How to deal with criticism?

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>I wrote an essay for AP English Literature and my teacher critiqued it (but it was not graded, it was only a homework grade) - and the comments that she wrote were akin to having someone rip up my essay right in front of my face.</p>

<p>I have never dealt with any type of criticism regarding my English skills - I have only ever received A+'s in former English courses, including AP English Language, which I received a 5 on as well. My AP English Lang teacher always praised my work and would go as far as to occasionally print out my essay and make copies for the class.</p>

<p>My Lit teacher wrote around two paragraphs worth of comments - every single one was negative. She attacked everything from the way I broke up my paragraphs to the amount of words I used/the wording itself - it was terrible. Now I feel sick going to English class.</p>

<p>How do I deal with this, yo? Now I'm paranoid with every essay I write. Thankfully, that one was just a "check" if you did it... if she actually graded it, I imagine it wouldn't be anything more than a low 60.</p>

2

<p>She’s probably only doing because she recognizes your writing skills and wants to hone them, there’s take it as constructive criticism.</p>

3

<p>Tough love: You deal by getting over the hurt and taking the criticism to heart. The teacher is likely trying to take you to the next level of writing, which is no longer that of simple syntax and subject knowledge. The next step is crisp clean prose, well paced with original thought and contemplation of the subject matter. GL and expect the same standards in college.</p>

4

<p>lol cry and then realize that it wasn’t graded and that she was doing you a huge favor so then be grateful</p>

5

<p>Can you give an example of something she wrote?</p>

<p>Take it in stride; it’ll make you a better writer.</p>

6

<p>@CE527M “…That said, I think you need more evidence and you need to be more succinct in your analysis - you are often using three sentences to say something that could be said in one. Be very careful about overwriting - it makes you sound pedantic You also need more of an assertion of how Updike actually feels about writing - you narrowed in on technique first without really connecting it to meaning.”</p>

<p>Bah humbug.</p>

7

<p>I would just ask her to explain about your essay, usually if you just ask they will be happy to explain and tell you specifically what to do next time. Definitely don’t take it personally.</p>

8

<p>I don’t really think that’s attacking, more like constructive criticism. I got used to a lot of criticism from my AP World teacher last year on essays, but was kind of unprepared for all the markings on my summer assignment for AP Lang, but it helps.</p>

<p>To quote my APUSH teacher, “If I don’t write comments on your paper, then it means I’ve given up on you and there’s no hope of you improving.”</p>

9

<p>It wasn’t graded, so why do you care? Just learn from the advice your teacher made and incorporate it into your essays from now on.</p>

10

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<p>:rolleyes:</p>

11

<p>You’re actually pathetic if you can’t handle criticism.</p>

12

<p>Try to take it a little more lightly; she’s just trying to help you become a better writer. My English teacher was similiar and ultimately didn’t even grade my first paper of the year for awhile. Eventually, I recieved a 70 and was allowed to revise it. He sat down with the whole class and taught us how to become better writers and what we need to improve on. There’s a big difference between my first paper and my revised paper.</p>

13

<p>she called you PEDANTIC? oh, IT’S ON.</p>

14

<p>Sounds like your teacher is giving some fairly solid advice. I would go and talk to her if you think something she said was unfair. Oftentimes I’ve found having those discussions with teachers has really improved my writing skills. On my first history paper this year, I got a 70. I sat down and had a discussion with my teacher about my paper’s weaknesses and how I could improve, and I got a 100 when I applied those lessons to my next paper.</p>

<p>The first step though is not to take it so personally. Avoid the “My writing is perfect and doesn’t need to be criticized” attitude - even the best high school writers always have room for improvement. I know I personally would much rather get something back covered in criticism than just a check mark at the top (especially something that isn’t for a grade)! Your teacher has given you a great opportunity to improve your writing skills; that’s a good thing, not a bad thing!</p>

15

<p>I think that was more.constructive than anything.
I think there’s a saying that good writers are never satisfied with what they write
So maybe she just wants you to push harder</p>

16

<p>Take criticism seriously (I really can’t stress this enough…don’t just ignore it because it makes you sad), but don’t take it personally. I assume she criticized everyone this way, and she just wants to challenge you to improve your writing. How do you expect to survive at a selective college when you won’t necessarily be one of the smarter people anymore?</p>