I loved the suggestion of having an extra credit question on the test, "Tell me something you learned that wasn't covered on this test." - Great way of gaining insights regarding what your students have learned / think is important. Also - I disagree with the concept of discussing every missed assignment with every student & then deciding consequences on a case-by-case basis. I have found that all this does is reward the student with the biggest sob story (true or otherwise) and penalize the student who is unwilling to make elaborate excuses (whether they exist or not). Instead, I have a zero late work, unlimited redo policy -- Any work turned in late is an automatic zero with no option to do it over. All other work can be redone as many times as needed to earn the desired score. Originally, I worried that this policy would result in tons of unnecessary grading but that has not proven to be the case (and I'm in Year 3 of teaching). I'll stick to my policy, thanks.
