/sci/ - Science & Math

[Anonymous No.4524627]

>tfw you're a first year high school Chemistry teacher
>tfw you look on RateMyTeachers to see how you're rated
>tfw straight frowny faces
>tfw one kid complains that I test on stuff I don't explain in class and expect them to be able to apply what I teach to new situations

[Anonymous No.4524630]

I'm gonna look through all teachers on RateMyTeachers, just to find you and I'm gonna add a new comment that says "he shitposts on 4chan's science board".

[Anonymous No.4524631]

Be a better teacher.

[Anonymous No.4524643]

That sucks man. Underpaid and under appreciated. Just know that any class that is even slightly difficult will have reviews like that; it isn't necessarily your fault. People don't like to place blame on themselves so they blame the teacher, etc.

[Anonymous No.4524645]

Take a proactive approach.

On the first day, tell the students: "I won't spoonfeed you every detail of the tests. A lot of chemistry means understanding how these different components interrelate, and being able to combine what you've learned without my explaining it is going to be vital to having a solid fundamental knowledge of chemistry. I won't leave you out to dry with it, I'll make sure I teach you every COMPONENT you need to do well in this class, but you'll have to be able to put those pieces together when it comes time to test."

That in mind, give this particular kid the benefit of the doubt and double-check your own test methods. If students consistently miss a given question, look at how you taught it in the first place and make sure it's sensible from the perspective of some kid who's never used the word "hydrocarbon" in his life if that's the audience you have, because you're a teacher and sometimes that means teaching people who don't care about the things you love.

But maybe you just wanted to vent, in which case, I really do sympathize with you man. Sometimes, students are assholes.

[Anonymous No.4524646]

you're probably just unattractive and not very nice.

[Anonymous No.4524649]

>>4524627
They probably just don't like that my tests show if you get the concepts (not if you've simply done the homework, that's what the pop quizzes and homework points are for).

[Anonymous No.4524652]

>>4524646
Untrue. One of the posts even mentions "nice guy" but then goes on to bitch about difficulty and curving 50%-60% test averages to a C+. Homework, labs, and quizzes bring it up. Yes, this means only a couple kids get an A... that's how college Science is.

[Anonymous No.4524661]

>RateMyTeachers

Mr. [chemistry teacher] is super hot!! I totally would have given him more than that handjob for my A... maybe I should tell him? OMG I hope he doesn't read this!!!

[Anonymous No.4524659]

>>4524627
I'm an undergrad student, and we have this huge repository of comments and recommendations on every professor here

Every single time a professor doesn't distribute As like candy, SOMEBODY will go over there and complain how hard the tests were, and how unfair the professor was, and so on and so forth. After a while, pretty much most teachers have profiles that are riddled with comments like these, yet they mean absolute piss overall since they're almost always written by stupid retards who didn't give 2 shits about the course

I don't know how good a teacher you are, but the only bad thing you've done right now is give angry, lazy and stupid teenagers any sort of credibility

[Anonymous No.4524671]

>>4524652
>that's how college Science is.

That's not how high school science is.

[Anonymous No.4524673]

>>4524645
Pretty good. I think the problem is that the other Chemistry teachers in my school use the book's multiple choice "test bank" questions. I write all of my own tests based on real life applications of different ideas... for example, on the Chapter 1 test I gave this question:

Problem #2 -- (20 points): Dimensional Analysis & Algebra I Check
In the field of fluid mechanics, the Reynolds Number is frequently used to evaluate the manner in which liquids flow. The Reynolds Number is given by the following formula:

Re = (ρvL)/μ

Where: ρ is the density of the fluid (units: kg/m^3), v is the velocity of the fluid (units: m/s), L is the length through which the fluid travels (you should know the SI unit for length), and μ is the viscosity of the fluid (units: kg/(m*s)).

A. What are the units for the Reynolds Number? (15 points)
B. Solve the equation above for ρ (get ρ by itself). (5 points)


You wouldn't believe the shitstorm that question caused... there was bitching left and right about "never mentioning the Reynolds Number in class", despite the fact that's not the point of the problem.

[Anonymous No.4524675]

>>4524652
>high school
>having to curve failing grades to a C

You're not a college professor teaching a weeding out class. You're supposed to be preparing your kids FOR a weeding out class.

[Anonymous No.4524681]

>>4524673
dude, what the fuck. you literally gave everything that's needed in the question.

seriously, they don't need to know shit other than how to cancel things in fractions. how could this have caused a shit storm?

i mean fuck, my high school was total shit but even we didn't get such piss simple stuff.

[AcidFrippFag (Tyler, the Cооltop-Loving Touristfish42O))) !!aA0GbTMNLDz No.4524684]

>>4524673
Congrats. Your students are retards.

Or, so it woud seem. The whole "first year" part is your problem. These kids are straight out of Elementary/Middle/Whatever school, where you've got no idea what they were and weren't taught. Second or third year of high-school, OK, go ahead. But these kids could've done (almost literally) nothing in their previous school. Seriously.

I whole-heartedly support you because you make kids use their brains. But if nothing has been put into these brains previously, we have a problem. It may be that it's not the fault of the students.

Or, they're just dumb-fucks. I can't tell.

[Anonymous No.4524686]

>>4524673
I can see where students could get frustrated with something like that, because just from the perspective of someone who wasn't very good at high school science, having any new concepts even show up on a test can be really intimidating.

