133 evaluations of my courses at UALR is to acknowledge the many students
who respect high standards. I also include many of the negative evaluations
that I have received, in part because it is only fair--I certainly get them--and
in part because negative evaluations are often very revealing, even if some
of them misrepresent the facts.
A few comments: I print sets of evaluations
from three courses: (1) undergraduate technical communication classes (usually
3rd year or junior level); (2) graduate technical communication classes
(Master's level); and (3) undergraduate world literature classes (usually
2nd year or sophomore level). These classes comprise or have comprised the
bulk of my teaching load (I am no longer allowed to teach technical communication
classes). The world literature classes tend to have more negative comments,
perhaps because those classes are required of all students, whereas the
undergraduate technical communication classes were required of fewer students
and the graduate seminars were and perhaps because
the world lit. classes are taken by younger, less-experienced students who
are less prepared academically and emotionally for the rigors of writing
and higher education. (I have found that older students like my classes
much more.)
Here are the student evaluations:
Undergraduate technical communication
1. During the semester, I found out things about myself that I didn't think
possible. I was intimidated at first but once I realized he was just trying
to help I had a great time.
2. Dr. Moore is a good instructor. He has a well planned course that offers
the student a challenge yet remains &do able& so that it educates
as well. I've enjoyed and learned from the course.
3. I thoroughly enjoyed this class. The teacher was always well prepared,
and a help whenever I needed him. I would recommend him.
4. Killer class! I expect to use
what I learned in this class to a great extent in my career.
5. I enjoyed this class very much. The instructor was one of the best I've
had at UALR. The way the class was taught was very enjoyable. It could have
been a very boring class if it had been taught differently.
6. I extremely enjoyed this class. I have taken several courses at UALR;
of these courses, this is one of the two that I can say I've enjoyed and
would recommend to others. Moore i I'm impressed.
7. The course was very well planned and organized. Moore's dedication is
exemplified by his enthusiasm, his motivation, and his meticulous attention
to detail. Although it wasn't suggested reading, the Roundy & Meir (sp?)
textbook was very helpful to me for several assignments. On a scale of 1
to 10, I would rank Moore a 9.5.
8. I enjoyed this class. I thought Mr. Moore was a good teacher. He helped
9. Dr. Moore receives my &proffesor [sic] of the semester award.&
10. Great professor knew his stuff.
11. I was taught in spite of myself.
12. Outstanding instructor, I wish he had taught me earlier. Writing was
never so much fun and interesting. I learned more this term than in several
years of English. Impress [sic] the Hell out of me even if I am only making
a C in his room.
13. The class was extremely interesting. I learned a lot during this last
semester. An upper level technical writing class with Dr. Moore would be
very challenging.
14. I took this class several semesters ago and did not like the professor.
The previous instructor seemed too preoccupied with outside interests. I
have thoroughly enjoyed Patrick Moore's wit and wisdom. Please allow him
to teach another course option.
15. Dr. Moore was very encouraging. He
was very well prepared & covered material for his assignments/tests
thoroughly. The Kinko's book he put together was very effective in preparing
& understanding material in class. He was very fair & especially
encouraging. I would definitely recommend him to others.
16. I took technical writing as a prep course for the LSAT. Dr. Moore taught
me how to write clear and concise reports. The teacher was always interesting
and class was very enjoyable. As an instructor and person, Dr. Moore is
by far, the best at UALR.
17. I think Patrick Moore is a very very very good instructor. I plan to
take his class again. I really learned a great deal from him.
18. Respectful of students' rights. Well prepared for assignments.
19. This was my favorite class this semester. Dr. Moore showed complete
competence in his teaching, and I feel that I have learned a great deal.
He stimulated what could have been dry, literary subject matter & made
it interesting & fun. I would highly recommend him to other students.
20. Comments: The instructor was excellent (very challenging). The textbook
was unclear and generally not helpful.
21. Professor Moore is about the most refreshing instructor I've had in
college. He is very encouraging at all times. He never fails to offer feedback
on all the assignments. I wish there were more instructors like him. I found
him to be very positive toward all students. I have enjoyed his class very
very much. My whole attitude about writing has changed. I would take every
course that Professor Moore taught.
