Surviving the Worst Physics Curve: A Tale of Struggle and Resilience

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The discussion focuses on the extreme grading curves experienced in various physics and mathematics courses, highlighting the challenges students face with low average scores. Participants share personal experiences of receiving unexpectedly low grades, such as a 20/100 resulting in a C in Electromagnetism and a 10/100 leading to a D in Linear Algebra. Some recount instances where teachers adjusted grades downward due to high average scores, leading to frustration over unfair grading practices. The conversation also touches on the lack of grading curves at certain institutions, where even a passing score does not guarantee a passing grade, and the impact of minor errors on overall performance. Overall, the thread illustrates a shared sentiment of discontent regarding grading practices in challenging courses.
rubrix
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What is the worst curve your class has gone through?

What is the worst Physics curve you ever had?

20/100 = C (they didn't say what D was) in E&M for me.
10/100 = D, 30/100 = C in Linear Algebra.

P.S. @ staff, sry i couldn't think where the topic would fit better, if there is any feel free to move it. Thanks.
 
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I've had frequently had classes and tests in which 60/150 would have gotten you an A.
 
Im only in high school
But one of my teachers actually took points off of the tests because she said that the average score was too high. My 92 ended up being a B.
 
It's been a while, but I think one of my upper level E&M midterm average was something like 28/120.

I thought then, and I still think now, giving exams like that is stupid teaching by the professor. A simple typo that counts as just one point, like missing a ^2 or dropping a minus sign, can cost the student dearly in your final grade.
 
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Many, many years ago, I had an EE course on semiconductor devices. The course average was 12%. I sailed through with a high A... 36%.

This was the only course I ever had where the grades were exponentially distributed.
 
that's ridiculous. wow and i thought the curves at my school were bad
 
Consider yourself lucky. At my University there is no such thing as a "curve". Regardless of the difficulty, a 4/10 (the passing grade) remains a 4, whether the entire class succeed in getting it or not.
Sometimes there are only 3 people taking a final exam (at upper undergrad courses) and the can 3 fail as it already happened in the past months.
 
Many years ago at UC Berkeley, the first-year graduate quantum mechanics course mid (or final, I forget) term exam had an average score of 15 out of 100. Grading was quantized in steps of 5.

Bob S
 
I don't think I've had a course that curved an actual test. Just the final grade. The rest was a mystery.
 
  • #10
ice109 said:
that's ridiculous. wow and i thought the curves at my school were bad

exactly. All those ridiculous curve makes makes me think my school isn't that bad after all :lol:
 

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