<p>I had a (notoriously difficult) teacher this year who taught one of my favorite classes. I am considering asking him to write me a rec letter, but I am not sure how well I would fare in the ratings form and I'm not really sure about everything he would say about me. He knows that I worked hard in his class (I raised from a C in the beginning of the year to an A at the end of the 1st semester and maintained a consistant A 2nd semester) and he said that he would look over my essays (which could also help to get him to know me a bit more), but I doubt I'm in the top 5 or 1% of students he has ever taught. </p>
<p>He obviously wouldn't try and hurt my application by writing about me in a negative light, but I feel that he would write from a more critical standpoint than other teachers. He did tell me personally that I was "very bright" so that does give me a bit of solace in asking him. Should I take my chances and ask?</p>