22. He's a very demanding professor but I feel it has benefited me a great
23. Tech writing is important to anyone in the business world. Dr. Moore's
assignments are useful in that they are the types of memos and reports I
will use. He is a good professor and expects a high level of competence
which is needed in the real world.
24. He's a yankee. Seemed nice. But I hated
this course. Hate! Hate! Hate!
I hated the way he graded. I only wish I had time to do a comma splice,
sentence fragment, semi-colon error, and a run on sentence!
25. Enjoyed it immensely. Good work, Prof. Moore.
26. I found the class interesting. I thought the attendance policy was a
little extreme. To only be allowed to miss two classes seems to [sic] harsh
to me. Professor Moore was interested in a problem that would cause a student
to turn in an assignment late. Over all I found Professor Moore hard but
fair. [Note: this student misunderstood my class attendance policy. P.M.]
27. Instructor was available during office hours as listed on the syllabus.
I appreciated that. I thoroughly enjoyed the course & feel it will be
helpful in the future.
28. I would recommend this class & Dr. Moore. He's fair and I enjoyed
the class.
29. I enjoy [sic] this course and it has helped me a lot. The teacher is
one of the best teachers I have had because he was interested and wanted
us to learn.
30. He is a swell guy.
31. What a great course!
32. Dr. Moore's class was great. He is a terrific instructor. Give him a
33. I will have 97 hours completed after
this semester, and this is the worst class that I have had to date. The
subject the problem was the instructor. He was totally
pig-headed. He wouldn't listen to a thing anyone said. I was totally unhappy
with his class.
34. Very knowledgeable instructor.
35. Dr. Moore was one of the most enjoyable
profs. I have studied under. I would recommend strongly, to anyone, to take
his class.
36. I enjoyed this class a lot. Patrick
Moore is an excellent professor. I learned a lot from this class,
and had fun.
37. Great job--keep up the good work!!!
38. I thought Moore was an excellent teacher
and I thoroughly enjoyed this class.
39. Very hard teacher. I learned a lot
40. The class of technical writing as a
whole was somewhat educational. The only thing that I really learned was
how to use a comma correctly. Mr. Moore is a joking person and makes the
class all but boring. However, he does not cover the material in the book
well at all. I am not the only person that has these feelings. The whole
class needed more information on the proposal project that we were assigned.
The only way to complete the assignment was to exactly copy an example that
Mr. Moore gave us. I do not feel that I have gotten my tuition's worth out
of this class. Mr. Moore, in my opinion, is not a good instructor. He spent
the whole time on grammar instead of on the format of our assignments. Mr.
Moore also has a bad tendency to joke with people in a way that embarrasses
them in front of the rest of the class. He makes fun of the origin of people
from the south, and digs at them to humiliate their integrity in from of
that person [sic] peers. [Note: This student showed me this typed evaluation
at the end of the course to taunt me with it. He had been disruptive, and
one day before class I escorted him into the hall to warn him privately
to settle down or he would be expelled. He called me &Yankee&
a few times in class, after which I sometimes called him &Bubba.&
41. I believe all UALR students should
take this class before graduating.
42. The last class was bogus. The rest
of the year was great.
43. I enjoyed this writing class. Dr. Moore
made the class very challenging and interesting. I did not like the format
of the &Style& book by Joseph Williams. [Note: Style is
a great book, and Williams is a genius.]
44. Dr. Moore is an exacting, sometimes
harsh, instructor, but despite this fact--I think he is one of the best
at this university. He covers a staggering amount of material, gives effective
assignments, and I found him to be scrupulously fair. He is always available
to students--giving both his home + office # for easy accessibility. I think
everyone should be required to take Technical Writing from Dr. Moore--the
college would produce far better writers. I did, however, think at times
he was a bit sarcastic to students--but it must be difficult for someone
of his intelligence to be patient with so many incompetant [sic] and badly
taught writers.
45. I feel that the instructor graded too
harshly. And that he counted off too much if something was too short or
too long. Too many assignments to do to [sic]
46. After talking with other students who
have enrolled in this class under different instructors, I am very glad
that Dr. Moore was my instructor. He is knowledgable [sic] in technical
writing and understands that writing in the business world is different
than [sic] other writing. I learned a lot and enjoyed the class.
47. This has been a valuable class. I'm
glad I took it.
48. One of the most effective and efficient
instructors I have had. Excellent job with difficult material.
