- #1
Dynamis
- 12
- 0
Okay, so today I had a physics test. I studied pretty well for it and was certain things would go well. I even took the initiative to go after to school the day before to get some extra help in understanding certain concepts.
Anyway, it's time to take the test and we begin. Our teacher tells us the test will be for the whole 70 minute period but we start like 7 minutes after the bell has already rung. So when we begin the test, I'm feeling pretty good because I think that I will do well. First I finish the multiple choice, which are pretty confusing because the answers are pretty much similar all throughout. Next comes the questions where we have to write down our calculations and show the work, etc.
Now these calculations questions are pretty tough in the sense that you have to really know your stuff and be quick since the test will most likely be a rush to the finish due to the lengthy nature of the questions chosen. When I first begin the calculation part of the test, I decide to do all the questions which I'm sure I'll get full marks on. As I'm running through the questions, I decide to do a few here and there, which I manage to figure pretty quickly. Here's the problem, when I come to one question, finding the tension and forces in a conical pendulum, I think to myself..."ah easy, this will be a breeze". When I begin the question, I look at it and realize that I CAN'T FIGURE IT OUT! I swear to myself that this is such an easy question but then I also think that I may be over looking something since there seems to be less information than usual. So in the end, I spend 15 minutes doing this question because it is worth quite a bit of marks. I should have moved on but I hate having spent so much time on a question only to have to move on to another question, wasting my test time and marks.
So, as I finish the question, I get that feeling that it seems awfully wrong. A bit more than halfway into the test, I find out my initial feelings were right as my teacher tells us that after reviewing the question due to other kids asking him what to do on it, he forgot to mention the radius to us in the conical pendulum question. At that moment, I let out a shriek and kind of murmur, "crap, I just spent 15 minutes on that question", gathering a few chuckles from my friends sitting around. So, I fix the question adding the radius to my given variables and finish the question in less than 5 minutes. In the end, this question has taken about 20 minutes from my time, including the time it took for erasing and fixing up etc. When the period is almost over, I realize that I have like hardly anytime left and have to rush through a few questions. I eventually do get through most of my questions but end up leaving 2 blank which I know I could have gotten to, had our teacher mentioned his error at the beginning of class and not so far in.
Eventually, crunch time comes and as he sees that no one has finished the test, so our teacher gives us 10 minutes more (which I only equate to being 3 minutes because of the late start). The test itself was a little too much for us I think too seeing that not one person was able to finish early, including the strong people in the class. The guy with the best mark in the class, sitting across from me, was frantically trying to finish his test as well. I was a little surprised at myself too, since I'm getting the second highest average in the class and yet found myself lagging behind.
So the time is up and our teacher comes around collecting the test papers. I plead to him my case that I should get a little more extra time for having been given the wrong information on the question, with HIM FORGETTING to add the radius. He says no and I say it isn't fair because I spent so much time on the question which had an error in it and wasn't able to finish the test, (mind you, this discussion happened in the span of like 10 seconds). He then all of a sudden goes pretty ballistic and says "You want to argue? You want to argue? You're getting a zero! You can keep your test now". At this point I'm pretty speechless because this has never happened in my life. He leaves the room, only coming back to say "You're getting a zero on that test, you know that right?" like 2 more times in front of everyone in the room (which was a lot because our physics room is a science help room with kids always coming in at this time because we wrote the test during the end of the day) because he sees me continuing to write. In response to his chants, I say, "fine, I'll go to the principle" almost out of defense because of the injustice I feel atm.
So at this point, I give myself the small amount of extra time needed because of his decision to give me a zero, since I figure I may as well just finish the question and give it to my chemistry teacher coming in the door in hopes of the physics teacher changing his mind. I even leave a 1 question blank because I rationalize that I just can't finish both questions I missed, even though it meant losing marks on something I would have gotten provided the right time... Thinking back though, the question I decided to give myself time on, I probably got wrong because at that point I was just so frustrated and angry/sad that he was basically giving me a zero.
By the middle of April, our marks for grade 12 go in and since I have physics in second semester, they see my full 1st semester marks but the half of my second semester marks because they decide around April-May on whether they want us or not. With this unit test being the only one we've done, my mark wiil be drastically low...The good news is, I've already been accepted by universities due to early acceptances based on previous marks. The bad news is, I need a scholarship for money (I'm not financially secure because my mom has cancer and dad lost his job for a while), but with this blemishing physics mark I won't get too much.
I've spoken to my guidance counsellor already, who told me I was in the right because it was the teacher's fault for not fixing the mistake and that he never had to be so drastic regardless. What I want to know is; do you guys think my physics teacher was justified in his actions?
