If you asked me a few days ago, I’m not quite sure what I would have said (other than what I have written here,) yet I wasn’t really sure if I would pass all of my classes. I was somewhat worried I wouldn’t pass enough to qualify for continued federal aid next semester. Now again, as before, I don’t need the federal aid as the state program would substitute the fund necessary for everything except the book fee, just like the federal aid does. However again, as before, if I don’t quality for federal student aid, I also don’t qualify for a federal student loan, which is the crux of my existence at the moment, the current solitary source of income for the payment of necessary goods and services.
However, I passed, all is good. At this point I am sure a next semester will begin and the first five weeks will go well enough to not disqualify me before the loan disbursement is received. We could also begin to hope the next semester will also end well, yet that is a second matter to worry about later. For now, I know I aim to complete all requirements to receive the next disbursement, which will hold me well until we repeat this same process at the end of that semester hoping to receive the next disbursement for summer semester.
In the end I received five 3.5’s and one 2.0, however only as the result of bias from some of my teachers as I feel I should have earned one 4.0, two 3.5’s, then one each 3.0, 2.0, and 1.0.
According to that my overall all GPA would be a 2.83 which is inline with the 2.7 of my (very spread out,) first freshmen semester. However, now (over the last twenty years of adulthood,) I have gained a collection of knowledge from which to draw and (over the last two years,) have gained ability to express myself well in words. I have found that my words can affect other people in a powerful way and that I can use that to my advantage. My words can create bias, win arguments, and persuade thoughts, and compel actions. With the bias created I had a 3.25 result
I really wish I could think of a different word than “advantage”, as I don’t like the first connotation that brings to mind, yet that is what it is. With my words earlier this year I communicated effective and I believe prompted him to re-evaluate his teaching method as his methodology did change inline with my suggestions. However, the price I paid of pointing out his failure to grade papers more critically was much to bear. If I’d had more time available, I have no doubt my top work would have earned top marks with his enhanced grading skills. However, at the end of this semester, I did not have that much time available.
I had run the numbers (OMG, so glad I can even do that again,) and I knew exactly how many assignments I had to turn in (with the aforementioned lack of a final exam,)
[break to go walk the dog, 1:31 pm]
Or maybe not a break- apparently he just wanted to get into my lap instead… we’ll see how this works.
As I was that day, I knew what I had to do- IF and only if I would receive top marks. Being small assignments only, I might have to do them all- and do them all well if I was now confronted with a critical grader. However, again I’ll mention, I’ve got a mouth, and it’s a heck of thing when I put it in front of a keyboard. Now, I hate that I’m stuck being subjective, no matter how objectively I try to think. So, I’ll let you, the readers decide.
This is my final infographic assignment, the largest weight assignment available at 45 points (comparatively, the value of over two lab assignments or about six hours of quality work.) However, I spent about… oh I want to say ten seconds, but it was really at least five or six minutes at least. A few minutes to search google images for the base image, draw on the red parts with Paint dot net, and add the labels with some quick knowledge of the top of my head (and also included in this course in the Chapter 3.)
Now granted, this is PSA that I would have loved to see over the last two years, I can’t honestly say that it meets the criteria to receive full marks according to “Some Rubric” (ha, yeah that’s the actual screenshot of the matrix the teacher created.) Anyway, in what I accredit to the teachers response to email, I received top marks for the assignment, 45 points. Once that batch of assignments was graded, the infographic and few others, I saw the scheme was being successful and I recalculated my spreadsheet to account of the new variable of eased grading, then completed three more assignments. The third, I specified in the assignment that I was specifically only writing one of two paragraphs and only intended to receive half points
To his credit, he did was reading all my assignments including that paragraph as he scored me 5 of 10 as requested. Also, he finally emailed me a class syllabus so that by then I knew the exact requirements to pass: 70%. Being a total of 715 points, I needed to earn at least 500.5. Guess how much extra effort I extended? 0. Zero extra. At the end I received exactly 500.5, 70%, a passing grade.
Yet, only because of the bias for me that I created with my words.
Okay, more on this topic to go, yet I’ll stop writing now to think more about it. Yet, to finish the discussion about PSY, although the grade I received was the result of a positive bias for me, I think it’s on the low end of the grade range I deserve. Also, this was a personalized bias as the result of a very individualized situation, and the bias resulted in a greatest truth being revealed: On my third attempt to take Introduction to Psychology, I earned a 2.0 grade by the merits of the class and by my demonstrated use of psychology concepts in my email.
Okay, so sometimes bias is okay.