[Anonymous No.4524692]

>>4524673
Holy shit, what the fuck are you doing? Your teaching chemistry and not math. You cannot come up with calculus shit in a chem test. Most of the students didn't even take calculus in highschool.

[Anonymous No.4524694]

>>4524673

I must inform you that you sound like an excellent teacher with a bunch of really lousy students. The only way that could be easier (which may have reduced the shit storm to a category 4) would be to mention that it is not required to understand the meaning of a Reynolds number to answer this particular question.

[Anonymous No.4524695]

>>4524673

That's not even a science question, that's an algebra question.

Also
>mfw your colleges mark to curves
>mfw science at the number 1 uni in my country doesn't, but law and econ do.

[Anonymous No.4524696]

>>4524681
This was the shitstorm basically:

>"You never mentioned the Reynolds Number."
>"You only taught us how to cancel units to convert numbers in metric."
>"Y u make us apply knowledge instead of testing on the homework we memorized?"

[Anonymous No.4524697]

>>4524692
dimensional analysis and cancelling of units and shit is chemistry

[Anonymous No.4524699]

>>4524627
just tell them from the get-go that homework tests mathematical topics, and tests test conceptual. as long as you do that, they cant complain. concepts are just as important as mathematics; being able to regurgitate doesnt mean shit if you dont know what it means. but it really is important to know what the fuck is up. dont be discouraged., and good luck

[Anonymous No.4524703]

why the fuck would you want to be a teacher?

chemistry has nojobs, man?

[Anonymous No.4524708]

>>4524686
it's only new if he never taught them dimensional, or rather dimensionless, analysis.

i had a similar (physics) teacher in high school that forced you write out all the units and cancel them step by step. i did it freshman year, i don't see why others can't.

>>4524692
because canceling units = calculus

the only thing i can give OP's retarded students is that it is a bit of a trick question in the sense that you asked for the dimensions to a dimensionless number.

[Anonymous No.4524713]

>>4524673
mfw im a chemical engineer and know what Re is!
but agreed, it shouldnt matter that youve never discussed it. they SHOULD be able to do it.

[Anonymous No.4524716]

>>4524695
>>4524692

The first chapter of Honors Chemistry at my school (and most schools I'd imagine) is about 60% Unit Conversion and the rest is that "Physical Change/Chemical Change", "Temperature Scales", etc.

I gave the "part B" to make sure all students had the Algebra I skills (which is a prerequisite) to succeed in future chapters (this was before the date when the could switch to the lower level Chemistry).

>>4524694
Thanks, I appreciate that.

>>4524684
By "first year", I mean it's my "first year teaching".

[Anonymous No.4524717]

>>4524627

>teacher in high school
>"I test on stuff I don't explain in class and expect them to be able to apply what I teach to new situations"
>straight C's

Well, that's to be expected. Sadly, most high school students don't have enough interest/patience to fully comprehend the subjects being given. They'll mostly memorize formulas and basic answers and hastily remember them in a near future if necessary.

What you're doing is the right, yet the rough way. You're actually testing them, and you're getting the expected results, due to the fact that it's extremely difficult to get everybody in class to understand the subject being given due to the matter of individuality of each student.

While the smart people and interested kids may get good grades in your tests, your average student won't.

The way to ease it up for them here without sacrificing content is to make up fairly similar exercises for free time in class/homework to match the situations in the tests so the more attentive students can get their doubts answered. While this may sound less official for an actual test, it actually isn't. It allows the students to see beyond the default formulas by doing the exercises in class, instead of after receiving a terrible grade.

[Anonymous No.4524730]

>>4524703
I actually have a Chemical Engineering degree and turned down offers to teach because I wanted to (at least for a few years).

For the record, the average score on that problem above: 13. Nearly everybody got part B, but mostly everyone faltered on part A.

Here's the kicker for me though: When the departmental midterm (which was not written by me, but the department head) came around, my class got the highest average on it.

[Anonymous No.4524742]

>>4524627
What do you care?

Hail and kill OP. If they get bad grades, its their fault.

[Anonymous No.4524749]

>>4524716
What grade are you teaching then? And bitchy kids aside, how's teaching? yknow, the workload, pay, hours, benefits/inconveniences and whatnot.

[Anonymous No.4524760]

>>4524716

Yeah, that's what I was getting at; if they can't do a fucking comprehension question and elementary algerba, I don't see how they would remember and know how to apply Re in terms of dimensional analysis or scaling... whoever they had for algebra has left you with a rough row to hoe.

[Anonymous No.4524775]

Wow. High school teacher.
That must be one of the world's worst jobs. Especially since you're no longer allowed to beat the children.
Don't worry though, OP. RateMyTeachers isn't really an accurate measure, it's just a place for disgruntled students to vent

[Anonymous No.4524777]

>>4524749
My Honors Chemistry courses are 10th grade for the most part.

Teaching isn't bad at all to be honest. The hours decent, I have to be up by 6am to get there by 7, but I get out by 3 except for Thursdays (after-school review sessions).

Pay is alright too. I'm fortunate to be in a state where Teachers live pretty comfortably, and I have great benefits.

My workload isn't tight. I don't check homework for accuracy (only completion) so it takes 8 minutes to grade a night's homework. Pop quizzes (STRAIGHT from the homework, no numbers changed at all) takes a half hour or so. Tests, I try to give them back as soon as everyone's taken them, but grade them the night of take a few hours.

Compared to my ChemE history... nothing.

[Anonymous No.4524788]

Just become a QC chemistry technician op.

[Anonymous No.4524808]

>>4524673
Beautiful question, I must say.

