<p>I'm in AP English and my teacher grades ridiculously hard on EVERYTHING. Sometimes she has her students grade things for her though. She lets us see what we have gotten but then we need to give it back to her. (Because she doesn't want us to pass it on to others?) How are we suppose to keep track of our assignments and grade in case she makes a mistake in putting it into the grade book then?</p>
<p>Anyways, if I think that she or someone had graded it wrong, how should I ask her? She gets annoyed very easily so I don't know how, or when to approach her. If you are concerned about your grade so much, would it annoy the teacher that you often ask her to recheck your paper/test/etc. to make sure that it is graded correctly? </p>
<p>I think that my answer was right (but it was marked wrong) because it was almost the same as my friends and I have like a C in that class. Should I just ask her to recheck my paper (I already handed it in)? How am I supposed to get an A in the class if the teacher is soo picky?? How? I know that all of my smart friends whom I think excel in English have gotten their essays marked down by a lot. :(</p>
<p>It shouldn't annoy your teacher. Just politely point out to her you think she made a mistake, make note of your friends' answers, and ask her to check it again.</p>
<p>I know you want to get an A, but sometimes it's not about getting the A. I got a ton out of my English class last year, although my teacher was a tough grader and rarely gave out A's. </p>
<p>I think the most likely case is that your teacher has high standards, and if you want an A, then you need to work for it. If you think something was honestly graded incorrectly, you can ask her about it after class. But only if you have a legitimate concern. I mean, you don't want to ask the teacher to recheck your grade every single time just because you feel insecure.</p>
<p>Don't ask yourself too many what if questions. (What if she enters the grades incorrectly? What if she marked it wrong when it was right?) I mean, the chances of the majority of your assignments being graded incorrectly are pretty slim.</p>
<p>Also, if I were you, I would find out what the actual right answer is and compare yours to that. Maybe there was something in the wording of your answer that she took off points for. In any case, I think she would be more annoyed if you went to her and said, "My friend and I got similar answers. How come she got it right, and I didn't?"</p>
<p>As for keeping track of your progress in class? Have a sheet of paper and record all the grades you get back. That way, you can do a quick estimate of your average whenever you want.</p>
<p>Don't tell your teacher you think she graded something incorrectly. Tell her (nicely) that you don't understand why something was marked wrong, and can she please explain it so you understand it better for the future. If it really is wrong, it's a subtle way of bringing it to her attention without pointing fingers. If it really is wrong, you will understand better what she's looking for.</p>
<p>I think you can bring it up, but certainly don't suggest your teacher is at fault. I would suggest working especially hard on future papers since many english teachers are very picky, and there is no way to change that.</p>
<p>Well, actually sometimes she redistributes the papers for others to grade. I've encountered a serious mistake when a test question was marked down as being wrong. From the imprints left from the other paper, it seems as if the TA or the grader was in a hurry and saw that many were missing the same few questions so they just marked off all of the ones that the previous person had missed. So if you can see (from the penmanship) that someone else has graded your paper incorrectly, how should you approach her? Should you still ask: May I please know why this answer is incorrect? If someone else has a similar answer to yours, and you got marked down for it, isn't that a mistake? Should I let this 2 points go or should I go back and ask her about it after school? I don't know if she stored them up somewhere already...</p>
<p>How do you guys get A's in your English class when the teacher marks you down for incorrect titles, headings, spelling, grammar, sentence clarity, etc.?? Should I just study all of the grammar rules, learn more vocabulary, and get better at essay writing? Basically, I should just study for the CR and Writing (and essay) parts of the SAT right?? A lot of vocabulary quizzes that she gives are easy to me because I already know like 80% of the words.</p>
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How do you guys get A's in your English class when the teacher marks you down for incorrect titles, headings, spelling, grammar, sentence clarity, etc.??
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Isn't that what English teachers are supposed to do?</p>
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Should I just study all of the grammar rules, learn more vocabulary, and get better at essay writing?
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Yeah, that actually might help!
And if you have any doubts about your grades, just ask...it won't hurt.</p>
<p>You shouldn't be making that many spelling and grammar mistakes by now, since you're in AP English. So yes, you should review basic grammar rules and triple check your papers for spelling/grammar mistakes for take-home assignments.</p>
<p>Yes, it's okay to ask your teacher to elaborate on how your answer could be improved. Can you give us an example of two "similar" answers that were marked differently?</p>
<p>What's more important than knowing vocabulary is being able to articulate your ideas clearly. (Although this involves knowing the proper vocabulary sometimes.)</p>
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Should I just study all of the grammar rules, learn more vocabulary, and get better at essay writing? Basically, I should just study for the CR and Writing (and essay) parts of the SAT right??
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</p>
<p>AP English essays are pretty different from SAT essays. AP English really goes beyond the SAT, so this isn't the best strategy. But you basically nailed it on the head. You need to "get better at essay writing," which is why you're in this class in the first place.</p>
<p>this is a funny thread. you're acting like it's so peculiar for an English teacher to be nitpicky and a tough grader, it's really not. And especially when it comes to grading essays, it's very often going to be subjective and that's just the way it is. I, like others have said, would suggest not to insinuate that the teacher has made some kind of mistake but to ask her what her thought process was in evaluating your assignment and what you need to improve upon in the future.</p>