3. Scene III: consultation of essay or thesis

Ø         Topic of thesis

Ø         Material of thesis

Ø         Discussion with professor

Ø         Outline and first draft

Ø         Score of thesis

Ø         Revise the thesis

Ø         Time requirement

Ø         Example 1: Mistake

1. Why does the student say this?

A To confess that he lied to the professor.

B To emphasize what he is about to say.

C To prove that he is innocent.

D To warn the professor not to ignore him.

2. What is implied when the professor says this?

A Even if the professor’s colleagues recommend that she change the student’s grade, she will not necessarily change it.

B She will change the grade right away if her colleagues agree with the idea of changing the grade of the student.

C She will give the student another report to work on when the decision is made.

D She won’t change the grade of the student no matter what advice she gets from her colleagues.

S: Oh, hi, doctor Muir. Can I discuss my grade on my term paper with you?

P: Sure, Andrew. What seems to be the problem?

A: Well, it’s a bit complicated, or rather, kind of embarrassing, to be honest. Oi made a rather stupid mistake.

P: O.k. go on, Andrew.

S: Well, there’s been a terrible mistake. The term paper I handed in was not my final edited version. The paper you marked was not the paper I had intended to submit. I can’t really explain how this happened, perhaps I was overtired, stressed and rushing against the clock, but when I saw the mark on my paper, I quickly realized what had happened. I must have printed an earlier draft at the last minute, thinking I was printing out the final paper. Doctor Muir, I must be honest with you, maintaining my average is extremely important to me, as this will affect my application to grad school. If my grade doesn’t improve I may be forced to drop the course and re-take it next term, I can’t jeopardize my chances.

P: Well Andrew, that sounds like a terrible mistake. I’m not sure what can be done about it at this point. The paper was due three weeks ago, and they’ve all been marked and given back to the students. I must say I haven’t run into this kind of situation before. Usually students are asking for extensions or wanting to discuss their grade after the paper has been marked. Let me talk to some of my colleagues about your situation, and we’ll go from there.

S: Thank you, Doctor Muir. I really appreciate this. Should I give you the correct paper today?

P: No, Andrew let’s wait until I talk to some people, I may lose the paper and this will only add to the confusion. Check back with me on Wednesday, and I’ll let you know the outcome. Oh, one more thing, Andrew, in the future, I would suggest re-reading papers one last time before submission.