Is it worth asking my teacher to raise my grade from an A- to an A?

Pre-College Issues Home Schooling and College
21

Wait, am I the first person ever to tell you that sometimes people can get by at some things without as much hard work as someone else?

That my son could try from now until the end of time, and never make it as a pro football player, while some other kids can? That some kids at school can get better grades than my daughter without 1/10 of the work she puts in??

My younger daughter has auditory processing issues. That means that, though she hears just fine, the sounds get mangled en route to her brain. Spelling is a nightmare, since she can’t sound out unfamiliar words. Her math grades are great, but reading and social studies are an issue. And every time she hits verbal problems in math, it’s an issue.

She spends easily double the amount of time that her brother and sister combined spend on their schoolwork.

Is it fair? Absolutely not. But it’s her reality. And, at age 12, she’s come to accept that sometimes you have to put in more effort than the next guy for the same result.

I have kids who come to extra help 3, 4 times a week after school. And they do it to pull C’s, not A’s. Some of their classmates get those A’s simply by paying attention in class, with minimal effort on homework. Nope, not fair. But that’s the reality.

So, yeah, I get that you would have liked a higher grade. And that you did put in the time and the effort, and didn’t get the desired results. But you’re in college. Simply wanting a better grade, and working for one, and asking politely for one, doesn’t mean you would or should get it. In college-- and in the working world-- it’s about results.

And, no, I wouldn’t have pre-graded your paper either. That wouldn’t have been fair to every one of the other students who didn’t have the same opportunity. (And offering it to every student most certainly wouldn’t have been fair to the professor, as it would have doubled her grading.)

22

I am really confused as to why you think LESS effort will get you a HIGHER grade when MORE effort resulted in a LOWER grade than you wanted. Those people who can do it the night before?? MORE effort doesn’t make their scores go down. Goes up, same as you.

23

I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that the OP was homeschooled, since this is in the homeschool forum…

I’m an adjunct at a college that enrolls a fairly high number of homeschoolers. I’ve noticed a few trends among my students who were homeschooled: They tend to be well prepared (though I’ve had a few who who disastrously unprepared), they tend to be motived, they tend to be inordinately concerned about the difference between an A and an A-, and sometimes they do feel like with enough work they should be able to get an A in every class they take. I think that if they’ve never before been exposed to a large group of diverse students, they can be surprised that there are people out there with a greater natural aptitude for academics than what they possess.

It’s similar to what the valedictorians of larger schools experience; suddenly they’re surrounded by people who are as smart or smarter than they are, and the expected level of results are much higher, and it can be very stressful. This makes sense because often they were essentially the valedictorian of a very small class.

OP…an A- is an excellent grade for a college class. Be proud of that. I echo the previous poster who was concerned that you couldn’t see any difference between your paper and the sample she gave you…this may indicate a gap in your knowledge that you can try to correct. Take them to someone who can point out the differences, and improve your writing skills through more hard work. I commend you for working so hard in this class. That work ethic will serve you very well in the future. You will probably not get all A’s but that is OK. You are learning and growing and becoming better prepared to tackle the real world.

24

You never gave grade distributions, but let’s assume the 3 essays were equally graded. You received an A, a B, and a B+ That would give you an average of a B+ (A- if the prof was feeling generous and if the first essay were weighted more heavily than the other two or if it were particularly stellar). Then you received a B on the midterm. Even with an A on the final, and even if the grade on the final were worth twice what the midterm or any of the essays were worth, you are still at an A- no matter how much work you put in. I will say that it was a bit of a dick move for the professor to not want to take a look at your paper. No, he or she shouldn’t have to pre-grade your or anyone else’s exams, but to look at it and provide some feedback to let you know if you are on the right track is part of the job, especially if you go during office hours. But the numbers don’t add up for you to have an A. Leave it alone and be happy with the A-

25

@mdcmom , that makes total sense.

26

@LoveTheBard yes I did. It was in my first post.

You know what, I won’t ask my professor. I honestly don’t care anymore. I don’t even enjoy what I’m doing right now. It’s so miserable that nothing will make me happy. To those of you who suggested that I shouldn’t ask for a grade raise, thank you for your input. To the rest of you who think I didn’t deserve it and that I was “lucky” to get the grade I got, screw you. You don’t know anything about me as a person. As the great Davy Crockett would say, “You all can go to hell”

27

Only 2 more years in this garbage place. And then I’m never looking back again.

28

@bodangles well obviously putting that much time isn’t getting me anywhere…If something is blocking you from getting to the other side of the road, are you going to keep hitting your head against the wall? Maybe that’s what you would do, but not me.