BTW, sorry for the long post.
Anyway, it's time to take the test and we begin. Our teacher tells us the test will be for the whole 70 minute period but we start like 7 minutes after the bell has already rung. So when we begin the test, I'm feeling pretty good because I think that I will do well. First I finish the multiple choice, which are pretty confusing because the answers are pretty much similar all throughout. Next comes the questions where we have to write down our calculations and show the work, etc.
Now these calculations questions are pretty tough in the sense that you have to really know your stuff and be quick since the test will most likely be a rush to the finish due to the lengthy nature of the questions chosen. When I first begin the calculation part of the test, I decide to do all the questions which I'm sure I'll get full marks on. As I'm running through the questions, I decide to do a few here and there, which I manage to figure pretty quickly. Here's the problem, when I come to one question, finding the tension and forces in a conical pendulum, I think to myself..."ah easy, this will be a breeze". When I begin the question, I look at it and realize that I CAN'T FIGURE IT OUT! I swear to myself that this is such an easy question but then I also think that I may be over looking something since there seems to be less information than usual. So in the end, I spend 15 minutes doing this question because it is worth quite a bit of marks. I should have moved on but I hate having spent so much time on a question only to have to move on to another question, wasting my test time and marks.
So, as I finish the question, I get that feeling that it seems awfully wrong. A bit more than halfway into the test, I find out my initial feelings were right as my teacher tells us that after reviewing the question due to other kids asking him what to do on it, he forgot to mention the radius to us in the conical pendulum question. At that moment, I let out a shriek and kind of murmur, "crap, I just spent 15 minutes on that question", gathering a few chuckles from my friends sitting around. So, I fix the question adding the radius to my given variables and finish the question in less than 5 minutes. In the end, this question has taken about 20 minutes from my time, including the time it took for erasing and fixing up etc. When the period is almost over, I realize that I have like hardly anytime left and have to rush through a few questions. I eventually do get through most of my questions but end up leaving 2 blank which I know I could have gotten to, had our teacher mentioned his error at the beginning of class and not so far in.
Eventually, crunch time comes and as he sees that no one has finished the test, so our teacher gives us 10 minutes more (which I only equate to being 3 minutes because of the late start). The test itself was a little too much for us I think too seeing that not one person was able to finish early, including the strong people in the class. The guy with the best mark in the class, sitting across from me, was frantically trying to finish his test as well. I was a little surprised at myself too, since I'm getting the second highest average in the class and yet found myself lagging behind.
So the time is up and our teacher comes around collecting the test papers. I plead to him my case that I should get a little more extra time for having been given the wrong information on the question, with HIM FORGETTING to add the radius. He says no and I say it isn't fair because I spent so much time on the question which had an error in it and wasn't able to finish the test, (mind you, this discussion happened in the span of like 10 seconds). He then all of a sudden goes pretty ballistic and says "You want to argue? You want to argue? You're getting a zero! You can keep your test now". At this point I'm pretty speechless because this has never happened in my life. He leaves the room, only coming back to say "You're getting a zero on that test, you know that right?" like 2 more times in front of everyone in the room (which was a lot because our physics room is a science help room with kids always coming in at this time because we wrote the test during the end of the day) because he sees me continuing to write. In response to his chants, I say, "fine, I'll go to the principle" almost out of defense because of the injustice I feel atm.
So at this point, I give myself the small amount of extra time needed because of his decision to give me a zero, since I figure I may as well just finish the question and give it to my chemistry teacher coming in the door in hopes of the physics teacher changing his mind. I even leave a 1 question blank because I rationalize that I just can't finish both questions I missed, even though it meant losing marks on something I would have gotten provided the right time... Thinking back though, the question I decided to give myself time on, I probably got wrong because at that point I was just so frustrated and angry/sad that he was basically giving me a zero.
By the middle of April, our marks for grade 12 go in and since I have physics in second semester, they see my full 1st semester marks but the half of my second semester marks because they decide around April-May on whether they want us or not. With this unit test being the only one we've done, my mark wiil be drastically low...The good news is, I've already been accepted by universities due to early acceptances based on previous marks. The bad news is, I need a scholarship for money (I'm not financially secure because my mom has cancer and dad lost his job for a while), but with this blemishing physics mark I won't get too much.
I've spoken to my guidance counsellor already, who told me I was in the right because it was the teacher's fault for not fixing the mistake and that he never had to be so drastic regardless. What I want to know is; do you guys think my physics teacher was justified in his actions?
BTW, sorry for the long post.