RS3853 End of the Road

Class,

The class average for the journals (61%, C-) was lower than usual due to an unusually large number of late submissions and incomplete journals.

In general I do not give out subjective evaluation marks but will be happy to discuss the composition of the class mark after you get your final grade. In general terms the class subjective evaluation was 69 % (C+) which is about right for this course. Each week each student was marked on preparation, participation and quality of contribution.

The class average for the term papers was the highest ever for this course at 71 % (B-). With that high an average there can't be too much in the way of complaints but I did notice consistent problems with assertion and with language (grammar and punctuation).

With respect to assertion the problem was sometimes that what you said was true but you had not justified the statement so that it looked like simple assertion. In other cases it seemed clear that the student was reading meaning into sources that simply were not in the original source.

With respect to grammar and language:

A sentence consists of a subject, a verb and an object and it is generally good form to make sure that the number of each is in agreement (is vs are etc.)

It is bad form (though not illegal) to start a sentence with "However" because the subject and object of the sentence end up in separate sentences. So it may be OK to use a "However" once in a while for dramatic effect but several of you are addicted to the form. One student had four such howevers in one paragraph.

A sentence that cannot be read in one breath is too long.

A paragraph should have more than one sentence and deal with one topic. A paragraph should not be used to mark where you got tired and decided to go for coffee.

Written English is not the same a written speech (for the love of all that is sacred please learn this lesson before you graduate). Sometimes the voices in your head lie to you. You have to realize that your high school English teacher could not get a "real" job (or did not get their poetry or book published) because they could not write. That means that the "stream of consciousness creative writing" that got you high marks in high school just won't float in University.

Anyway, no one lost a lot of marks for grammar it was the assertion thing that made the difference usually. I privately suspect that the way all the papers twisted into papers on ecology and used the same core references that there was some significant double dipping going on but I am too lazy to make that dog hunt. As Calvin said "Shoot them all and let God sort them out".

So in a few short years your child will be reading a book in your lap and ask you about dinosaurs or your church will ask you to teach an adult or high school Sunday school class where science and religion will come up. I am not so conceited to think that you will remember anything directly from this course but the intention was that our students would go out into the Christian community with a core competence and a confidence when dealing with faith and science issues.

All truth is God's truth no matter where you come across it. Keep asking the question "Why?" and you will eventually find yourself face-to-face with God. Then what do you do?

Take care, have a good summer.