<p>I agree with fireandrain. Not having +/- acts more to avoid differentiation occurring over minor things.</p>
<p>In my experience, final exams were never less than 30% and often exceed 50% of your grade. If grades were your incentive, this arrangement assures that it always exists. Also, in many science classes, if the final is comprehensive, earning an A on the final will yield an A in the class regardless of earlier grades.</p>
<p>I had a professor recently tell me that one year he decided to show up on the day of the final and tell everyone there that if they were happy with their grade (after handing out a grade report sheet to each student) they could leave. If they weren’t they could stay. His reasoning was that all the work students do studying and organizing their notes and their thoughts, that was the incentive to give exams to assure that work happened. He didn’t care so much what ended up on the paper at that point-- that was, in his mind, essentially predetermined by whether or not they took the time to study and learn the material. His work was done, and really, so was theirs. So many students got up and left, a few stayed, and that was that.</p>
<p>While this kind of thing is not common at Brown, the kind of attitude and culture about grades is more common at Brown than anywhere I’ve visited or have known people who attended. Not universal, but common.</p>