From srhall at MIT.EDU  Wed Dec  7 06:43:42 2005
From: srhall at MIT.EDU (Steven R. Hall)
Date: Wed, 7 Dec 2005 06:43:42 -0500
Subject: [Unified-mailman] Problem Set 14
Message-ID: <4E515B57-97AA-4605-9022-A573024C6C42@mit.edu>

Folks,

A student has asked a question about the appropriateness of having a  
Problem Set due the last week of the term. First, here's the question:

> I had a question about p-set 14 - namely, everyone I've talked to
> thought that we weren't supposed to have p-sets due the last week of
> classes if the class has a final? I had planned on doing the p-set
> anyway, so I'm just looking for clarification on what the actual MIT
> rules say, since both 16.01 and 16.02 are listed as having a final
> (although they're scheduled at the same time).

This is an issue that we have come back to several times over the  
years, and we have always been informed that we are within MIT  
guidelines. A past chair of the faculty has ruled that, "it appears  
that you are offering the equivalent of only one final and one  
assignment that falls during the last week of the term for two  
subjects, hence you are in compliance with the faculty rules."  
Unified is two 12-unit subjects; each one is entitled to an  
assignment in the last week or a 3-hour, comprehensive exam. We have  
one 3-hour (actually, 2-hour) non-comprehensive exam, and one  
assignment. (MIT urges instructors who give non-comprehensive exams  
to give them during finals week rather than the last week of the term  
to reduce end-of-term pressure.) We purposely curtail our Systems  
Problem activities, not only in the last week, but in the week  
before, to reduce end-of-term pressures. Our intent is to live both  
within the letter and spirit of the MIT rule, and we believe that we  
have done so.

Steven Hall