Weird marking scheme for university course -

[saadsarfraz]

Hi, I am doing this really crazy course at university, i need some help in understanding the final course mark calculation which is:

Course mark = 0.6max{ T, F} + 0.4min{T, F}

T = term mark = 0.3( average percentage on assignments) + 0.7( average percentage on term tests)

F = final exam percentage

what does 0.6max{ T, F} supposed to mean! the part where max{ T, F} is what i don't understand, max is maximum but what does {T, F} means??

any help would be really appreciated.

 

[Kevin_Axion]

Term Mark and Final.
Sorry, I only read the last sentence, now I realize my answer wasn't useful.

 

[jtbell]

My guess is that 0.6max{T,F} means "0.6 times the larger one of T and F", and similarly for min{T,F} so if T = 95 and F = 85, then the course mark would be

0.6 * 95 + 0.4 * 85 = 91

The result would be the same if the grades were swapped so T = 85 and F = 95.

However, you really should ask the course instructor / professor about this.

 

[Klockan3]

Basically it is a nice system, since it emphasize the part of the course you did best on. So if you ace the exam you aced 60% of the course with assignments worth 40% or if you bombed the exam you just bombed 40% of the course and got the assignments and such weighing 60%.

Isn't that obvious from what you wrote?

 

[rezeew]

I can understand your confusion about this marking scheme. It is definitely not a conventional way of calculating a final course mark. However, after analyzing the formula, I can explain it to you.

The term mark (T) is a combination of the average percentage on assignments and term tests. This means that your performance throughout the term will be taken into account.

Now, the 0.6max{ T, F} part of the formula means that the final course mark will be 60% of the maximum value between T and F. In other words, whichever is higher between your term mark and final exam percentage will have a higher weight in determining your final course mark.

The remaining 40% of the final course mark will be determined by the minimum value between T and F. This means that even if your term mark is higher than your final exam percentage, the latter will still have some impact on your final course mark.

Overall, this marking scheme seems to prioritize the final exam performance, but also takes into account your overall performance throughout the term. I hope this explanation helps you understand the calculation better. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to ask for clarification. Good luck with your course!