Spring semester grading: pass/fail

[JennyD]

Just FYI, I just got an email from Vanderbilt University saying that in light of the circumstances all undergraduate classes are now eligible for pass/fail grading.  The deadline has been extended to April 10 and all usual restrictions have been removed.  

 

[regentrude]

Yay! I was hoping that colleges do this, because any grading under these circumstances will not be comparable. 
It's going to be an issue with ABET accreditation for our engineering students, so I hope they find a solution. This would remove a lot of unnecessary stresses.

[Guest]

Hopefully the other TN schools will follow suit. I am convinced that if Vanderbilt hadn’t closed, no one else here would have. 

Edited March 18, 2020 by dmmetler

[Chris in VA]

5 hours ago, JennyD said:

Just FYI, I just got an email from Vanderbilt University saying that in light of the circumstances all undergraduate classes are now eligible for pass/fail grading.  The deadline has been extended to April 10 and all usual restrictions have been removed.  

 

I hope JMU will follow suit. Dd only has a couple classes that can even be online (music ed major). She got a heartbreaking email from her conductor about how all the performances are cancelled and how he hopes they can find a way to make music together soon. I guess you can't evaluate a performance if it doesn't take place. 

[regentrude]

4 hours ago, dmmetler said:

Hopefully the other TN schools will follow suit. I am convinced that if Vanderbilt hadn’t closed, no one else here would have. 

oh they would have. Maybe a week later. If the CDC says no gatherings above 50 people and the recommendation is for no more than 10, there is no point in operating face-to-face classes at any college.

Edited March 18, 2020 by regentrude

[lewelma]

MIT has it in their academic guidelines that in case of pandemic or war, the semesters affected would be Pass/Fail.  So once all the kids were sent home last week, it was automatically pass/fail.  No opt in.  All students, all classes. 

[regentrude]

43 minutes ago, lewelma said:

MIT has it in their academic guidelines that in case of pandemic or war, the semesters affected would be Pass/Fail.  So once all the kids were sent home last week, it was automatically pass/fail.  No opt in.  All students, all classes. 

wow. MIT had a prior policy for the case of a pandemic? Why can't have them in charge of running the country?

[RootAnn]

46 minutes ago, lewelma said:

MIT has it in their academic guidelines that in case of pandemic or war, the semesters affected would be Pass/Fail.  So once all the kids were sent home last week, it was automatically pass/fail.  No opt in.  All students, all classes. 

I would prefer this to opting in. That way, opting fir it wouldn't have a stigma. There would need to be something for gpas in terms of scholarships & the way some majors word their requirements that says certain classes can't be taken pass/fail.

[MerryAtHope]

Interesting...how do pass fail classes work for kids who are transferring? (would a transfer institution accept a "pass" instead of a letter grade in a required course that otherwise transfers?)

[JennyD]

38 minutes ago, RootAnn said:

IThere would need to be something for gpas in terms of scholarships & the way some majors word their requirements that says certain classes can't be taken pass/fail.

 

I didn't quote the whole email, but the rest of the message from the Vanderbilt Provost's office makes it clear that all of those kinds of requirements are now suspended.  

[elegantlion]

My son's college just announced their options for the rest of the semester. 

1. They take their mid-term grade as "credit" with no affect on the GPA. They will allow that to count for the course to be a pre-req for subsequent classes. Still not sure how that might affect courses in the major that require a certain grade to count for the major. 

2. They do a culminating final semester project (professors have great flexibility with this assignment) and that along with mid term will be your grade. So far I've hood that may contain a final paper or exam similar to what they would have done in class, obviously done online. 

3. Take an incomplete and finish at a later time

4. Withdraw from course. 

[Bootsie]

My university just announced that students can take 2 of this semester's classes as Credit/No Credit without it counting toward the maximum number of classes that they can designate that way.  However, rules about classes that cannot be credit/no credit will still be in place.  (The class I teach can't be taken for credit/no credit)  The last date to withdraw from the class has also been extended.

[RootAnn]

1 hour ago, JennyD said:

I didn't quote the whole email, but the rest of the message from the Vanderbilt Provost's office makes it clear that all of those kinds of requirements are now suspended.  

It will be interesting to see if more colleges follow suit. Based on the posts after yours, there seem to be discussions occurring with various options being put into place.

@MerryAtHope My DD's college classes (which weren't pass/fail) transferred as credits with no grades. I'm going to assume most colleges will understand this crazy time.

[Bootsie]

My university just announced a revised, revised policy about P/NC classes.  Students will be able to take any/all classes as P/NC and it will not count against the max they were allowed to.  However, GPA requirements in majors, for graduation, and other purposes are still in place.  However, they are warning that certain licensing boards will not accept P/NC coursework (e.g. CPA licensing in some states).  Therefore, students are told to carefully consider whether it is in their best interest to take this option.

[alewife]

My son's school announced this week that all classes for the semester will be strictly pass/fail.

My daughter's school announced that the kids will have the option of converting a grade to pass/fail at the end of the semester, even in-major classes, without it counting toward the pass/fail class limit.

Both kids are happy with their school's decision.

[Corraleno]

DS's school is allowing pass/fail for all classes in Arts & Sciences (not sure about the schools of Engineering, Business, etc.), and the usual restrictions on major/minor/GE classes are waived. Plus they are giving students until one week before finals to decide if they want to switch to P/F. I've been really impressed with how the school has handled all the craziness and upheaval — it's no small feat to totally retool classes for 60,000 students, move 15,000 off campus, etc., and they have been really well organized, with good communication. They are even refunding recreation fees as well as room & board. 

[regentrude]

Our school has found what I consider the perfect solution.

Instructors will still issue letter grades. All Fs become  Us and won't affect GPA. Students can choose whether they want to take a P instead of their (A,B,C) or convert their D into a grade of U. Pass will be considered to satisfy prerequisites that require "C or better" grades. 

Edited April 3, 2020 by regentrude

[easypeasy]

Our local CC has given the students the option to choose between P/F or taking a letter grade.

DDs college is still silent on the issue. They've emailed a couple "we know you're wondering about this..." emails, but haven't made a decision two weeks into online classes.