<p>I want to ask my Spanish 3 Honors teacher for a recommendation. I have a good relationship with her, and she likes me.</p>
<p>There's a possible problem, though. I often went up to her and asked for clarification on grammar rules / spelling. She liked our interaction, but I'm worried that colleges might see me as unable to learn on my own.</p>
<p>Spanish wasn't my strongest class, but I worked hard and did well. Should I ask her for a letter of rec?</p>
<p>A good student knows when to ask for clarification. Ask her.</p>
<p>“I would also like to note that this student would often ask me to clarify the material.”
“Ooh, look at this, Jerry, we wouldn’t want a student like this!”</p>
<p>How likely is this?
1.) That your teacher would mention this (she likes you, she’ll write a good letter)
2.) That admissions officers (hypothetical “Jerry” and friend) would look down on trying to learn</p>
<p>I think you’re good.</p>
<p>
I think colleges accept people who can’t learn on their own. That’s why they give you - you know - teachers.
Nah, you’re fine. If anything just ask her not to put it down.</p>
<p>The clarifying, if anything, shows initiative. </p>
<p>My mom used to say, “When you’re not asking questions, it shows me that you haven’t grasped the material enough to understand what you’re hearing and think critically on it.”</p>
<p>Countless teachers have also expressed the same thoughts, except not as bluntly as my dear mom did. (:</p>
<p>You should check with the colleges you are applying to first and see if they have specific requirements for recommendation letters. Some schools gladly accept letters from foreign language teachers, while others ask for letters from either a Math/Science or English/History teacher. For example, see U Chicago admissions blog:</p>
<p>See: <a href=“https://blogs.uchicago.edu/collegeadmissions/common-application/[/url]”>https://blogs.uchicago.edu/collegeadmissions/common-application/</a></p>
<p>"Teacher evaluations/recommendations: we are very strict about our teacher evaluations. We require one (1) English/social studies evaluation and one (1) math/science recommendation. Your application will not be considered complete until you submit both evaluations. We require letters from across the disciplines because in our core curriculum, we require that students learn across the disciplines. We want to make sure that you will not only survive at Chicago, but that you will thrive. Sure, you may not be the strongest calculus student, but you took what was given and you made the most out of it. You asked questions when you didn’t understand. You sought help when needed. Those are valuable traits of a student.</p>
<p>What about foreign language teachers? We’re sure they’re good people, but a recommendation from a foreign language teacher will not count as an English/social studies recommendation. Why not, you ask? Often in foreign language classes, the critical analysis is not as deep as it is in English or social studies classes (for domestic students). They may submit supplemental recommendations on your behalf, but not the required recommendations."</p>
<p>You have to give teachers credit. Most of them are pretty insightful, so they know which students are asking stupid questions and which of them are asking legitimate questions. If your teacher likes you then chances are she doesn’t think you’re ■■■■■■■■. Go ahead and ask her for a rec!</p>
<p>thanks for the replies :)</p>
<p>I’ll ask her.</p>
<p>Aha, one more add…</p>
<p>I mostly asked this question because of something I read in “What you don’t know can keep you out of college.”</p>
<p>The section titled Showing Independence criticized a student essay that said,</p>
<p>“My History teacher was always willing to help me when I became confused. She patiently always took the extra time to be sure I understood. Without her insight, I would have been lost and totally bored. She pulled me through her course.”</p>
<p>The college interviewer responded by saying, “His teacher may have shown him how to get there with help, but we have plenty of applicants who can get there on their own.”</p>
<p>Albeit, it’s a more extreme version of dependency, but I’m still disheartened by the interviewer’s response.</p>
<p>I think the wording on that example is poor. Pulling someone through a course does not have a good connotation.</p>
<p>^Thanks.</p>
<p>Any other advice? I could ask my calc teacher, whose class I performed better in, but I didn’t participate or talk to her that much. She said that I was very good at math and had a good sense of humor.</p>
<p>But I think I’d rather ask my Spanish teacher if it doesn’t hurt me :)</p>
<p>I don’t think this applies to Harvard, but a number of colleges basically ask that you NOT have language teachers write recommendations, or at least not the main ones. That’s because the content of high school language courses tends to be pretty elementary – basic grammar, memorizing vocabulary, learning how to say inane things that any native kindergartner can say better. Most language teachers won’t really have had a chance to see your analytic abilities, or how good you are at communicating complex ideas on paper and speaking.</p>
<p>Now, of course, that’s a generalization, and there can be lots of exceptions. And Harvard doesn’t tell you not to get recommendations from your language teachers. But you should bear in mind that if all your Spanish teacher is really in a position to say is “He works hard, does well on vocab tests, and is nice to have in class”, that’s not going to get you very far at Harvard or any other very selective college.</p>
<p>"
“My History teacher was always willing to help me when I became confused. She patiently always took the extra time to be sure I understood. Without her insight, I would have been lost and totally bored. She pulled me through her course.”
"</p>
<p>Someone who can’t make it through a high school course without having their hand held by the teacher isn’t someone who’s a good prospect for Harvard.</p>
<p>There’s a big difference between approaching a teacher for help when you’re having occasional difficulties understanding the material and being the student who has to have the teacher line by line explain everything in the book. If someone needs an extensive amount of help to do well in a high school class, they aren’t ready for a school like Harvard.</p>
<p>Hmm, the class wasn’t very analytic or deep.</p>
<p>I wrote well and worked hard. My speaking was above average. She’d probably note these qualities.</p>
<p>Those qualities would be fine if the standard was “he’s not a loser”, but they’re not enough if the standard is “he’s such a special student that Harvard NEEDS him”. And I think what you need to have your rec help you at Harvard is a lot closer to the second standard than the first.</p>
<p>^A lot closer to which second standard?</p>
<p>So, should I use my Spanish teacher? My sophomore english teacher will write a very personal rec. She’s worked with me for creative writing for two years. Maybe that will offset the generic math one…?</p>