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Unread 26-02-2015, 22:26
nighterfighter nighterfighter is offline
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Re: Quotes from the Chief Engineer and I

Quote:
Originally Posted by King Nerd III View Post
At this point I would rather not have the class and do what they had done the past few years and done the class as an independent study. Half the class has no idea what a primitive is because he taught that all variables are objects, even ints and chars and the such. I think no class would be better than a class that is almost guaranteeing that you learn the wrong thing. I get your point about being grateful to have a class, but sometimes no class is better than a horrible one.
Is it possible the confusion on primitives vs objects comes from the way the Java language handles things?

While "int" and "char" ARE primitives in Java, there are also "Integer" and "Character" objects in Java, that have one field, either a int or char, respectively.

While that probably isn't the case, just thought I would check.

I'd also like to point out something else: AP Computer Science is a GREAT course. It was my favorite course when I was in high school. However, I also had a GREAT teacher (Shoutout to my former teacher, Mr. Mike Reilly). The teacher can really make or break the class.

If you feel so strongly that your current teacher is wrong on multiple accounts, I suggest you do the following:

1) Document these instances. Write down what he said/assigned on the quiz, and what your answer was, and what the teacher said the correct answer was.

2) For every instance of incorrect teaching, RESEARCH and be able to prove that these instances are incorrect. This means doing lots of research, such as reading the Java documentations, and maybe create example programs to show the difference between what the correct answer is vs what your teacher says the correct answer is.

3): After doing this research, write everything into a Word document, with both the inaccurate information and the correct information, including your source. Respectfully talk to your teacher, and ask him about all these points.

If that doesn't change anything, you might consider talking to your school's administration. I would first write another paper, but a bit more formally, with a list of things that were taught or graded inaccurately, perhaps like this:
Code:
Discrepancy One: Mr. TeacherName gave a quiz with the following question: "The moon is a square, True or False". Mr. TeacherName graded the quizzes, with the correct answer being "True". 
However, the answer is actually "False", which can be verified here: "http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/factsheet/moonfact.html".
Obviously you would change the questions to be based on what you have said. And for any research you do, do NOT cite Wikipedia as a source, (or ChiefDelphi), try to keep it to the java documentation, or maybe some universities webpages, if you can find information there.

Include an introduction, with a brief history of what is going on with the class. After you have written the paper, see if one of your English teachers will help you proofread it, and ask for their opinion on the formatting.

Once the paper is finalized, ask to talk to your principal about the matter. Bring a copy of the paper with you. When talking to your principal, it is EXTREMELY important that you remain respectful, but also bring up the fact that your teacher is not adequately preparing the student for the AP exams, and is potentially teaching incorrect information. (Also remember this: APCS is not a subject many will be familiar with, so try to not get TOO technical when explaining any incorrect information.) Remember, your goal is to create a better class for future students, which in turn will raise the average AP scores for the class, which in turn makes the school look better.

It should also be noted that talking to any administration should be your last resort, it is almost akin to the "nuclear option". And also, do remember that during this whole process, it is important to not be combative, but rather try and be seen as a student who deeply cares about the subject and is trying to learn more.

Hopefully just talking to your teacher, with the correct information documented, will be enough. Most teachers genuinely care and want to help you succeed. While it may be too late for this year's class, maybe next year will be better for your fellow students.

Edit: This is coming from what I would do, and is similar to what I did when I had a very bad experience with a teacher my senior year. Before doing anything, I would first: Talk to your parents about this, and second: Talk to a trusted teacher you have about what the best protocol would be in this situation, (But please make 100% sure you are correct and can prove it, before talking to another teacher about this.)
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Last edited by nighterfighter : 26-02-2015 at 22:37.