Oh God, emergency!! PLEASE HELP!!

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>I feel like I'm going to vomit. I was pretty much delivered the most disatrous fourth quarter ever. I don't know what to do and I really need everyone's help here.</p>

<p>So I went on my school's trip to France this quarter, which means everyone who went on the trip missed two weeks of school, since our district has apparently never heard of Spring Break. A little bit of homework was given out before we went, but not a lot. The worst though was my AP US History teacher, who has a reputation for being crazy and gives out 3 hours of homework a night, did not give us any of our homework until we got back.</p>

<p>However, not only did those of us in AP History who went on the Frech trip get around 42 hours of homework when we got back, BUT, we came back two weeks before the AP test. This was the first year the class was offered, so the teacher didn't really know what pace to go at, and I came back to a class that was NINE chapters behind. So not only did I have all the makeup work from when I was gone, but I also had to do the mounds of homework that was due the very next day. Keep in mind that this is NINE chapters for the class to do only a week and a half before the AP test, not to mention I have all the chapters and homework to do that I missed when in France.</p>

<p>But here's the worst part, after the AP test, our teacher gave us a week-long final that was probably a milion times harder than the AP test. 90% of the class failed the damn thing, and only three kids from that class went on the French trip.</p>

<p>So I pretty much spent three weeks of sleepless nights dedicating myself to History. And the homework in my other classes kept piling up, along with the makeup work. Which meant I had two weeks to make up entire quarters in my other classes.</p>

<p>Needless to say, my grades PLUMMETED this semester. We're talking B's and C's and only two A's. My doctor felt the need to send in notes to some of my teachers because the stress was affecting my health. I now have a bald spot on my head from pulling my hair to relieve stress. I feel like crying. Everything I worked for feels like it was shot down the drain. There just wasn't enough time to finish everything. How am I going to get into the colleges I planned for with grades like these? All my dreams seem like they're dying. Is there any way I could attach a note to my transcript, explaining the bad grades second semester? Or would it seem like I'm not accountable for my own actions?</p>

<p>Oh, and here's the worst part, though. For math we had to do this graphing project on our calculator, where we make pictures on our calc using equations and stuff. I don't know if you guys do that or not, but these things take FOREVER, most kids have to spend several days on them. But anyway, it was worth two test grades and due on the last day of school. However, since I was rushing to get everything made up by the last day of school, I ended up starting my project the day before it was due. I stayed up until seven a.m. doing that thing, then showered and went to school. When my teacher saw my project, she informed me that she wouldn't accept it because all my equations were under seperate programs instead of one, so I would have to put them all in again. I asked her if I could come into school the next morning and give them to her, and she told me that she would only be there until 11.</p>

<p>So I go home and I take a nap because I hadn't slept yet, and then I wake up and I start the process ALL over again. I sleep briefly in between, but then keep plugging away at it. Unfortunately, there was no way I could have gotten this thing done by 11, it simply took too long. So I slid the project under her door when I was done and then e-mailed her. Now tonight, I see that I have a friggin zero for that project and an F for the quarter! What should I do? Call her tomorrow? I'm so scared. I've worked hard my entire high school life and now it feels like it's all going to die.</p>

<p>Please help. Anything.</p>

2

<p>When you are in college, no one will give 2 ****s about your high school grades. Hope this helps</p>

3

<p>Are you a high school junior?</p>

4

<p>Yes, I am.</p>

5

<p>Take a deep breath. Go to your school counselor. Speak to him/her about the problem. Ask if he can help with getting you extensions on your work so you can bring up your grades. If that doesn't work, enlist parental help to speak to the assistant principal and get an extension. It will work - trust me.</p>

6

<p>First of all, one bad quarter is not going to have a significant impact on your life. So don't panic and stop shedding hair over this! </p>