[Anonymous No.4524809]

>>4524775
ratemyprofessor is pretty useful, at least in college. Specifically, things like:
-"This professor is hard, but awesome and a great teacher"
are good signs, and things like
-"His accent was so strong I couldn't understand a thing he said"
-"He ate a student in class. I don't think he's human"
are bad signs.

[Anonymous No.4524816]

>>4524809
Do you really think someone would seek out a website like this if they didn't have a grudge against their teacher?

[Anonymous No.4524821]

>>4524777
>10th grade
>Mfw

Wtf is wrong with those kids?

[Anonymous No.4524830]

>>4524816
Are you retarded, or have you just never logged onto rate my professor?
It's ridiculously for your first few years. Tons of positive AND negative feedback.

[Anonymous No.4524836]

>>4524808
Thanks. The "Interpreting Graphs" section was even worse. I told the students upfront that they'd need to know how to read graphs in relation to the material (again, because Algebra I is a prereq and it's an important skill for future chapters/college).

This was met with:
>"You didn't teach graphs in class."
>"You never told us how to read graphs."
>"How was I supposed to know the pie's temperature would become horizontal?"

[Anonymous No.4524846]

A physics professor and his assistant are working on liberating negatively-charged hydroxyl ions, when all of a sudden, the assistant says, "Wait, professor, what if the salicylic acids do not accept the hydroxyl ions?" And the professor responds, "That's no hydroxyl ion; that's my wife!"

[Anonymous No.4524848]

>>4524836
Here's that question, if any of you are curious:

Problem #4 -- (12 points): Graph Analysis
Indicate neatly (with the correct Roman numeral) which graph best correlates to the scenario given. Unless otherwise indicated, the origin of the graph may not be (0,0). Graphs may be used more than once, or not at all. Choices are on the next page (3 points each):

A. Temperature of a fluid (Fahrenheit) v. Temperature of the same fluid (Celsius).


B. The weight of a hippo before and after a parakeet sits on top of it, as read by a scale accurate to ± 5 pounds v. time.


C. This graph best depicts the rate of chemical change that a glass bottle experiences when it is shattered into smaller and smaller pieces with a hammer.

D. Temperature of a pie (Fahrenheit) v. time it sits on my kitchen table after being taken out of the oven.

[Anonymous No.4524858]

>mfw OP graduated with a hard science degree only to teach HS for 28k a year

[Anonymous No.4524871]

>>4524858
>That's $38k, actually.

[Anonymous No.4524873]

>>4524836
In my experience,high school kids prey on weakness. They're trying to get easy points with little work (even if they sometimes don't conciously realise it). If they feel the teacher can be coerced into changing his evaluating method (for w/e reason ; weak willed teacher, overly complicated subject matter, teacher who just doesn't give a fuck, incompetent teacher, etc) they WILL try. Essentially explain clearly why you do things the way you do, but never try and over justify yourself. Make it clear that this is how it's gonna be and if those kids wanna pass they better man the fuck up and learn (without sounding like an ass ideally). Good luck.

[Anonymous No.4524880]

>>4524873
Thanks for the advice.

[Anonymous No.4524881]

>>4524848
A. I
B. II
C. V
D. III

pls grade

[Anonymous No.4524882]

>>4524627
Is one of these you op?
http://www.ratemyteachers.com/dale-snyder/85070-t
^seems like the classic 4chan aspie
http://www.ratemyteachers.com/joshua-calhoun/2418992-t

[Anonymous No.4524891]

>>4524881
75%...

The bottle one (which was missed by roughly half of the class, that mostly said IV) is II as well. The shattering is a physical change.

[Anonymous No.4524893]

>>4524848
wow that is a shit question

[Anonymous No.4524897]

>>4524882
No haha. Again, this is my first year teaching.

[Anonymous No.4524901]

you should quit teaching chemistry and sell meth

[Anonymous No.4524903]

>>4524893
How so? It's meant to be easy points...

[Anonymous No.4524904]

>>4524858

>mfw teaching HS students about math & science will probably have a much greater impact on the world than any PhD's research.

OP do not compromise a damn thing; you've got an important job.

Start stapling forms to transfer into Special Educations or job applications to McDonalds to those students' tests, and if parents or administrators try to complain tell them to go fuck themselves.

Our future rests in your hands.

[Anonymous No.4524911]

>>4524903
it's a trick question?

4 options, 4 questions.
only 3 options used.

[Anonymous No.4524918]

>>4524891
but wouldn't the shattering introduce defects in the crystal structures or does that not count as a chemical change?

[Anonymous No.4524919]

I wasn't always a science student, but my high school chemistry teacher molded me into one. He was the greatest instructor I ever had, and I don't even like chemistry all that much. Every time I went into class, he'd be playing some Judas Priest, Megadeth, Anthrax, etc and then jump right into balancing equations. When I look back at my scientific education over the years and why I'm now going for a BSc in physics, I realize that my physics teachers have been shit, my math teachers have been even worse, but my chemistry teacher was awesome. You can have an impact, OP. Just keep an eye out for students who actually care.

[Anonymous No.4524921]

>>4524911
I seriously hope trolling...

5 Options
4 Questions
3 Used

Question explicitly states: "Graphs may be used more than once, or not at all."

6/10 if trolling... I'm genuinely confused.

[Anonymous No.4524924]

>>4524918
I stand by the answer still.

Nobody put V for that question anyways.

