Grading Policy
Each assignment will fall under a major Category. It is important to note that this means that not all assignments will carry the same impact on a student’s overall grade. When using Pinnacle at home to view grades, the overall grade that you see will not be a simple average of all the grades listed.
Tests (35%)
Tests ~ Tests are team-generated and are assigned weeks ahead of time. Often tests will cover one long chapter or a combination of shorter chapters. There are multiple choice / gridded response and free response questions on every test.
The Multiple Choice / Gridded Response Portion of the Test will count for 50% of the test grade. Usually there are 20-30 questions per test. Partial credit is not given.
The Free Response Portion of a Test will count for 50% of the test grade. Usually there are 5-8 free response questions per test and partial credit is given on the free response questions. The four points are distributed as follows:
1 point ~ Givens & Unknown
1 point ~ Correct Equation & Mathematical Calculation
1 point ~ Correct Answer
1 point ~ Correct Unit
BONUS ~ Test Review Assignment ~ This assignment is NOT required but acts as bonus to your score. Please find details on the FAQ page.
Labs/ Mini-Labs/ Summative Assessments / Quarter Projects (20%)
Students work in small groups to perform the lab in class and analyze the data in order to complete the lab write-up. One lab is due per group. The lab report must follow the rubric given in class. Students will not be allowed to print the lab in class or submit an electronic copy of any type.
Mini-labs are worth ½ of a full lab. Students will observe a teacher-led demonstration, then analyze and write-up the results. Each student will complete a mini-lab report.
Summative Assessments & Quarter Projects ~ Students, working in small groups, will be assigned a topic for a long term project (approximately 4 weeks) that will culminate with a paper and a presentation/demonstration in class.
Homework & Classwork (20%)
Homework will be given almost every night. Problems will come from the student textbook and from my class Physics webpage. Classwork may include pop quizzes, at the teacher’s discretion.
In an effort to improve writing across all disciplines at Barbara Goleman, roughly every 2 weeks students will read scientific articles in class and then answer written questions and participate in a class discussion about the articles. In our classes these articles will be about Physics topics and will be related to content that corresponds with our curriculum. The students will cut out the articles, paste them into their student’s composition notebooks and answer the associated questions.
Formal Quizzes & "Pop" Quizzes (25%)
The formal quizzes are team-generated and are also assigned ahead of time. The formal quizzes will cover short chapters or parts of longer chapters and WILL be announced ahead of time on the class schedule that is posted on the website.
"Pop" quizzes will NOT be announced ahead of time on the class schedule that is posted on the website.
BONUS ~ County Mini-Assessments ~ This assignment is NOT required but acts as bonus to your score. Please find details on the FAQ page.
Extra Credit ~ There will be opportunities for extra credit.
- There will be three County mini-assessments given throughout the quarter. Each correct answer will earn extra points in the Quiz Category.
- Test Review Assignment ~ Students can earn up to 5% on any test by keeping a separate notebook with definitions, formulas and examples from the chapter(s) covered on the exam.
- Extra credit is not given for bringing supplies, etc.