49. Don't lose this guy.
50. Great Instructor! Great Course! I clepped
Comp I & II at another university but those clep hours did not transfer.
The English dept let me waive those two courses & take this one instead.
I have learned more in this class, that I will actually use in the
future, than in any course I have ever taken (including Bus Comm). Thanks
51. Dr Moore was the best instructor
I have ever had! He was tough but very fair. He was always extremely
well prepared for every class and returned every assignment graded with
constructive comments by the next class.
52. Dr. Moore is an excellent teacher.
He is encouraging, friendly, informed & interesting. He always
returned tests and papers promptly, and no matter how bad I did, he always
managed to find something positive to say about my work. It's nice to be
able to come to class and learn a lot without feeling overwhelmed. Dr. Moore
scared me to death the first night of class but now I feel like he's become
(almost) a friend. He obviously loves teaching and interaction with students
but he is not easy! He made us work for our grades, and I
appreciate that. I'd take him again any day.
53. Dr. Moore, although a hard &scorer,&
made the class great! I enjoyed it very much and will recommend Dr. Moore
54. I would highly recommend him to others.
I would gladly take other writing classes under his instruction.
55. This class was, by far, the best class
I have had at UALR. Dr. Moore was very effective and class was very challenging.
He always maintained a quick pace and lectures were always interesting.
I have learned so much this semester and I hope to take other classes from
this instructor.
Graduate seminar in technical communications:
1. Dr. Pat Moore is probably the best (or at least 1 of the top two) professors
I've had in any school. This class has been well- structured and challenging,
as well as interesting. Dr. Moore sets high expectations for students, takes
out a great deal of time to write detailed responses to all assignments,
and I think I'll be more productive in my career thanks to his instruction.
UALR has no idea how fortunate they are to have a professor of his caliber
and intellect teaching here, and I am privileged to be in this course--no
lie. If only all professors were as challenging as Dr. Moore, I would always
feel I got my money's worth at UALR. It is wonderful to get an A from him
and know I earned it. He doesn't just pass out A's arbitrarily &
and the hardworking students I've talked to appreciate that.
2. Good text, good explainations [sic], knowledge enhancing lessons--I liked
the extensive comments w/each graded assignment. This man works for his
money--Keep him on.
3. Pat's a great teacher. Most students either love him or hate him. I think
he's one of the best, most challenging teachers I've had. When he gives
you an &A& you know you've earned it.
4. Dr. Moore is an excellent teacher who knows his subject well & challenges
his students. I really appreciate the details [sic] responses he writes
when returning assignments. I also like the way he gives bad examples for
us to correct. I know I've become a much better writer because of his reading.
He's one teacher who really earns his salary & deserves a raise.
5. I found the class really challenging. I think many of the subjects we
discussed could be courses in themselves. The detailed responses were great.
The assignments were thought provoking. Everybody in this program should
be required to take classes in the technical writing option. I've learned
more under Dr. Moore than in most of the graduate and undergraduate courses
I've taken.
6. Although I agree that setting high standards is a good idea, I think
that some of Dr. Moore's editing requirements are a bit oppressive, especially
when they are not implemented within a context which acknowledges the entire
writing process. This is the only course I have had in the TEW [Technical
and Expository] program in which submitting several drafts was not
allowed. Dr. Moore stated at the beginning of the semester that the reason
he accepts only final drafts is that &that's the way it is in the real
world& (paraphrased, not a direct quote), which is patently false.
In reality, all writing is submitted for revision & editing,
and the writer depends on others to shape a more final form (which
is never perfect). Fortunately, Dr. Moore's grading system did not cause
me to dislike the course. I thought the course was great. I just
wish Dr. Moore's pedagogical approach was in harmony with the rest of the
TEW program. Oh well, maybe variety is good for us! It has been a challenge
and has kept me on my toes.
7. It was hard to know what the instructor's
expectations on students were. He might want to give students more detailed
instructions when he assigns homework. He might also want to consider accepting
revisions of papers. Since his criteria is [sic] sort of vague in grading
sometimes, it is hard to know how to write a paper which satisfies the instructor.
8. To the English Dept.--This is an outstanding course. But why don't you
list the course for what it is--Designing Instructions. It would be helpful
if prospective employers could tell from grade transcripts what &topic
tech writing& actually covers. The English Dept. needs to add more
technical writing courses, especially classes which emphasize visual design.