<p>Think things over the weekend, sit down with your school councelor and your parents next week and make a case for your relatively poor marks your fourth quarter and see if your school can help in giving you a chance to make it up. If the school won't let you do things over, see if they can at least explain the dip in your grades to the universities where you will apply in the fall.</p>

<p>If your school is reluctant to budge, you can still articulate the dip in grades to the universities you will apply to in the fall by explaining the situation. If everything else (overall GPA, class rank, SAT, SAT II, ETCs and application essays) is good, your relatively poor 4th quarter results will only be a blip on the radar.</p>

7

<p>Um, I don't think I should involve my parents in this. To put things lightly, they're both clinically depressed and suffer from paranoid personality disorder. My dad thinks I'm on meth. When my mom saw me working on my math until the wee morning she yelled and screamed at me for not getting it done sooner. It's....not a good situation. Do I have to involve my parents?</p>

<p>And my third quarter grades weren't that great either because I found out my aunt--who gave me the emotional support my mom couldn't--had terminal cancer. I got so depressed I stopped caring about school for a while. I tried to make everything better fourth quarter, but obviously I couldn't. So I'll have to explain why my third quarter grades dipped a bit, which I suppose could hurt me.</p>

<p>It hasn't been a good year. :(</p>

8

<p>You just listed even more reasons that you can tell your counselor that merit extensions. Just go in there by yourself and explain everything.</p>

9

<p>What about the math thing? Should I call my teacher or wait until I talk to my guidance counselor. Also, I leave for New York on Monday and I won't be back until the 10th, will that make it too late?</p>

10

<p>Just act as soon as you can. That's the best you can do. Mostly, just relax!</p>

11

<p>wait, you're going to miss another week of school to go to NYC?!</p>

<p>Given your circumstances that seems like a really bad idea.</p>

12

<p>I'm so sorry this has happened to you. I can relate to your problem because I had a similar (although not quite so severe) situation happen with me this past semester.</p>

<p>There are several situations you mentioned- your aunt's terminal cancer and your parents' dissorders- that can be looked at as what my counselor calls "extenuating (sp?) circumstances." Basically these are events that are out of your control that impact your grades (and in some of my cases, my parents' ability to provide financial support for my college education). I have had several of these situations happen with me in my high school career; many were related to health problems with me and my sister and others, like this past semester, were extended absenses from school (I was out of school for three weeks in March, and I was taking four AP's).</p>

<p>I understand completely that this is rough. I spent a bus ride home from San Antonio in tears because I thought I would never be able to make up all my work. I'm the kind of person who gets really stressed out about these things (yeah, I'm a perfectionist) so being behind in school freaked me out.</p>

<p>My advice, since you don't want your parents involved, would be to talk to your counselor first. Explain everything... even the stuff from the third quarter. Even if he/she can't directly fix the problem, he/she will be able to mention this in your counselor recommendation letters to colleges and he/she can help to explain the drop in your grades. Also, if you haven't explained the entire situation to your math teacher, do so. You never know what she will say, and if you have sincerely tried everything in your power to get this assignment in on time, maybe she will help you out. This depends on the teacher though. Some of my teachers would be ticked off because I missed their class to go to France.</p>

<p>If all else fails, get this year behind you and get ready to start fresh next year. It will be ok! Colleges will understand that things like this can happen, and it happens to the best of us. There are many more important things that will help you in your college applications. You sound like a person who has overcome a lot of adversity in your life, and that is valuable experience and perspective that will not only give you strength and maturity, but also an edge in applications because you have "diverse life experiences." ::shrugs:: At least that's my opinion...</p>

<p>Relax and have a wonderful summer! Everything will work out fine, I'm sure.</p>

13

<p>"wait, you're going to miss another week of school to go to NYC?!</p>

<p>Given your circumstances that seems like a really bad idea."</p>

<p>No, that's the worst part, it's summer vacation.</p>

<p>And I'm going to New York because I won a national writing award. I really don't want to miss it.</p>