[Anonymous No.4524927]

Keep up the good work, my chemistry teacher in HS was the one that actually got me interested in science. Your class is "honors", make them work for it.

[Anonymous No.4524929]

>>4524921
>i seriously hope trolling

is that what you told your students when the majority of them got it wrong?

when the majority miss an otherwise 'easy' question, something is wrong.

[Anonymous No.4524931]

>>4524927
>>4524919
>>4524904

Thanks for the encouragement.

[Anonymous No.4524936]

>>4524929
I said something like "The graphs were supposed to be low-hanging fruit for you guys to pick from the point-tree, but B and C squandered that chance."

[Anonymous No.4524938]

Hey OP, something I've always wondered about teachers. If someone in your class doesn't seem to be paying attention and is say, reading an unrelated book in your class, yet maintains a high grade through out the year, do you hate that kid? If so, why?

[Anonymous No.4524950]

what would you say is a good introductory chemistry textbook to use? do you use this one for your class?

[Anonymous No.4524952]

>>4524936

[Anonymous No.4524963]

"worst teacher ever"

[Anonymous No.4524965]

>>4524950
I prefer Brown, LeMay, Burston. I am forced by the department to use a variation of Petrucci however.

>>4524938
It seems like most teachers care. I just shrug my shoulders and say "choices". That would hurt his "Participation" grade (I know, I know... it's only 1 measly % though).

[Anonymous No.4524971]

Post more questions OP.

[Anonymous No.4524975]

>>4524971
Sure:

Problem #1 -- (40 points): Unit Conversion

A.An episode of the 1990s’ sitcom Boy Meets World entitled “Danger Boy” featured a roller coaster with a top speed of 90 mph. Convert this speed to km/s. (5 points)
B. The light beam on top of the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas can be seen from 250 miles away. From how far away can the light beam be seen, in nanometers? (5 points)
C. One worker at “Evil Conservative Industries” is capable of completing 12 “Velvet Elvis Paintings” per work-week. If there are 72 (equally fast) workers at the company, approximate the number of “Velvet Elvis Paintings” that get completed every Tuesday. (10 points)
D. The juice company “Hi-C” marketed a delicious beverage known as “Ecto Cooler” from 1987-2001. Due to its popularity, many “Ecto Cooler” enthusiasts used a homemade recipe to prepare the drink after its discontinuation (the recipe makes 1 gallon of “Ecto Cooler”).

The recipe requires ¾ Cups of orange juice. How many liters of orange juice are required to prepare a 3 gallon batch of “Ecto Cooler”? (12 points)
E. The total runtime of the Arctic Monkeys’ album “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not” is 40 minutes, 56 seconds. Express the total runtime of the album in kiloseconds. (8 points)


(Information given on the formula page)

1.00 mile = 1.609 km
1 work-week = 5 days
1 cup = .25 quarts
1 quart = .25 gallons
1 gallon = 3.785 liters
F° = (9/5)C° + 32

[Anonymous No.4524979]

>>4524975
Ack, awful spacing:


A. An episode of the 1990s’ sitcom Boy Meets World entitled “Danger Boy” featured a roller coaster with a top speed of 90 mph. Convert this speed to km/s. (5 points)

B. The light beam on top of the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas can be seen from 250 miles away. From how far away can the light beam be seen, in nanometers? (5 points)

C. One worker at “Evil Conservative Industries” is capable of completing 12 “Velvet Elvis Paintings” per work-week. If there are 72 (equally fast) workers at the company, approximate the number of “Velvet Elvis Paintings” that get completed every Tuesday. (10 points)

D. The juice company “Hi-C” marketed a delicious beverage known as “Ecto Cooler” from 1987-2001. Due to its popularity, many “Ecto Cooler” enthusiasts used a homemade recipe to prepare the drink after its discontinuation (the recipe makes 1 gallon of “Ecto Cooler”).

The recipe requires ¾ Cups of orange juice. How many liters of orange juice are required to prepare a 3 gallon batch of “Ecto Cooler”? (12 points)

E. The total runtime of the Arctic Monkeys’ album “Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not” is 40 minutes, 56 seconds. Express the total runtime of the album in kiloseconds. (8 points)

[Anonymous No.4524982]

Information given on the front page:

1.00 mile = 1.609 km
1 work-week = 5 days
1 cup = .25 quarts
1 quart = .25 gallons
1 gallon = 3.785 liters
F° = (9/5)C° + 32

[Anonymous No.4524985]

What pished you towards high school education? Doesn't teaching such basic concepts stop you from being stimulated by your work?

[Carl Sagan !SAGAN7mVOk No.4524991]

>>4524979
Why the fuck do you make up silly stories around the questions? That's inane garbage. I'd totally hate you if you were my teacher.

[Anonymous No.4524994]

>>4524975

People are complaining about these? I can see how the "application" part might throw you for a loop, but if you read the problems in their entirety and think for 3 seconds, they aren't hard at all. We had harder problems when I took chemistry in HS... I'm glad there's a teacher out there that actually gives a shit and doesn't compromise due to whiny students...

[Anonymous No.4525001]

>>4524991

>tripfag

Opinion disregarded. Post as "Anonymous" or fuck off.

[Carl Sagan !SAGAN7mVOk No.4525007]

>>4525001
So that's why your a bad teacher. You rate people by they're name and not by there tests.

[Anonymous No.4525008]

>>4524985
I didn't think I would, but it's already starting to do that. Seriously considering going into industry.

>>4524991
Because these questions are creative and got a few laughs or "I love that show/episode/band". This allows me to relate to my students better.

