<p>A teacher of mine wrote me a letter of recommendation for my early decision/action schools. I was always attentive, helpful, and had the highest grade in his class (frankly, I was a archetypal teachers pet). After I finished my early applications, my attention in his class has started to drop. I still have one of the highest grades in the class but i never do my homework and the teacher always catches me dozing off, joking around with my classmates, and doodling instead of copying the notes. Ultimately, he probably doesn't feel the same way he did when he wrote that sterling (or so I imagine) letter.</p>
<p>This was done under the common application. I still have yet to apply to my other regular decisions schools and I am worried that the teacher has edited the letter of recommendation for obvious reasons. Is this possible? If so, will I know if this happens? This is the kind of teacher who, bless his soul, wouldn't hesitate to edit it if given the opportunity. </p>
<p>So basically, should I be worried about selecting his letter as one for my regular schools? Or even worse, the letter being edited and replacing the older letters for my early schools?? That would be a disaster.</p>
<p>rocnation-I don’t know if a teacher can edit a letter. However, he can certainly contact admissions if he wants to by e mail. Here’s the main point though: teachers are human beings too. They are busy and underpaid in general. Writing letters for seniors takes a lot of their time, and they are not paid extra for it. While they consider it part of the job, they don’t write letters for everyone- only the students they think they can vouch for.
Many colleges see letters from the same teacher each year, and they learn which ones are reliable. If a teacher is selective and honest in his/her letters, that teacher’s word is respected by the school.
Your teacher put himself out there by writing that letter. He believed in you. It seems your main reason, and only concern in this situation is the letter. Now that he’s written it- you have changed your bevavior, and it’s disrepectful: sleeping in class, joking, not doing homework and doodling. </p>
<p>Now you are concerned about the letter, but you are really losing much more: your relationship with a teacher who supported you and your integrity as a student. He’s also given the university his word about you, and you have risked that as well. If you keep this up, he may feel obligated to contact them- not about you, but to protect his integrity so that when he does recommend a student, that student is credited for it. </p>
<p>Your teacher is also aware that his students are young, and make mistakes like all of us. It’s not too late to apologize and change your behavior. It may not “save” your letter, but it will “save” your integrity.</p>
<p>Pennylane is completely right. Your biggest issue at this point is that you are knowingly hurting your relationship with a teacher who is one of your biggest advocates. You are completely aware of everything you are doing to be disrespectful. Shape up now, not because of college admissions, but because it is the right thing to do.</p>
<p>Pennylane got it right. Apologize sincerely to your instructor and shape up in class. You are fully aware of what you’re doing and know this has the probability to change how he feels about you. It’s rude, disrespectful, and immature. Senioritus is not an inevitable, or excusable, part of second semester (or second quarter in your case). Plenty of students who have worked hard for seven semesters finish that final one strong with pride in their accomplishments.</p>
<p>FWIW, the phrase ‘bless his soul’ in it’s many forms (bless her heart, etc.) is a passive/aggressive statement used primarily in the south to make backhanded compliments/insults. Used properly you’re left wondering which, or best you miss the insult entirely. You butchered the use of this and I wouldn’t try again. There was no question it was an insult.</p>
<p>It is clear what you meant was…</p>
<p>“This is the kind of teacher who, that S<em>O</em>B, wouldn’t hesitate to edit it if given the opportunity.”</p>
<p>It adds to the obvious disrespect you have for this teacher who did you a favor by writing the LOR in the first place.</p>
<p>No. You should be worried about the thing that you can control most completely and most easily: your own conduct. You should stop disrespecting this teacher. You should schedule time to talk to him, and you should say that you regret your recent bad behavior, and you are putting a stop to it immediately. Then you should follow through. Because if you stop behaving like a jackass, you won’t have to worry whether he’ll tell colleges that you’re behaving like a jackass.</p>
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<p>Isn’t this another way of saying that this is the kind of teacher who wouldn’t hesitate to be honest? Colleges should value recommendations from him, since praise would indicate that a student was actually praiseworthy.</p>
<p>Jesus Christ. All of you sound so “holier than thou.” </p>
<p>Forgive me for getting a case of senioritis. It’s not like I’m intentionally trying to disrespect the teacher, I’m just getting lazy. Besides, I’m not disrupting his class, I just can’t focus as hard as I used to.</p>
<p>And you got an answer. You just don’t like the answer you got. </p>
<p>If I had gotten this answer, I wouldn’t like it either. But it would still be right. We all put all of this on you because it is all on you.</p>
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<p>Sorry, I have a hard time with this one. There’s no excuse for senioritis. It happens, but it never excuses bad behavior.</p>
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<p>Intention has nothing to do with it. No matter what your intentions are, your actions have been disrespectful toward this teacher who did you a favor.</p>
<p>Moreover, you have just said here that the fault here is yours: you are getting lazy. And you’re looking for a way to make sure that there are no consequences for your laziness. The best way to avoid those consequences is to stop being lazy.</p>
<p>No Sikorsky, my question was can teachers edit letters of recommendation once they are submitted.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, instead of an answer, I got 15 lectures and a particular poster, who gave me a definition and history lesson of the phrase “bless his soul.” This poster actually told me that I was calling my teacher a “SOB…”
What the hell? Talk about hypocrisy. This guy changed my words into a vulgarity. That is called disrespect.</p>
<p>I am not a bad student, I just have a short attention span. And I am burned out with the college application process.</p>
<p>This is no excuse but please don’t tell me what I meant with my words. How does “bless his soul” even go to “SOB?” Ridiculous.</p>
<p>In other words, he might be able to edit a letter and he might not, but whether he can is immaterial. He can update colleges if he’s inclined to do so. That is what you’re really worried about. And how you conduct yourself in his class will weigh heavily in whether he’s inclined to update colleges on your character and academic performance.</p>
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<p>My kids try to shift the blame to others when they’re in the wrong, too. Heck, I try to shift the blame to others when I am in the wrong. But it doesn’t change who’s in the wrong.</p>
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<p>If that’s who you are, then why should a teacher not update his recommendations to reflect this information? If you don’t want this kind of recommendation, don’t be this kind of student.</p>
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<p>If your respect is worth anything, it will be apparent in your performance in the class. If your respect isn’t worth anything, that will show, too.</p>