I have to deal with this one professor who picked on my every single day for being quiet in class. He could clearly see I payed attention, did my work, handed in everything on time, he even complemented me on my writing. After midterms I went to ask him about one of the questions, with one of my friend in the class. He clearly asked me why I don’t participate, said I was on mute and wanted more from me. Right in front of my friend. I teared up, something I was very self conscious about, I said I am just a shy person and he just started at me and said he makes it a comfortable environment I shouldn’t feel that way and I said its just how I am I enjoy listening. It’s especially hard in this particular class because it’s a mixture of young students but mostly older people who have a lot of experience and know many things to always add to the conversation, which I don’t. Its a hard situation and I am afraid he is going to give me a bad grade which I don’t deserve at the end of the semester. Can I go to the dean?
“Can I go to the dean?”
I followed you up until that point. What do you want to say to the dean? “I’m afraid I’ll get a bad participation grade because I don’t participate”?
I totally get it. I hate talking in most of my discussion sections too. Sometimes it’s very intimidating, and sometimes I prefer listening. But if a professor grades you on participation, or if he specifically calls you out and asks you to participate, then you have to be brave and open your mouth. Most of the time the real world does not allow you to just sit back and observe, and college is preparing you for the real world. If you want to be a successful student and eventually be a successful employee in whatever field you choose to go into, you need to learn how to speak up. I know it’s really scary, and I’m terrible at it, but it’s better to learn it now than later.
If you are actually considering on going to the dean and complain then you are truly not shy… more like gutsy. I mean even I wouldn’t do that, I would much rather just try hard to speak and participate in class.
BTW, what class is this?
It seems like he’s not really being mean to you. He just wants you to participate in the class. You seem to be a good student, and he probably wants your input in the class discussions. I don’t understand what you mean by “I’m afraid I’ll get a bad grade I don’t deserve.” If you don’t participate, you deserve a bad participation grade. That’s a harsh reality, but you don’t deserve all of the participation points if you don’t participate.
I wouldn’t go to the dean because he or she will most likely not take you seriously. Deans have plenty of other things to worry about. Just try to make an effort to participate more.
It’s alright to be shy. Introverted persons usually get that problem, getting along with other but what I could advise you is to try. If you’re a good listener ( which most introverts are) when someone want to talk to you about something listen then try to give your opinion if it implies. Try this as a small step, you have to start somewhere to overcome something so you could start with this little practice. I hope it helps
Also maybe he wants to have you contribute your thoughts to the class…maybe he is hearing from the same people and not others to get new points of view. Also he wants to know that you understand the material.
You could suggest that maybe he could try some other techniques, like “Pair/share”…you pair up with another person, talk amongst yourselves, and then share what you came up with to the class. Or that you get the reading material ahead of time so you can prepare. Or tell him that you don’t feel you have a chance compared to the older people…maybe he could let you go first.
Also go to the counseling center and see if they can help you. No matter what you want to do in life, you need to be able to speak up for yourself.
Does this class grade based on participation? Some classes have a specific participation grade that is worked into your grade. If your class has this, then yes, your professor can give you a 0 for participation if you do not participate and how much this will affect your grade depends on what percentage of your grade it’s worth. If you don’t fulfill the standards of the class, then you likely won’t get the grade you want. Your syllabus should have the breakdown of how your grade is determined. If it is unclear, ask the professor. You can ask via email if you are uncomfortable talking to him in person.
I am a very shy person and I hate participating in class, so I get where you are coming from. When I had a class that had a participation grade, I would usually assume that I would just not participate and get a 0. Usually it was such a small percentage that I could still get a good grade by doing well on everything else, and more often than not, I didn’t get a 0 in the participation grade so it never really mattered. I choose a major that predominantly didn’t grade based on participation (the vast majority of classes I took graded solely on exams). So I get that you don’t want to participate, but if that is a requirement of the class, then you have to either participate or accept that you will get a worse grade. You can’t always get by with just showing up.
I understand that it can be difficult when you are a very shy person. I would have reacted the same way if a professor confronted me on not participating in class (though I never would have considered contacting the dean–that would have been way to confrontational for me). But you can’t get around the requirement just because you are shy. You have to either accept that you will get a poor participation grade, or you can participate. And as a fellow shy person, I actually think you should participate. Even if it’s hard. The more you talk to people and speak up during class, the easier it will get. And it’s good to be able to speak up in a group and talk to people, even if you don’t like doing it. It’s a very valuable skill to have, and it’s something that will only become easier if you actually do it. If you never do it, it will always be hard.
Pushing yourself to participate a bit in class may end up being a very “growing” experience for you (one of the things college is for). You never know what you’re capable of if you always stay in your comfort zone. Also, as someone who went to college as a much older student, I was very self conscious about participating and looking old marm-ish in front of the younger students, but I did it anyway. In the end, our different points of view added to the richness of the conversation. Don’t underestimate what you can bring to the table.