[Anonymous No.4525013]

>>4525007

>there

Now I know you're trolling. Also,

>implying I'm OP

[Anonymous No.4525017]

>>4524924
bullshit, i demand partial credit.

[Anonymous No.4525023]

>>4525008

Also the tripfaggot is under the mistaken impression that real life problems are always presented crystal-clear and with all the necessary information. Kids these days...

[Anonymous No.4525025]

>>4525017
Heheh... admittedly. If a student were to pull that one out I'd be impressed. If they so much as knew of a defect type I'd probably give them a pity point or two.

[Carl Sagan !SAGAN7mVOk No.4525026]

>>4525023
Nope. At least real life problems are not about shitty music or shitty tv shows. Keep this crap out of my SCIENCE.

[Anonymous No.4525031]

>>4525026
>HS Chem
>Chapter 1
>Science

Pick only 2

[Carl Sagan !SAGAN7mVOk No.4525037]

>>4525031
>dumbing down SCIENCE

Its fucking SCIENCE and SCIENCE has to be taught as SCIENCE.

[Anonymous No.4525040]

Have you talked to the other teachers, see what they do with this kinda shit? Specifically the other science/math teachers. Maybe that could help you get some perspective.

>Assuming they're not incompetent

[Anonymous No.4525042]

QUIT RESPONDING TO THE TRIPFAG. HE IS A TROLL AND A MORON. HIS SOLE PURPOSE IS TO SHIT UP THE BOARD.

[Carl Sagan !SAGAN7mVOk No.4525046]

>>4525042
Stop shitpoasting. Contribute to the thread instead.

[Anonymous No.4525055]

>>4524675
Yup, this is being a complete dick.

The point of testing is to see whether the students have learned the subject. Every student capable of passing should be able to get 100% with hard work and careful attention to detail.

It's not appropriate to go beyond that, to additionally include brutally difficult problems that make up a substantial portion of the exam to distinguish the especially talented students.

And grading on a curve is ALWAYS wrong, and is a sign of an incompetent test designer. (yes, college professors are commonly incompetent teachers, incompetent testers, and dicks in general)

[Anonymous No.4525058]

>>4525046
you do not "poast"

you post

[Anonymous No.4525059]

http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=%28%28k%2Fm^3%29*%28m%2Fs%29*%28m%29%29%2F%28k%2F%28m*s%29

wut..?

[Carl Sagan !SAGAN7mVOk No.4525062]

>>4525058
O RLY?

[Anonymous No.4525064]

>>4524673

>not using Poise for unit of viscosity
>not having them derive a velocity gradient
>Not having them determine a flow rate
>Not teaching your students fluid mechanics

They're not being challenged.

[Anonymous No.4525071]

>>4525055
Not OP but did you even read the thread? He posted some questions and they should be able to do that with ease, especially the Re one.

[Anonymous No.4525072]

>>4525040
They see no issue with it as long as I curve.

Of 5 Chem Teachers in the school I teach at, 3 of us teach Honors Chemistry.

I teach 4 sections daily of Honors Chem.
Ms. [insert name here] teaches 2 sections Honors, 1 AP, and 1 Honors Organic elective
Mr. [insert name of choice] teaches 1 section and then regular Chem.

The other two just teach regular or "Concepts Chem".

The female is rated poorly (and supposedly is mean), but is seen as "easier" than I am. The other guy is rated well to mediocre, but he's also very easy (which makes sense... he's about 50 and doesn't seem to care much).

[Anonymous No.4525069]

>>4524848

Your students are probably confused by your wording. Try to shorten the problem.

[Anonymous No.4525076]

>>4524979
These questions are retarded.

250 miles in nanometers?
"Evil Conservative Industries"?
kiloseconds?

I get that you're testing the ability to do unit conversions, but use examples that make sense, and don't throw in gratuitous stupidity.

[Anonymous No.4525084]

>>4525076
The goofiness of the question shouldn't affect it at all. Also:

>implying kiloseconds isn't legit

[Anonymous No.4525090]

>>4525072
>Honors Organic
>High school

Oh god I would love to see how that goes.

[Anonymous No.4525093]

Ok, last question from the first test:

Problem #3 -- (28 points): Conceptual Free-Response
Complete the following four conceptual sections. Your best section will be worth 10 points, the next best will be worth 9 points, next 6 points, and your worst section will be 3 points.

A. Mr. [name removed] leaves liquid “Ecto Cooler” outside in the middle of January. He returns to find the “Ecto Cooler” has frozen. Is this a physical change or a chemical change? Explain.
B. At what temperature would a Celsius thermometer and a Kelvin thermometer give the same reading? Explain.
C. Describe what types of error are present in the four different scenarios regarding accuracy and precision (high accuracy, high precision; low accuracy, high precision; etc.) that we discussed in class.
D. “Ecto Cooler” is a homogeneous mixture. Explain why it is considered a mixture and not considered a pure substance. Explain why it is considered a homogeneous mixture, and not a heterogeneous mixture.

[Anonymous No.4525094]

>>4525084
>implying kiloseconds are ever used in anything but unit-conversion tests designed by idiots

[Anonymous No.4525096]

>>4525090
It covers about the first semester of a typical College Class. They stop at NMR/IR/MS.

[Anonymous No.4525101]

>>4525093
>B. At what temperature would a Celsius thermometer and a Kelvin thermometer give the same reading? Explain.

reading as in the same number? what's with the trick questions.

