Need Thoughts (2 Viewers)

[someth1ng]

My school's marking scheme was purely unfair in that it was set out so that there was only 1 right answer to get full marks in the long response. This put a significant portion of generally high achieving students in the mid-low range of marks. The top mark was 52/60 and my mark was 41/60 - I held the top mark for the first assessment with a much more open marking scheme.

Example
What are the basic requirements for a material to perform as a semiconductor? (2 marks)

Marking Scheme
1. Group IV Element.
2. Small energy gap allowing electrons to be promoted to the conduction band.

My Answer
1. Conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator.
2. Generally, increase in temperature causes a decrease of resistivity.

Mark Awarded
0 marks

My argument was that firstly, their first requirement in the scheme is not even true - a semiconductor is not necessarily a Group IV Element and that a marking scheme allowing only one answer is not preparing us correctly for the HSC. Our teacher is too stubborn to have a fair marking scheme and I was "punished" for having correct answers.

I am currently furious at the way the exam was marked and I will post more examples as I receive the actual paper back.

What can I do to rectify this issue with the science faculty? I may need reputable vouches that this is unfair - perhaps by a HSC marker.

 

[Shadowdude]

I'm sure your school has a chain of command you can follow.

First you talk to the teacher, then if not - talk to the.. Head of the Department (for example, in Year 8 - I talked to my maths teacher about a test, didn't get an outcome I wanted, talked to my science teacher who was the head of maths).

If not then, go to the Head of Secondary and then Principal.

That was the hierarchy at my school, iirc. So I'm sure your school has a similar deal. Just follow their procedures.

 

[someth1ng]

Yeah, I will talk to the Deputy Principals first then perhaps the Principal. Knowing them, they'd be willing to help.

Also, just making sure, you do think this is rather unfair - right?

 

[Shadowdude]

I'd say more "rigid" than unfair. Your answer - from what I can vaguely remember of HSC Physics two years ago - seems deserving of at least half a mark. At the very least, I'd think.

 

[Fizzy_Cyst]

Poor question.. Where is the verb?

Basic requirements to me means 'what is needed' -- to me your answer (1) - is a property, not a 'requirement', again (2) is not a 'requirement'

If the HT has no idea about Physics -- it will be time lost there -- but, perhaps an external reference point?

Post up more examples you are unhappy with, but, I am also a tightass marker -- simply because if students get upset about not getting something correct, they will be more likely to remember it, as long as it is explained to them WHY they did not get it correct.

My suggestion to you would be to ask, not why your response is not right, but why is it wrong.

 

[someth1ng]

Poor question.. Where is the verb?

Basic requirements to me means 'what is needed' -- to me your answer (1) - is a property, not a 'requirement', again (2) is not a 'requirement'

Yeah, we talked about how a "What" question is really poor before the test.

As for the requirements part, it could be argued that to be a semiconductor, it must have conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. If the conductivity is not between that of a conductor and that of an insulator, then it is not a semiconductor. Hence by my logic, it is required to have a conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. Also, adding the fact that if it doesn't have this, then it can't perform as a semiconductor.

The main issue I have is that the marking scheme is definitely wrong itself. I can probably get a list of 50 other semiconductors that aren't group 4 elements and that fact that it says "Group IV" is very vague in that, it would imply that it is pure excluding p/n-type semiconductors as semiconductors.

 

[someth1ng]

I talked to the head teacher and said that "How", "What" etc are now used in the HSC and I check myself and it is. That removes the "bad questions" but I still think "basic requirements" is rather vague and their answer of it needed to be Group IV element is still wrong.