<p>Oh, and thanks everyone, your posts have been really helpful.</p>

14

<p>I am really sorry that this has happened to you but, I am going to get really brutally honest with you and some parts you are not going to like.</p>

<p>
[quote]
So I went on my school's trip to France this quarter, which means everyone who went on the trip missed two weeks of school, since our district has apparently never heard of Spring Break.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>IF the trip was held during school, break you would not have missed 2 weeks of school (so your comment is a non-issue because you did miss school). Keep in mind that your teachers have a curriculum with work they need to cover before the school year is out. </p>

<p>It sounds like a little bit of bad planning on the part of a number of people. </p>

<p>Did the entire junior class go on this trip?

[Quote]
and only three kids from that class went on the French trip

[/quote]
</p>

<p>So for everyone else who stayed behind,it was business as usual as far as attending classes, doing homework etc.</p>

<p>If this trip is giving every year during school time (not during the spring break when classes are not held) there needs to be some coordination between teachers as I think all of you should have been given homework packets so you would not fall behind on your class work. Just because you are away on a trip for one class, it does not give you a buy to miss out or not do the work for your other classes. If the teachers did not do this then you needed to be proactive and have gotten the work so you would not have been behind in your other classes when you got back to school.</p>

<p>
[quote]
Is there any way I could attach a note to my transcript, explaining the bad grades second semester? Or would it seem like I'm not accountable for my own actions?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Hate to say it, but it is going to come of as you are saying woe is me. Keep in mind that you have kids that play sports that take up hours of their day every day, kids who work part time jobs every day and all weekend and still have to stay on top of their class work. You will demonstrate that you are not taking responsiblity or accountablity for yourself and you are not proactive when it comes to problem solving. What will you do senior year when you are out of school off on college visits and missing classes ? When you get to college things happen, where you may have to be out of class for a few days, but because you have a syllabus, you will still be responsible for staying on top of the work.</p>

<p>
[quote]
But here's the worst part, after the AP test, our teacher gave us a week-long final that was probably a milion times harder than the AP test. 90% of the class failed the damn thing

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Have you asked the teacher if there was going to be a curve because so many people failed? What's the grade range for the exam? If people who passed got A's then the curve has been blown because every one got assigned the same work. Have any of you talked to the teacher about doing some kind of make up work to help raise your grade?</p>

<p>
[quote]
I stayed up until seven a.m. doing that thing, then showered and went to school. When my teacher saw my project, she informed me that she wouldn't accept it because all my equations were under seperate programs instead of one, so I would have to put them all in again. I asked her if I could come into school the next morning and give them to her, and she told me that she would only be there until 11.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>So what did you do?<br>
Did you turn in your work by the deadline you were given?
Did you explain your situation with the graphing calculator to your teacher?<br>
Did you ask for help? </p>

<p>It seems that this course has taken place over the course of the term and it is now the end of the term and you are having problems that you should have gotten help for earlier in the term. If you need help, ask because no one gives you extra points for suffering.</p>

<p>One of the biggest problems as I see it is that you are being reactive instead of being proactive and heading off some of this stuff before it snowballed out of control. I can tell you , that people are willing to help you and work with you when they see that you are making an effort to help yoru self. </p>

<p>Have you spoke to your counselor about your situation?
Since the teacher gave you an F, can you make the class up in summer school? If yes, then you need to be there.</p>

<p>I don't care how much people say that one bad term is not going to hurt you, having an F on your transcript in a major subject like math is going to hurt you (and hurt you bad) in the college application process. There is an expectation that you are taking the most rigerous courses your school offers, doing well in those courses and being on an upward trend.</p>

<p>
[quote]
What about the math thing? Should I call my teacher or wait until I talk to my guidance counselor. Also, I leave for New York on Monday and I won't be back until the 10th, will that make it too late?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Given that you got some major things on the line, going to NYC is the last thing you need to do. You need to use this time to work with your math teacher, GC to do whatever you can to get a passing grade in this course. </p>