[Anonymous No.4525103]

>>4525101
This is admittedly the trickiest question on the test. At worst, this costs them 3 measly points though. If a student asked for clarification, I gave it to them though.

[Anonymous No.4525108]

>>4525093
What is up with you and Ecto Cooler?

[Anonymous No.4525119]

>>4524848
This is a good example of being a stupid asshole teacher.

God you suck.

[Anonymous No.4525134]

YO WHEN DOES celsius give the same reading as kelvin, i honestly do not know, senior ECE, ECO, APPLIED MATH major here

[Anonymous No.4525137]

>>4525134
Never. Simple algebra.

[Anonymous No.4525139]

>>4525137
and thats what i knew as well. the question is a terrible one and you should feel bad (21 APs taken in HS 4/5 average) and i made a 2360 on the sat and that question wouldve tricked me up if i didnt ask the teacher that a non-answer couldve been a possibility

[Anonymous No.4525146]

>>4525139
same guy again, you should add a statement explicitly saying never is an option

[Anonymous No.4525147]

>>4525139

You sure don't type like the brilliant little snowflake you profess to be. I'd say "troglodyte" would describe you better.

[Anonymous No.4525148]

>>4525093
your grading policy is overcomplicated as well holy shit no wonder why you didnt make med school bro. AND u posted 3 problems but say there will be 4 sections

[Anonymous No.4525149]

>>4525139
Even if I showed how to do this exact idea in class, but using the F and C scales? I even said "Try to figure it out for C and K and F and K. Prove your answer to yourself." before moving on.

[Anonymous No.4525151]

k.i.s.s. is my advice to you but then again youll find that out for yourself by the time you burn out like the 50 year old ugly chem dept chair you despise right now

[Anonymous No.4525153]

>>4525148
>implying I was pre-med

ChemE all the way.

[Anonymous No.4525155]

Looks like the high school children have arrived... OP, don't change a thing. Your class sounds awesome, despite the feelings of a bunch of butthurt children (in the classroom and 4chan).

[Anonymous No.4525156]

I find myself inclined to agree with the person criticizing the Celsius/Kelvin question; it's poorly worded. My suggestion is: Will the temperature readings on a Celsius thermometer and a Kelvin thermometer in the same location ever be the same? If so, at what temperature(s) does this occur?

At the same time I do agree that they should have been able to come up with the right answer regardless.

Also, holy shit, I took Chemistry in 9th grade and my exams were much more difficult than this. What sort of idiots do you teach, OP? Good lord, I feel sorry for you.

[Anonymous No.4525157]

>>4525149
(9/5)(C) + 32 = (9/5)(K - 273) + 32
(9/5)(X) + 32 = (9/5)(X - 273) + 32

>expecting sophomores to understand why they can't find a solution
>expecting each individual student to constantly ask you questions if they want 100%

[Anonymous No.4525158]

>>4525153
shouldnt have failed transport phenomena and PDEs so badly that you couldnt get a job for big oil refining crap

[Anonymous No.4525160]

>>4525156 here
Overall, OP, you sound like a great teacher. Keep up the good work. I don't mean to gripe about small things - I would just suggest making improvements in the clarity of your question wording.

[Anonymous No.4525166]

>>4525157
except that's wrong, you fucking idiot.

the difference between kelvin and degrees celsius is always 273.

[Anonymous No.4525162]

Op why are you going so easy on your students?

[Anonymous No.4525169]

>>4525166
that's what the equation describes despite not being algebraically sound

[Anonymous No.4525170]

>>4525157
Overcomplicating it severely...

273 + x = x

An 8th grader could see this won't work out.

[Anonymous No.4525174]

>>4525149
It doesn't matter what you showed in class.

You're testing knowledge of the subject, not knowledge of your class. Some students will remember how you presented things, others will only remember the material itself, and they may only remember it after studying it on their own.

And never write anything like, "that we discussed in class" on a test. This is being an assclown. You're asking them to remember stuff about your class, rather than stuff about the subject you're supposed to teach.

[Anonymous No.4525175]

>>4525170
>Try to figure it out for C and K and F and K

i followed your directions, faggot.

[Anonymous No.4525177]

>>4525156
>>4525160

Thanks. I'll keep this in mind.

[Anonymous No.4525181]

>>4525170
>273 + x = x
You should be able to solve this.

[Anonymous No.4525185]

>>4525181
x = x - 273

There I did it.

[Anonymous No.4525186]

>>4525181
>>4525181
My thought exactly.

[noko No.4525189]

>>4525177
As a senior in high school, I agree completely with them. I absolutely hate having teachers teach me how to take a test, rather than teaching me to understand the concepts. I do think you should word the questions a little better, but that being said I still came to the correct answers without needing clarification. At their age they have the ego to think they don't ever need to study or use their brain, and sadly most teachers teach that rote memorization is the key to success. Make sure you don't teach them that and you will be a great teacher in my book. Keep it up.

[Anonymous No.4525194]

If it's an honors class then you're doing good, OP.
If it was a regular section I'd tone down the conceptual stuff a little.

All the extra information and silliness in the questions take up a lot of time to read and process imo. I'd save the silliness for homework problems and such, and keep the tests questions short and to the point. In physics I can understand, since it's heavily equation based and figuring out what to use and when...but chemistry I think could do without it.

[Anonymous No.4525200]

I just looked up some of my old high school teachers. I'm surprised my calculus teacher has any favorable reviews, I got the impression that I was the only student that didn't hate her.