Dr. Moore knows his stuff. Give the man a raise.
9. Dr. Moore is an excellent professor. Having taken an undergraduate class
from him, I knew the course work would be rigorous. I also knew I would
learn a lot. Because of my positive experience in his undergraduate class,
I chose the technical writing graduate program. Every assignment was carefully
graded and critiqued with a typed letter. This professor really knows his
10. Designing instructions was a very interesting course. This instructor
is very knowledgeable and able to communicate course concepts very clearly.
I learned a lot in the class that I can apply to my work environment. I
would recommend this class and this instructor to other students. The instructional
materials effectively communicated course concepts. The instructor used
a variety of material in the class.
11. Although I generally approve of Dr. Moore's high standards, I think
he pays more attention to and penalizes for superficial errors. It is frustrating
to do an excellent job and to be penalized for one punctuation error. In
the real world, the broad concepts are more important and a writer would
have an editor before a job is finished. I wish Dr. Moore would grade on
a deeper level. I think his extreme concern for punctuation is an easy out
for looking for more serious mistakes. However, I did learn a lot
in this class and he is an excellent instructor in other respects. His grading
procedure can be demoralizing. I think he plays an unique role at UALR.
There is certainly no one like him. One last matter. It would be very helpful
for him to announce at the beginning of the semester that the students need
to explore the limits of their computer technology. The students should
know how to set columns, draw lines, set unusual page lengths, and use different
fonts (sizes, italics, etc.). Several times I found I had only a week to
learn a new feature or even to find another system to do assignments. I
thought I knew word processing thoroughly before this class.
12. This has certainly been one of the best classes I've had at UALR. My
writing ability & my self confidence have improved considerably. This
teacher has been fair and encouraging. He has explained the subject material
very well & made tasks that could have been drudgery exciting. I will
definitely take more of his classes & recommend them to other students.
13. I think the course and the course materials are very interesting. After
I took this class, I found out that this class really open [sic] my mind
on my future career, and I think the course will be a great help to me.
About the materials that we used in the class, I think they are very helpful
and the instructor are [sic] very knowledgeable and well prepared for the
class and also helpful.
14. Excellent teacher--obviously takes
job very seriously and it's greatly appreciated.
15. Dr. Moore is an exceptional teacher.
When I entered into this class I was unsure as to whether I wanted to take
a Masters Course in Technical Writing .... After taking this class for only
a couple of weeks I realized that I had made the right decision and am inspired
to continue on with my education. The assignments, although sometimes tough,
were beneficial and extremely helpful in my present job. Dr. Moore makes
you think about your work. He does not criticize your work, but gives you
options on how you could improve or enhance your documents. I appreciate
both Dr. Moore and his class. I would definitely sign up to take another
class under his direction. I am happy to say that I have actually learned
something.
16. All in all, the class went well. I
feel I am a better designer now than the beginning of the semester. I would
like to have seen a section on textual page layout (books, instructions,
etc.). I never felt comfortable with the way assignments were graded. It
seemed that sometimes criteria were brought up that influenced our grades
after the fact. (Some obscure author, the comments of a student, one in
particular was too vocal and should have been controlled!)
Despite these minor quibbles, the class was very informative
and the instructor did a super job. This should be offered more
17. Excellent class! Outstanding instructor!
Valuable class for anyone going into the business world. A variation of
this class would make an outstanding undergraduate class (if one doesn't
already exist).
18. Dr. Moore is demanding, but fair. I
think I can slip by him, but he catches me every time. We could have spent
more time with newsletters, but all in all this class was good. The course
was great.
19. I thought this was an extremely useful
class. I thought my DTP skills were good, but working along side (and, really,
competing with) my fellow students really pushed me in developing my design
skills. I thought your choice for assignments in class forced me to concentrate
on a wide range of DTP applications. Good job. Keep those
A's rolling in.
20. Dr. Moore's class was, as always, challenging
and I learned a lot about design--things I never would have
learned on my own. Dr. Moore is one of the best instructors @ UALR. His
classes prepare students for the &real world.& He also has a fun
personality and I enjoyed his class immensly (sp?!).
