***UPDATE*** My dd won 1st place in school science fair...teacher failed her project!

[Mermaid02]

Yep- my dd won 1st place with her science project last week... this week she finds out her grade for the project is a 69! How do you suppose her teacher figures that one out?? We are going to have to go in tomorrow and talk to the man....

UPDATE: He changed her grade to a 91.5 since seeing she DID have the "care and use guide" We'll let it go at that!

 

[Cruise04]

There's your answer......

the man....

(before I get flamed I was just making a joke)

That one does truly amaze me. What was her project on??? And congrats to her!!!!

 

[Mermaid02]

It was an invention.... one that would actually work and be practical. One of the judges commented to her that they could actually use something like that in their clinic.

The other kids made fun of her project (she came home really upset the first day she took her concept to school) and frankly the teacher seemed to get into that a little bit too. I think he is actually mad that her project won. I'm gonna make the little man squirm tomorrow- believe me I can do it.

 

[Cruise04]

YOU GO GIRL!!!!!

DD's class is now doing inventions too and this is not her thing....so I bravo your daughter for going forth and sticking to it no matter what anyone said about it!!!!

 

[Mermaid02]

She felt so good and vindicated last week at the science fair when they announced her project won first place. I think the teacher is just trying to have "the last word." What do you expect from a 30 something year old man who carries a Lara Croft Tomb Raider lunch box though

 

[DocRafiki]

Did she follow the directions of the classroom assignment? Does he think that she didn't do the project herself?

That's the only reasons I can come up with for legitimately failing her. Check with the assignment instructions before you go in to ream him.

 

[Dancind]

Ditto. My daughter's project was chosen to go to regionals, but she lost 20 points on her grade for not following the directions given by the teacher. Didn't print something out, or put something in the wrong place, can't remember. It always pays to read the directions!

 

[buzzlady]

If you didn't say that it is a man teacher, I would have said it must be my DS Science teacher.

 

[Beauty]

Yep what DR and Dancind said......you have to be sure she followed the written instructions from her teacher to a "T"...at least we do with my son's projects.

The actual teachers have some say so in how THEY want the projects and my son usually has a written illustration and instructions on the format of everything with how much of his grade each aspect will be.

I would be prepared to show him where she did everything he asked and then have him justify his grade from his own form instead of what he "Thinks". You get him girl!!!!!

 

[Rock'n Robin]

Just picture her nobel prize speech many years from now...."and I'd like to thank Mr. Smith for failing the science project that led to this amazing discovery!"
Robin M.

 

[Goofball]

I have to chime in agreement with those who have said that maybe some parts of the project were not completed as assigned. The middle school science teacher I work with divides the total grade of projects into sections: 10% for having adequate resources cited, 20% for the project being documented properly, etc. Please don't go in with guns blazing until you find out exactly what's going on. Then if you find he deserves it, fire away.

 

[missypie]

Yes, I'd look over the directions very carefully before you yell too loudly...they might have said something like "Your project cannot be an invention." That is the story of my sister's academic life. For term papers she'd write something so beautifully it could have been published...then she'd get a poor grade because she hadn't followed the proper footnote format.

 

[Stepharoonie!]

Make sure to tell us tomorrow how it went!! I can't believe he did that!

 

[Toby'sFriend]

That actually happened to my husband in college. As part of a Senior Project a group had to design some kind of radiation detection chamber thing or something. My DH had always had problems with this one Professor and the project got a VERY low grade and the Professor made a bunch of nasty comments on how he personally would fail them and they wouldn't graduate but the Engineering Department at the University wouldn't allow him to give a failing grade.

Six months later the design won a National Competition it was entered in, was written up in a Scientific Journal, and the University received a cash award for the scholarship fund. Of course, the advising Professor's name went on top of the project.

I hope your daughter works it out Mermaid.

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

Let us know what his explanation is. I am curious to see what he says!

 

[RayJay]

Mermaid

If there were specific guidelines to do the project they (teachers) should at least told the judges so everything would be consistent.

Congratulations to your daughter, this award sure would have made me very proud of my son/daughter.

You have a valid argument with him, be interesting to here what they say as I am just starting out with dealing with teachers.

RayJay

 

[Cindy B]

Are the students graded on a rubric/coaching model?


My district does all assignments with rubric/coaching models. Written assignments, reports, posters and eveyrthing are used with rubrics. This rubric clearly explains expectations on a purely informational level.

My district decided to go with rubric/coaching models for a few reasons. The main reason is that the teacher can NOT subjectively grade the work. (ie, if they don't "like" the student, they get an F). This also allows other team teachers to grade it as well.

The rubrics also are easier for the student to see expectations clearly spelled out, and to see how they got the grade they did. It is also easier for teachers to grade.

 

[palmtreegirl]

Well that sure sends a mixed messege to your DD! Poor kid, tell her Congratulations!

 

[wendyl]

I'm really interested to see what the teacher says, too. I just left a 3 year job teaching Middle School Math--so I kind of miss the ins and outs of parent/teacher conferences (NOT!!!!)

Regardless of whether the grade gets changed or not--your daughter is to be commended. Winning a Science Fair is no small task.

I was thinking, even if something was not turned in, or done according to the directions---that teacher should have known before the judging started that her project wasn't complete--or wasn't done correctly--and should have allowed her to correct it before it was judged. Or, at the very least, he should have talked with her about it before the project even got to the "judging" phase.

Poor communication on the part of the teacher!!!

 

[DocRafiki]

In the OP it sounds like the fair was judged before the grading.