<p>In this life you will find that you have to make choices and things come down to a question of worth. IF you go to NYC you are sending the message that trying to resolve your issues in school are not a priority so no one is going to go out of their way to help you. You can't have it both ways.</p>

<p>Let them mail the award to you, you will be able to document it on your application.
A national award is not going to do you any good in the college admissions process if you don't have the grades to back it up.</p>

15

<p>"IF the trip was held during school, break you would not have missed 2 weeks of school (so your comment is a non-issue because you did miss school). Keep in mind that your teachers have a curriculum with work they need to cover before the school year is out.</p>

<p>It sounds like a little bit of bad planning on the part of a number of people."</p>

<p>Yeah, I'll say so. Unfortunately there's nothing I can do about it. Oh, and my school doesn't even have Spring BReak, so we would have missed two weeks regardless.</p>

<p>"If this trip is giving every year during school time (not during the spring break when classes are not held) there needs to be some coordination between teachers as I think all of you should have been given homework packets so you would not fall behind on your class work. Just because you are away on a trip for one class, it does not give you a buy to miss out or not do the work for your other classes. If the teachers did not do this then you needed to be proactive and have gotten the work so you would not have been behind in your other classes when you got back to school."</p>

<p>Well, unfortunately for us, a grand majority of the teachers did not give us our homework before we left on the trip. And believe me, we asked them almost every single day. Actually, I did get homework before I left from my math, chem, and English teachers, and I managed to make all that stuff up. The only problem for my math class is the big project situation.</p>

<p>"Have you asked the teacher if there was going to be a curve because so many people failed? What's the grade range for the exam? If people who passed got A's then the curve has been blown because every one got assigned the same work. Have any of you talked to the teacher about doing some kind of make up work to help raise your grade?"</p>

<p>No, he did not curve it.</p>

<p>"Have you spoke to your counselor about your situation?"</p>

<p>I've tried calling her three times. She's not here this weekend.</p>

<p>"I don't care how much people say that one bad term is not going to hurt you, having an F on your transcript in a major subject like math is going to hurt you (and hurt you bad) in the college application process. There is an expectation that you are taking the most rigerous courses your school offers, doing well in those courses and being on an upward trend."</p>

<p>Well, thankfully I only failed the quarter and not the semester. It'll be a 'C-'.</p>

<p>"So what did you do?
Did you turn in your work by the deadline you were given?
Did you explain your situation with the graphing calculator to your teacher?
Did you ask for help?"</p>

<p>I explained the situation and she said it had to be in by eleven. However, these things take so long that there was no way I could have gotten it done by 11 and still gotten a passing grade on it. So I decided to risk it, do quality work, and slide it under her door past the deadline and then e-mail her explaining the situation. She's a very understanding teacher, usually. I did, and then when I checked the computer later that day I saw it was in as an 'F'. I don't know if she got my e-mail or not, but I've really been trying to call her.</p>

<p>Look, what it all came down to was History. The reason why this all snowballed out of control was because the class was so behind, so close to the AP test, that the workload was unbelievably enormous and I didn't have time to do any of my makeup work for about three weeks. I'm not kidding, there was seriously NO TIME. Sure, I got my work made up in math and chemistry, but because I had to make up an entire quarter in only a couple weeks my grades took a serious slide. I'm someone who has a part time job and is very active in extracurricular activities, and I've always managed to keep up with my studies. When I came back from France, it was around six hours of homework a night being given to us, in just that one class, plus the makeup work I had to do before the AP test. And that's when everything started snowballing out of control, and I don't know what to do about it.</p>

<p>I know what you mean when you said I should have been proactive, and I;m definitely not attacking you for being honest or anything because that's what I need most of all right now. But I feel I was as proactive as I could have been</p>

16

<p>i took ap american, that class is serioulsy a waste, i would advise any jr to skip that one ap class...and perhaps, take like ap psych/stat instead to save yourlsef. And trust me, colleges don't really know the kind of work entailed for such a class.</p>