21. All in all, I feel that Dr. Moore is
one of the best instructors in the English Department. I have been very
impressed by Dr. Moore's efforts to return assignments by the next class
period and to make individual suggestions on each of our assignments. I
really appreciate that. He is also extremely knowledgable [sic] about technical
writing and that makes coming to class interesting.
22. Well, I've been in three graduate programs
lately, and Pat Moore's course is the only course teaching practical, relevant
material I've taken in a long, long time. I've been in a vast number of
theoretical classes, and this course (and Pat) have singlehandedly rescued
me from a permanent, jaundiced view of academia. This was a wonderful course,
and I was really glad that I took it! Thank you, Pat!
Undergraduate World Literature class:
1. Pat Moore's class was thoroughly enjoyable.
I would definitely recommend him to other people.
2. Most challenging course ever. Only course
that I have prayed for a &D& in. All in all I enjoyed it.
3. This class was very difficult but helpful.
4. Pat, I loved this class. Your [sic]
really tough, but I enjoyed your sense of humor and the way
you taught the class. I would highly recommend anyone to take your class.
Your [sic] against dumbing down education and challenged me to really think.
I hope to see you around the campus sometime. I do wish that I had done
a better job in this class. It was just real tough getting my s-it together
this time. Thanks.
5. I believe that the expectations were
high on originality. I am a business major and I haven't had any composition
classes since 1988. It was hard for me to get back in the groove. Just remember
it is harder for people who aren't used to writing everyday to always think
the way you do. This class was very challenging and I didn't always think
that my grades were fair. I really do like the instructor in class discussions.
6. I found this course to be challenging
but difficult.
7. Instructor was rude at times. He also
was so anal retentive it was unreal. He would mark a letter grade off of
papers for being 2 lines short of three pages. [Note: Not true. P.M.] His
saying was &two and a half pages are not three pages.& But the
truth is that papers should be graded on quality not quantity. Otherwise
&filler& is encouraged. Finally, he would count off on the class
participation grade for leaving class
early--even for a valid excuse. [Note:
Not true. P.M.] By the way, he needs to quit telling people what to do.
He does not pay us WE PAY HIM!!!! P.S. Tell him to try the hair club
for men. [Note: I am bald. P.M.]
8. Patrick has interesting, educational,
and focused classes. He is flawless until the matter of grading arises.
I, along with many of my fellow classmates, encourage Mr. Moore to tone
down the harshness of his critiquing. Before his class finished its first
day 3 people left. After the first paper another handful were gone. On the
day of this class, only 7 people are still enrolled. Sadly, I must attribute
this to his grading. For the betterment of the English Department, U.A.L.R.,
and the American People I encourage Patrick Moore to rethink some of the
harsher sides of his system and improve them for us all.
9. I feel like a more positive acceptance
of your students [sic] legitimate responses in class could build confidence
for future discussions. Confidence in ones [sic] own ideas and viewpoints
is critical in participating in class and in life. Give everyone a chance,
[sic] you may not know were [sic] they are speaking from.
10. I enjoyed Prof. Moore [sic] class immensely!
He goes out of his way to help students and always has time for questions.
He kept class stimulating!
11. He is unfair when grading essays. I
would have dropped the class if I knew he was so unfair. I would not recommend
him to another student. It should be noticed that 3/4 of the class dropped
after a few days, [sic] this is a hint.
12. I think the policy about loosing [sic]
a letter grade for comma splices, fragments, and run-ons is a little extreme.
I understand that we should be able to use the language efficiently and
be able to proofread with some skill. but [sic] everyone makes mistakes
once in a while and sometimes punctuation can be subjective.
13. I think class was o.k. but there should
be more variance in material, like science fiction. How about doing Frankenstein
or Dracula? That would be very interesting. I know those book [sic]
are ten times better than crap like Disclosure. [Note: I did not
assign students to read Disclosure. P.M.]
14. I would like to say that Pat Moore
is the finest English instructor I have ever had. The objectives of the
course were very clear from the first day thru end. He was always &up&
for every class being enthusiastic + caring about our opinions. He never
missed or canceled one class and was almost always there before students.
Our papers were always back to us next class period. Pat Moore is a definite
asset to this University's English Dept. and should be commended for his
15. I liked Dr. Moore. At first he was
very tough. But as the semester progressed I realized I was acquiring more
than just a &memorization& exercise. I was learning things that
I would use throughout my life. Dr. Moore is a great teacher.
