Professor Selterman, at the University of Maryland has been messing with his students with an extra credit question since 2008. He teaches PSYC221 where the average grades are A’s-B’s. The question has been said to be “cruel and unusual punishment” but if you think about it, this professor really just wants to see how selfish his students can be. Is it for his own enjoyment, or does he want students to understand it’s not always about them? Check out this little data chart….
Okay, I get it… You want to know what the question was… Alright, here you go.
“Here you have the opportunity to earn some extra credit on your final paper grade. Select whether you want 2 points or 6 points added onto your final paper grade. But there’s a small catch: if more than 10% of the class selects 6 points, then no one gets any points. Your responses will be anonymous to the rest of the class, only I will see the responses.”
So far once in a 7 year period he has given a class the extra credit. The trick is for everyone to ask for 2 points and not be selfish. The people who tend to pick 6 points are the people who didn’t really try in class, are really desperate for extra points, or just assume they’ll get the extra credit either way. Well, sorry kid in the back row who slept all semester and chose 6 points… You’re probably hated by your whole class right about now. As word travels, his class isn’t really that hard! If you find yourself desperately needing those extra 6 points, you did something wrong!
Remember to follow us on all social media @UPrimetime!