17

<p>Sybbie, that's pretty harsh, and unnecessarily so, IMO.</p>

<p>Congratulations on your writing award! No, you should not miss that trip. If you have a cell phone, bring it and leave the number with your guidance counselor. If not, since the semester is over anyway, waiting another week really isn't going to make a difference.</p>

<p>Perhaps when you go to your counselor, you should have aplan worked out already. As in, I have these specific projects, etc. that I would like to redo because of ....., and I suggest these dates as when they should be due, I will check in with the teacher via email every weeek, 2 weeks, (whatever seems reasonable depending on how much time you are asking for) to keep them abreast of my progress - that kind of thing. It makes you seem more like you are taking as much responsibility for the situation as you can, which is always good.</p>

<p>You can talk to the teacher before the counselor, if you wish. In fact, it would be advisable. Otherwise (and this is coming from a former high school teacher) the teacher may be somewhat insulted, as if you tried to go over their heads or something without even broaching the topic with them first. So touch base, plan in hand, with each teacher you need to deal with to see what can be done. If that fails, go to the counselor. If that fails, go to the assistant principal. I doubt it will get that far, though.</p>

<p>If the worst happens - everyone refuses to help you, and you're stuck with the grades you got - yes, attach a letter to your application explaining the situation. Just have several adults on hand who are able to evaluate it well - you want it to sound like an explanation, not an excuse. This is far more commonly done than people realize, and it is often helpful. Believe it or not, once you make the first basic cut, the adcoms aren't looking for ways to get rid of you, they're looking for reasons why they want you. At that point, any extra information they have is helpful for analysis.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

18

<p>DespseekPhd,</p>

<p>I don't think I am being harsh on OP, just simply calling it like it is. In my non CC life, I develop college programs and deal with students and the college process day in day out for over a decade (also a former GC), I consult with a number of admissions people (at 2 ivies where a number of my students attend) and as a parent who took a child through the college admissions process, some admissions committes will look at OP's situation as just another been there done that. </p>

<p>The net-net is ***** happens all the time. The tale of the tape is going to be how you handle your stuff when things happen. A college is not going to look favorably on a student that folds like a napkin the minute something happens or looks for an excuse as to why something was not done.</p>

<p>
[quote]
Believe it or not, once you make the first basic cut, the adcoms aren't looking for ways to get rid of you, they're looking for reasons why they want you.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I disagree with this statement because with a record number of students applying to college over the next 4 years, many schools are not going to be at a loss for applicants who are bringing their "A" game to the table and many high performing students are going to be rejected simply for lack of space. Adcoms will be looking for more of a reason for a student not to make the first cut especially at selective schools. Grades and rigor of the curriculum are always first. Those that do make the cut, it will then come down to determining what differientiates you from the rest of the pack.</p>

<p>I agree with bball, unless your AP score was a factor in your final grade (most likely not since the scores are released during the summer) I would have focused my efforts on making sure I did well in the class and show up to the exam if you must (some schools require that you sit for the exam as part of your grade). You have a choice as to whether or not you want to release the AP grade and you do not have to release them on the college app (You should only release the grade if you have done extremely well in both the class and the course).</p>

<p>While I am happy that OP did not fail the course , after all has been said and done OP is the one with the vested interest in getting his/her issue resolved. I definitely agree with you that OP needs to have a plan when dealing with the teacher and the GC including one that takes into consideration the worse case scenario. Even if the final grade has been submitted Op at many schools the principals work at least one month of the summer so OP can escalate the issue. Just make sure you have all of your ducks in a row.</p>