16. I liked this instructor's way of &mapping&
out the semester, [sic] you always knew where you were and to where you
are going. This helps the student from &guess work,& or not knowing
where you stand. Dr. Moore is tough but encouraging at the right times.
I especially liked the notes attached to essays with his feedback on your
work. They are helpful and encouraging. I would strongly reccomend [sic]
this instructor to anyone.
17. I have thoroughly enjoyed this class.
I have laughed, been sad, disagreed, a whole range of emotions and thoughts.
I have not attended class since 1981, and I could not have made a better
choice for a class to start back to school with. I have been encouraged
and my determination to obtain my degree reinforced. Thanks.
18. I thought the grades for some essays
were lower than they should have been, but not too low. This was not the
case for everytime [sic], just occasionally. He kept asking me to talk more.
I did try and succeeded to a certain extent. He always said what I had to
[say] was thoughtful and insightful. I think the sheer amount he was wanting
in individual class discussions was not mindful with how much of the time
was filled with other students' offerings. I thought the class was great.
The complaints are minor in the grand scheme of things.
19. I find that Dr. Moore is an exceptional
teacher. To him, students do not have a wrong answer in class. He is able
to take their statement and mold it into the conversation at hand. At the
beginning of the semester, he told us of his expectations and scared off
about 60% of the class. His bark is worse than his bite. I would recommend
him to anyone.
20. I appreciated the extra push the instructor
gave me, in order to do well. He was anything but an easy teacher, but was
willing to help and fair. I can honestly say this is the hardest class I've
had and I have done well with the help of the instructor.
21. I had a few problems with the concept
of this class + Dr. Moore's teaching methods, not that it will make any
difference. #1--this multiculturalism for the sake of multiculturalism is
crap! Second Class Citizen [Note: one of the books we read.
P.M.] is a poorly-written, worthless novel, w/ no redeeming value other
than the illegal angle. Also Dr. Moore seems too willing to turn classes
into herding sessions. His mind works on a converting/missionary framework
and he resists dissenters. Overall, though, interesting class, although
not particularly enlightening or challenging.
22. Good & interesting teacher.
23. Hey, take the class. He's great!
24. Reading material need [sic] to be change
25. I think Dr. Moore is one of the most
outstanding teachers at this University. I consider him to be a great asset.
He has definitely helped me to improve my writing abilities and look more
in depth at literature. I have gained a great deal of knowledge from this
class alone. My expectations of this class were more than I gave it credit.
I really enjoyed this class with Dr. Moore and hope he continues to help
other students.
26. I thought his expectations were a little
high. He is a great instructor.
27. TOO MUCH HOMEWORK!
28. The grading system was hard. I made
one bad grade and was not able to recover from it.
29. I did enjoy this class. I found it
to be challenging and worth the effort. Thanks to this class, I'm writing
30. Mr. Moore is a good teacher, but he
needs to consider his students. Mr. Moore needs to realize that his class
is not the only class been [sic] offered at UALR. He piled us up with so
much work that it didn't allow us to study for anything else.
31. Strange way of relating TV shows to
32. Good class. Difficult but challenging.
Excellent teaching style but at times did feel that we were playing &Guess
what the professor is thinking&
33. Excellent instructor, very demanding.
34. I feel more prepared to write than
I have with previous Eng. dept. teachers.
35. This class was a waste of my time +
Mr. Moore needs to be more looser [sic].
36. Mr. Moore in general is a good teacher,
very challenging to say the least. But he needs to be more considerate,
[sic] he wasn't the only course in which I had, [sic] he piled to [sic]
many reading assignments as if we had nothing else better to do.
37. He takes a gifted, yet humerous [sic]
approach to the course. I have enjoyed him.
38. I feel that is [sic] grading scale
was unfair. There was a much lower percentage chance to get an A. His grading
was very intense. I feel that he did not make it easy to get a good grade,
for example: he wanted extensive class participation, but he wanted ideas
not discussed in class in his paper [assignments]. Leading to a no win situation.
39. There was too much work for number
of class hours. He expects too much from students. My other classes are
more comparable 1 in 3 out he is 1 in 6 to 7 out. [Note: ?] Look at his
syllabus v. others.