[Anonymous No.4525208]

>none of the problems include converting to and from moles
>using imperial system
>using utterly retarded examples and not actual industrial processes
>chemistry

[Anonymous No.4525211]

If you ever teach an AP Chemistry class, here is my earnest recommendation:

Do not assign any homework aside from lab reports. Give lectures in class, of course, but let students be the ones to take the initiative to learn.

I had an AP Chemistry teacher who did this. He got his PhD from NYU and basically decided to teach HS for a couple of years before retiring. He gave exceptional lectures in class, and let students essentially decide how much studying - if any - they wanted or needed to do (which is something that an AP class, in my opinion, should always do). Easily one of the best teachers I've ever had, as I didn't find myself burdened down by unnecessary homework.

[Anonymous No.4525216]

For the record: Here's the distribution.

[Anonymous No.4525220]

>>4525216
>bar graph
>over 9000 categories

what the fuck are you doing.

do you not know how to do a curve?

[Anonymous No.4525221]

>>4525216
You can pas with 40%?

[Anonymous No.4525222]

>>4525208
The idea of the "Mole" isn't introduced until Chapter 3.

[Anonymous No.4525223]

>>4525222
the school year is almost over and you're not even in chapter 3?

are you teaching a group of chimps or what?

[Anonymous No.4525225]

>>4525223
if this is the first exam they clearly work on something other than the fall-summer school year

[Anonymous No.4525226]

>>4525220
I prefer this version because my Transport I teacher in college presented it this way and that's how I remember it.


>>4525221
40 was the Pass-Fail line for that one.

[Anonymous No.4525227]

>>4525225
This exam was given in September.

We're currently on closest-packing of spheres/lattices.

[Anonymous No.4525228]

>>4525226
>40 was the Pass-Fail line for that one.
Why that low?

[Anonymous No.4525229]

>>4524979
A. 0.04 km/s
B. 40225000000 nm
C. 172 paintings
D. 0.53 L
E. 2.456 kiloseconds
Please check

[Anonymous No.4525230]

>>4525227
>closest-packing of spheres/lattices

can you post your required curriculum?

this is becoming more and more ridiculous

[Anonymous No.4525234]

>>4525228
Benefit of the doubt since it was the 1st test. One of the D's rebounded to a B for the quarter (good quiz scores, good labs, solid performance on Tests 2 and 3).

I gave the two kids below 40 "the talk" (basically suggested the regular Chem might be better for them). Both dropped.

[Anonymous No.4525239]

We are SUPPOSED to get to Chapter 15.

http://www.pearsoned.ca/highered/showcase/petrucci/pdf/9780136121497_TOC.pdf

Currently, the other two teachers are only on Chapter 10.

[Anonymous No.4525241]

>>4524979
>A - nonstandard unit
>B - inappropriate unit
>C - inappropriate political implications, poorly defined problem
>D - inappropriate meandering babble, misleading phrasing
>E - inappropriate meandering babble, nonstandard unit

Confirmed for shit-tier test design.

[Anonymous No.4525243]

>>4524979
>Evil Conservative Industries
are you trolling? please leave this kind of shit out of your tests

[Anonymous No.4525244]

>>4525239
>they don't learn anything about using the periodic table until chapter 21

this is painful.

[Anonymous No.4525246]

>Highschool
>Took some quiz on Chemistry
>Fucking ace that shit except for one question
>It was some problem about the order of operations or some bullshit, in the equation, division came first before multiplication
>Did it correctly, but was marked wrong anyways
>"Remember PEMDAS, multiplication is first before division"
>Argue that they're on the same level and you have to do the one that comes first in the operation first
>"No, anon, you have to follow PEMDAS."
>Classmates agree, they know none the wiser
>Next period was Geometry
>Ask teacher what comes first
>"M comes first before D in PEMDAS, so you multiply first"
>my fucking face when
Please don't be this retarded, Chemanon

[Anonymous No.4525248]

>>4525229
Please respond ;_;

[Anonymous No.4525249]

>>4525246
Tell them about BEDMAS.

[Anonymous No.4525250]

>>4525229
Correct
4.02*10^14 nm (would likely get 3/5 or 4/5 partial credit depending on what your mistake was)
Correct
Correct
Correct

Overall, if you answered even one other thing right on the test, you're guaranteed to pass.

[Anonymous No.4525256]

>>4525241
>Nonstandard unit
Missing the point completely. It's supposed to test if you can do unit conversion. Several conversions are given.

>Inappropriate unit?
So what? It's not testing that. It's testing if you can simply convert.

>Inappropriate political implication?
It could be seen as either satire or truth. It's intentionally ambiguous. Nobody said anything.

>Meandering babble
Half of any real life problem is how you interpret it.

>Misleading phrases
I can't make it much simpler. The students are told to ask me if they have any questions.

[Anonymous No.4525259]

>>4525244
Chapter 2 introduces it. Chapter 9 does all the trends.

[Anonymous No.4525262]

Does that site even matter in any way? It's nothing new that teachers that expect their students to teach are disliked by the students that don't want to learn

[Anonymous No.4525265]

>>4525262
>students to teach
to learn*

[Anonymous No.4525282]

>>4525256
Look, man, you just suck at communicating.

When you write things that are random and senseless, people are going to misread them. When you give a speed in mph, and for no reason at all, decide to ask for a conversion to km/s rather than km/h or m/s, that's a trick question, and trick questions aren't good questions.

