Sciencemadness Discussion Board

"Homework Help"

DDTea - 19-10-2003 at 14:07

Let's face it... we will always have a swarm of new members who will want help on some Chemistry homework or what not. Hell, even long-time members may have a problem in their Chemistry Courses that is causing them to lose sleep. Indeed, being asked, "What is the answer to such-and-such," is very annoying, and it bogs down our forums with junk. However, we should still be friendly and maintain our helpful attitude, so as not to discourage such newbies from becoming more involved.

Therefore, I propose we make some "guidelines" to homework-related questions.

1. Do not mention the word "homework" or allude to the subject of school/homework in such questions.

2. Show that you have done some effort- ask questions specifically related to what you don't understand. Don't ask broad questions.

3. Phrase them so that you are looking for an understanding of the problem, not just a quick-fix answer. For example, instead of saying, "How grams of Iron are in 3 moles of Iron (III) Oxide," say, "How do I find the mass of an element in a given mass of a compound?"

4. POST SUCH QUESTIONS IN THE RIGHT SECTION! It is incredibly irksome when homework questions are put into the explosives sections- keep them in Miscellaneous.

That's all I can think of for now, but feel free to comment on the ideas, shoot them down, or whatever :P

[Edited on 10-19-03 by Samosa]

vulture - 19-10-2003 at 14:13

*Puts away the sieve and gets hold of a heavy duty hacksaw* :D

I warned you guys about my personality changes...

DDTea - 19-10-2003 at 15:47

Eh vulture? You speak in code. :P

I am a fish - 20-10-2003 at 06:20

IMHO, some heavy handed moderation is needed. There are too many people who aren't interested in learning and instead just want their homework done for them. However I agree that newbies who want to learn should be encouraged.

In addition to the rules suggested by Samosa, I think we should have...

5. Thread titles should specific, for example "separation of mononitrotoluenes" or "H2O2 from sodium percarbonate ". Titles such as "Please confirm" or "help" are absolutely useless.

6. Questions should give all information that could possible be of use. Vague, single sentence questions are generally difficult to answer.

7. If spelling's not your strong point, use a checker. Some posts on this board are bordering on the unreadable.

vulture - 20-10-2003 at 10:17

Excuse me Samosa, I've mistaken my blunt axe for a hacksaw.

IMHO, some heavy handed moderation is needed

That's staff matter. :P We have absolutely no obligation to inform you about policy changes....you'll notice them...:D