19

<p>First of all, once you make the first cut, I believe they ARE looking for reasons to admit you. Not that they are going to take everyone, but they will take the time to consider any information they were given, as I said. They won't blow off the explanation, and even though adcoms have "seen it all," they are far less jaded than people give them credit for. In the multiple interviews with adcoms, and articles about them, and the few that I know, they really try to figure out who the student is and how they will fit. As far as high performing students are concerned, the OP sounds like one. We hear parents on here complaining all the time that their son/daughter didn't get accepted to a college, but their neighbor's kid did and he/ she wasn't nearly as stellar, etc. etc. So I think your point is inaccurate. if all her grades are good except for the one year, and she explains why, and she has great test scores and ECs and everything else, they are NOT going to drop her off the list.</p>

<p>I also disagree that the OP "fold[ed] like a napkin." That's what I mean by overly harsh. This student has done everything she could to try and keep her grades high. She spent hours of studying, spoke to her teachers, did her best to get the work before the trip, kept abreast of the work as best she could, but in the end there are only so many hours in a day. Now she is still tirelessly working, not to get a pass on the work, but to REDO it at the level she is capable of performing. How is that folding or making excuses? As a former high school teacher, I can say that 99% of students would not pursue it to that point, but would either ignore it or demand a raised grade for little effort. She has obviously been responsible and a good student thus far. Give her a break.</p>

<p>BTW, when I was a soph I contracted mono and was out of school for a month. Two weeks of it I actually don't remember, I was so sick. The other week they sent a tutor to my home, but I was too sick to work for more than an hour a day and most of my teachers wouldn't send home work, preferring to wait to "explain" the work (which I really didn't need, and what did they think the tutor was for). The fourth week I was only well enough to go for alternating half-days. Plus, it was right at the end of the semester (early Jan). So I did not have time to finish the work. All my grades dropped, and I failed (yes, an F) my honors English class (I had a B going into the illness).</p>

<p>No one would work with me, and the F stood. Not only that, but because of the grade, they dropped me from honors English into college prep and, despite my junior year English teacher's rec, refused to reinstate me for senior year. Thank goodness my explanation of that semester was read and considered, because it ended up not hurting me in admissions. So I understand completely where the OP is coming from.</p>

20

<p>
[quote]
But anyway, it was worth two test grades and due on the last day of school. However, since I was rushing to get everything made up by the last day of school, I ended up starting my project the day before it was due. I stayed up until seven a.m. doing that thing, then showered and went to school. When my teacher saw my project, she informed me that she wouldn't accept it because all my equations were under seperate programs instead of one, so I would have to put them all in again. I asked her if I could come into school the next morning and give them to her, and she told me that she would only be there until 11.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>This was the time that the student should have explained her situation and asked for help. Leaving the room and still not knowing what to do did not help her cause (this is what I mean by stating she folded). </p>

<p>
[quote]
Now she is still tirelessly working, not to get a pass on the work, but to REDO it at the level she is capable of performing. How is that folding or making excuses?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>IF she had not gotten an on the project this whole thing would be a non-issue. Op knew that she was having trouble graphing before the assignment was due and did not use the opportunity to get the help that she needed. Went to see the teacher, got an extension until the next morning and still did not raise the fact that she was having trouble graphing. Got a F and and over all C- and is now trying to get the grade changed after the fact. All of this is acting in reactionary mode, where she should have been proactive and told the teacher right then and there, that she did not know what to do. Based on your experience as a h.s. teacher, if a student came to you with this situation and told you that they knew how to work out the equations but did not know how to put them in the format you wanted/ needed and asked you for advice, wouldn't you have given them advice? </p>

<p>I believe that most teachers would have helped her as overall teachers do not take great joy in failing kids, but they want to know that the studen is making an effort. If the OP walked away and did not say anything, the teacher was probably under the assumption that everything was ok when in reality the OP was in trouble but neglected to say anything. Also keep in mind that the teacher is not obligated to change the grade even if the student is looking to "get a better grade" as it would be unfair to all of the other students who are not getting the same opportunity to have their grades raised.</p>

<p>for her sake I hope she could work this out, but if she cannot is will be a hard learned lesson.</p>