Also: you don't see any problem with asking how many paintings get completed each Tuesday when you've given a rate of work in paintings per week? You have to make a ridiculous number of assumptions to get any answer, let alone the answer you expect. The scenario isn't one where you can reasonably expect a constant daily rate of work.

The point of word problems is to put the work in a meaningful context, not merely to bury the required calculation in irrelevancies and misdirections that the student has to dig through.

I know it's hard work for you think of meaningful, self-consistent, relevant examples, and express them competently, but it's your job.

You are failing as a teacher. Stop selectively listening to the people who are reassuring you, and ignoring the people who are criticizing you.

[Anonymous No.4525298]

>>4525282
The painting question is based on an MC question from the test bank that comes with the book (it uses ball bearings instead, I switched it to be funny). That is not too confusing a question.

[Anonymous No.4525316]

>>4525298
>The painting question is based on an MC question from the test bank that comes with the book (it uses ball bearings instead, I switched it to be funny).
Oh my god, you didn't just refer to a high school science textbook as a reliable source of competent material, did you?

You're one of THOSE teachers. God help your students.

Anyway, you clearly made the question worse. Painting isn't a straightforward mechanical operation where you can expect a worker to consistently produce twelve fifths of a painting per day. If they do 12 paintings per week, then there's a very good chance that they consistently finish 0 every Tuesday and 12 every Friday.

YOU ARE TERRIBLE AT THIS

[Anonymous No.4525321]

maybe you are not teaching the material coreclly. you should listen to the reviews if you get that many bad ones.

[Anonymous No.4525328]

>>4525256

C'mon, he's testing knowledge. It shouldn't matter what fucking unit (as long as he taught the conversions) he put on the test. As long as you can possibly solve within the knowledge you've learned from the teacher, it's a good problem.

Besides, I never read the descriptions or the sentences fully and looked for the numbers in Chemistry, Physics, and Math. The Teachanon is having fun with it because he and many others have done the same thing.

Stop hating fun.

[Anonymous No.4525334]

>>4524673
shit that was easier than my chemistry classes chapter 1 test and i never complained

[Anonymous No.4525338]

>>4525316
Not OP but I'm guessing you're in some way qualified to make these comments? Or just another anon who thinks he knows it all?

[Anonymous No.4525345]

Some students forget that teachers are human.
Some students also that think that education is some kind of game where the teacher is trying to withhold marks by any means necessary and the student is trying to get marks by any means necessary.
These 2 qualities in a student = talking shit on ratemyteachers

[Anonymous No.4525347]

>that site
I can't think of a worse idea. I'd bet music teachers average way higher ratings than everyone else.

[Anonymous No.4525355]

>>4525338
I am a professional educator.

Mind you, my students personally pay me to teach them, and I'm only giving them knowledge, not giving them grades or standing between them and a diploma, certificate, or degree. So I actually have to teach, or I don't get paid.

[Anonymous No.4525358]

>>4525355
>I am a professional educator.
Okay, nevermind me then. Just so many who haven't taught anyone but their friends when asked some question who somehow believe they are experts.

[What if? !!xvbTXidFJou No.4525372]

just wait until you do something on radioactive decay, and they keep forgetting what a half life is.

[Anonymous No.4525386]

>>4525372
It's a video game (albeit a shit one)

[Anonymous No.4525402]

Teaching is a social job. You have to be likable socially and understand important people skills. If you do beta shit (you know what I mean here), say good bye to your status.

Successful (fun or likable or popular) teachers are just alpha. You can't be an introvert/beta teacher or else students will know you as that creepy teacher that no one likes.

When I was in HS I've noticed all popular teachers did things alphas did IRL. They were good-looking, cool with the "popular" kids, made it hard on those beta kids who were "outsiders", knew how to talk to students with out coming off as a pedophile, generally dominant things.

I understand that any alpha in any job can get successful, but in my opinion, teaching requires the most alphaness and the highest social skills to be at least GOOD at it, third to being a President or a manager.

Give this Dummie book a try if you want some tips. The author gives you some harsh truths for teaching.

[Anonymous No.4525419]

>be in Gr 10 atm
>want to give some ratings for teachers
>go on RateMyTeachers at the school library
>it's blocked

Kind of interesting.

Also, reading RateMyTeachers reviews to me is a lot like reading reviews for an app in the App Store. We're only kids.

It's high school. I'll say a teacher suck (even though I like him) just to conform with social groups or to make that hot girl to think I'm cool, because no one in high school wants to stand out or be different.

[Anonymous No.4525421]

>>4525419
no one cares, faggot.

[Anonymous No.4525460]

OP as a junior in high school taking AP Physics I have to say that your kids are retarded shits. When I make mistakes on my tests I get frustrated but I never blame my teacher for making me apply concepts that I don't know, I only blame myself for not studying hard enough. Keep doing what your doing, it will better prepare them to get raped up the ass next year in physics.

[Anonymous No.4525470]

>>4525402

>prattles on about alphas and dominance

Inferior male specimen spotted.

[Anonymous No.4525504]

>>4525402
gamma all the way, bitch

I don't get the Tuesday shit at all. Tuesday? What?

[Tim Schwagg No.4526617]

OP, if you really wanna troll your students, you could offer to grade on a curve. Except don't just add points like most people do. Grade on a real curve where you have the same number of Fs as As, etc. It has the potential to force some passing grades into failing grades, and it would make some of your students cry.

Also, your students really suck, so you should troll them even harder by teaching the class like it's a college class by making them write so much information into their notes that their wrists hurt after every class and exams have 50 calculations that they have to complete in an hour.