40. This course was helpful + Dr. Moore
is a good professor.
41. He could have chosen a better selection
of books to read.
42. I enjoyed this class very much. It
taught me to write better essays. Most of the essays I had written before
this class were informative while this class introduced me to writing essays
that are argumentative.
43. I would only recommend him as a teacher
if the student was willing to work. I enjoyed the class--but the writing
of essays was difficult.
44. I enjoyed the class but there was too
much work.
45. Dr. Moore is an excellent teacher.
He made World Literature an interesting subject for me. Although he was
tough, he was fair. I think my writing ability improved. He might disagree.
I would definitely recommend this course and Dr. Moore to the next generation
of UALR students. Thanks Dr. Moore and keep up the good work! See you around
46. I enjoyed this class very much. I feel
more confident with my writing and I have acquired a lot of knowledge from
this course. Although I'm not very interested in Literature, Professor Moore
kept me interested. I would definitely encourage my friends to take Professor
Moore for Literature. I hope he keeps up the good work!
47. After having been advised by several
students to drop the class after the first night, I became very glad that
I did not follow such advice. This instructor caused me to think. He challenged
me. I learned much more than literature while taking this
class. Although this class took a lot of my time (leaving me exhausted at
times), I will always be grateful for having this experience.
48. Tough class, but I learned a lot!
49. Covered too much material.
50. Grading was too hard! Tests were entirely
too difficult! I would never take this class unless I had to! The instructor
was too hard!
51. I enjoyed the course immensely. It
was very challenging, but that is why I am here. Thanks for a great semester.
52. Teacher really makes one think about
things. He pushes students in a good, helpful, effective way when they needed
53. Appeared to be very stimulated by class,
ethusive [sic], but tends to be rapid on remarks difficult to follow.
54. The instructor is a wonderful teacher.
He made you read between the lines to get your answers. The only problems
I have are: there should have been more ways to get points [sic] you should
have been given a chance to get a better grade if you read the material
and new [sic] this should have been world literature
analysis if he wanted us to think of new things that he hadn't seen in the
55. I enjoyed the class, once I prepared
for it. Mr. Moore was very helpful and &interesting.& Overall
grade for class A+!
56. The instructor, the information on
the subject and the class was [sic] interesting, BUT this class is
only a core requirement class not a graduate school course! His grading
system is way off and extremely harsh! I've taken a critical thinking composition
course at Los Angeles Valley College that used a committee of UCLA and LAVC
professors for grading our essays and UCLA English professors gave me A's
on essays twice as hard as these. This course, actually his harsh grading,
will definitely affect my GPA that would have otherwise been a 4.0 in my
5 other classes! This is the first non-AP or advanced essay writting [sic]
class that I've ever recieved [sic] any C's, let alone a C in the class.
This class was way too extensive in work load and the grading system
was extremely harsh, especially for a core requirement class! There really
needs to be some change in this! I would definitely not recommend
a friend to take him for this course because you'll work yourself to death
and still get a C! Unbelievable!!
Conclusion:
Years ago, sports writer Haywood Hale Broun became disgusted
at the coaching commonplace that &sports build character.& &Sports
reveal character,& Broun replied. High standards do the same. They
reveal the characters of students, parents, faculty, and university administrators.
Sometimes the revelation sometimes not. The World Literature
student above (38) who wrote that &he did not make it easy to get a
good grade& spoke volumes about her/his assumptions about academic
standards.
In the introduction to his essay about inflated grades,
inflated enrollment, and inflated budgets (see
on this site), John Stone summarized the damaging effects of lowered academic
standards. To take just one example, Stone cited the 1993 National Adult
Literacy Survey, which showed that almost 20% of the four-year college graduates
surveyed read at the level of high school dropouts. Some of Stone's other
examples were even worse.
Clearly something needs to be done about academic standards.
Paul Trout has many useful suggestions (and a very concise analysis) about
this situation in his essay, &Disengaged Students and the Decline of
Academic Standards& (Academic Questions, Spring 1997, Vol. 10,
No. 2: pp. 46-56). His advice to &raise consciousness of the problem,&
and to &raise our own expectations, grading standards, and course workload&
is worth following.
Many students respect high academic standards, and faculty
should enlist--whenever possible--those students in the attempt to return
colleges and universities to higher academic standards.