Improving your scores

A few people have express concern over their scores on hand-in assignments for lab. There's definitely room for improvement, but a single low score will not have that much impact on your grade, so keep at it. There are a couple general pointers that I've been giving students to help improve your hand-in scores:

1. Make sure you're answering the questions. I lot of people have been losing points because they're not really answering the question that's being asked, or they're answering part of it without really exploring WHY the answer they're giving is correct. Most of the questions on the hand-ins require a bit of explanation, make sure you're explaining your answers, not just describing an observation. If your answer takes up fewer lines of text than the question, you're probably not answering the question completely. That doesn't mean I want everyone to write a book to answer each question, but you should be trying to answer the whole question.
2. Don't lose points for mechanical reasons. Lots of people are "forgetting" to include graphs or data tables, or just showing a result without showing the calculations that went into that result. {No, your Lab Assistant did not tell you to turn your only copy of the graph in with your carbons...} Assignments must be typed (including formulas, equations, calculations, etc.), if you hand-write your assignment you'll probably get a zero. Circle or highlight your section/lab assistant so I can keep track of different piles of assignments or you'll lose 5 points. Assignments are due at very specific times listed in the course syllabus, repeated late or missing assignments will cost you a LOT of points and you'll very quickly fair the course. Grammar and spelling are important even though this isn't an English class; if your answer is very clear and easy to understand, it's easier to grade.
3. Take advantage of your time in lab. Many students finish the "wet" part of the experiment and then run out the door. If you finish early, make sure that you take a look at the hand-in assignment and discuss the questions and answers with your partner before you leave. If you're not sure about a question, ask.
4. Take advantage of your lab instructor(s). If you're working on a hand-in and you're not sure about what a question is asking or how to interpret your data, ask your instructor. This is more effective if you have a question that shows you put some thought into it, like "I started trying to analyze my data by calculating how many moles of each substance were used in each reaction, and then I calculated the mole fraction. What's the next step?", rather than "I don't understand how to do any of this. Where should I start?"
5. This is similar to #3... Start your assignment early so you have time to ask questions if necessary. If you wait until Tuesday night to work on an assignment that's due at noon on Wednesday, you'll never be able to ask a question and expect to get an answer in time to turn in the assignment on time.

Those are probably the big ones. If everyone did those things, everyone would be getting MUCH better scores on hand-in assignments. Something that students don't often know... It is MUCH MUCH MUCH easier to grade assignments that are correct! I don't ask questions with the intention to be sneaky, or tricky. It's not my goal to see how many points I can take away. I would be giggling with glee if everyone handed in assignments that were mostly (or totally) correct and complete. I really do want you to succeed, but that does not mean that I'm going to give you points or grades that you don't earn by doing the assignments and thinking about the questions you are answering.