While the semester is over and I have begun the lurch toward SUMMER SESSION classes, I have to vent about how irritating some students can be about FINAL GRADES!
These grades are the result of a student's effort (or lack thereof) for the semester and often are a reflection of the student's failure to abide by policies set up at the beginning of the semester. I just get sick of the complainers. Those who really believe that they can do whatever they want during the semester and yet seem flabbergasted, (yes, I brought that back) when they receive the grade they earned.
I don't mean the students who are just genuinely upset because they let themselves down, I mean those belligerent students who decide to wage all out war with you – the Instructor – because they feel the grade THEY EARNED is not fair... because they feel that they have been personally attacked.... As if any part-time, underpaid, employee has the time to spend on a student that takes up so little of their day?!? Where to they get off making accusations like that? If paid half as much attention in class and they spent even half of the time that they took to investigate policies and how they can bring their teachers grading into question, then they could easily pass their classes with FLYING COLORS! But alas, they decide instead to slack off all semester and then (only in a last ditch effort to save themselves at all cost) come out guns blazing and personally attack the instructor –
This happens every semester (especially to those instructors/professors/teachers out there who care about standards and hold their students accountable for the actions and decisions that they make) and probably always will.
As I move on to my next set of students I keep in mind that students, luckily, are not all like this and many will accept responsibility for the choices they make in the classroom as well as the grade they earn. I just have to remind myself that grade disputes happen...and this is just one of those days!
