Below are the grade distributions for the first iteration of the Social-Cognitive Psychology course that I teach.
First, the regular course’s Final Exam:
And the Honors course’s Final Exam:
The two tests were slightly different in so far as the regular course answered fewer multiple-choice questions and more free-response questions. The questions were the same across the two tests.
Collectively, the Final and the Midterm account for 25% of the course grade:
In terms of overall course grades, the two courses ended with similar distributions (though the Honors course has one-third higher enrollment):
Conclusion
Both courses are appropriately challenging; neither is too easy and neither is too difficult. I wonder how these results would square with student perceptions though. (Because of the category weighting, they don’t really have an accurate sense of their score in the class until after they’ve taken the Final exam.) I will continue to monitor and make adjustments to the course content and its rigor.