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<p>You can “request” this but it is unlikely to be considered. If you really don’t want this teacher writing a letter…then don’t ask them assuming someone else is going to “proof” their letter and tell them to make changes.</p>
<p>thumper–we know this teacher well enough to ask him that. He is DS’s head coach and DS’ assistant coach is the one I talked about in my first post here. I don’t think he would mind at all if we asked if he had the assistant coach give him pointers on how to write the letter since he is a new teacher and probably hasn’t done this before. I wouldn’t ask this of any other teacher though but then the counselor at the school will already know which teachers are better at this than others. She may require that she proofs letters already for all we know. It wouldn’t surprise me. She is VERY proactive making sure everything is done just so for the kids. It’s great.</p>
<p>Here’s what I have learned about LOR’s:</p>
<p>FAR and AWAY, the deciding factor on whether or not to ask a teacher to write a LOR for your student is how much the teacher likes and clicks with your kid. I would give this 85% of the weight in your decision. When you start to wonder about how well a teacher can write, etc, I think that’s a slippery slope.</p>
<p>Here’s my rationale: Schools get a minimum of three LOR’s per application, my guess is they are not examining each one for grammatical issues, etc. What they are looking for (as quickly as possible, is my guess), is an overall vibe: “is this kid someone who deserves a second look?”. </p>
<p>True enthusiasm for a kid jumps out of a letter pretty fast. The teacher who slogs out LOR after LOR might be getting a bit tired after awhile, but when they get to your kid’s, if they think he walks on water, GO FOR IT!!!</p>
<p>I learned this first hand when my son who was a junior applied for an elite summer program between junior and senior year. We made the decision to ask his AP US history teacher who was also his debate coach since 9th grade. On paper, this seemed like a great choice. What we didn’t take into account was the fact that this was a teacher who went out of his way to avoid highlighting the accomplishments of individuals, he was all about group effort. To single out a particularly good performance was against his teaching philosophy. I think despite the fact that he probably wrote a grammatically letter, the “gush factor” was not going to be there.</p>
<p>Long story short: he did not get the summer program, I can’t be sure if it was the LOR, but I couldn’t point to any other part of the application that wasn’t spot on for this program.</p>
<p>Fast forward to senior year, college app time. We went with a different teacher who I had passed on for the previous LOR because I wasn’t sure how great a letter writer he would be (he was a teacher, but also a coach, and let’s just say if he wrote like how he spoke, it would not be the best composed letter). But that teacher had said at parent teacher conferences that my son was one of the top 10 kids he had ever had in his classroom in 25 years of teaching: major “gush factor” there. </p>
<p>We went with a similar “high gush factor” teacher for the second one as well, completely skipping the above mentioned APUSH teacher entirely even though arguably he had spent the most time over the past 4 years with my son and probably knew him the best of all the teachers at the school.</p>
<p>So he’s a freshman at Yale now, I can only go with my gut feeling on this, but I really feel those letters were a major part of getting him in. Especially at that level, schools look for anything to put an application in the denial pile.</p>
<p>Bottom line: Gush factor trumps writing quality many times over (assuming the writer has a modicum of writing ability, or they probably wouldn’t be a teacher to begin with).</p>
<p>AND…p.s., I think it’s a bad idea to communicate AT ALL with a teacher about what or how to write the letter (other than providing the above mentioned brag sheet), even if it’s through a third party, at some point you have to be resigned to the fact that it’s out of your control.</p>
<p>I’m not concerned as much about writing ability as I am for this new teacher knowing how to “gush” properly in the letter :). Every conversation we have with him starts out with “I’m so glad your DD is in my class because_____”. It’s kind of funny actually.</p>
<p>As for DS, I think the math teacher will do just fine on the gush part. Our middle school math program got changed largely because of our DS. They changed how they place kids and some other aspects. Somehow he got put into “regular” math in 8th grade, still not sure how and was bored silly all year. In 10th grade his math teacher found out about this and spoke to the middle school principal about DS who he called “one of the best math minds he has had ever”. Now, I don’t know about that but he is a good math student :D.</p>
<p>DS had some solid recs from teachers written summer of junior year. He had 4 to choose from depending on the school. He ended up asking a fifth teacher for some scholarship competitions, and boy did that guy know how to gush. He is a first year teacher and marked DS the best student of his career, etc. Since then, he is our go-to guy for letters where major doesn’t matter. </p>
<p>We used a brag sheet, and I noticed that all the teachers used the descriptive words to describe him. They are busy folks, so it helped them to have a story to pull out and it is a nice reminder of what the kids do outside of the classroom.</p>
<p>DD’s coach writes the BEST letters in the school from all accounts. DD has not had him for a teacher though. She has trained with him since 5th grade and he knows her FAR better than anyone else at the school. He will be our for sure back up for any supplemental letters or scholarship letters.</p>
<p>I didn’t think of the “best student of my career” angle, I’ll have to mention that to him–GOOD ONE!!!</p>
<p>It’s not how well the teacher writes in terms of grammar, etc, but in terms of what the adcoms at that college need to see. And it’s not just gushing that counts, but what they gush about. </p>
<p>You’d be surprised how many teachers tell that little Bobby is wonderful because he comes to class on time, with his homework done, takes notes in class, etc. You want someone who will include info about intellectual abilities, tell how he goes the extra mile in projects, how no challenge sets him back, etc- and insert a few examples. And, not just hearsay, it should be teachers who know his work, first hand. </p>
<p>It isn’t easy to second-guess which teachers will do this. But, try to be sure the teachers you choose don’t have another “favorite” in mind. Often, you see a great kid get an “okay” letter and the suspicion is that the teacher is holding his best writing for another student he wants to pull for. </p>
<p>I also think major counts. At least one letter from that field or as close as you can get- and as recent a class as makes sense. Too many kids, eg, use lower level math when they took an AP level in their major in 11th. Kind of begs the question, why not that 11th gr teacher?</p>
<p>lookingforward–we will have to confirm with the GC but their current math teacher is not someone I would think to ask for a recommendation. While she knows her stuff she seems unconnected and doesn’t really take the time to get to know the kids. She seems pretty disorganized as well. DD has been trying to make up a test with her for over 2 months. DD would show up when she was supposed to only to find her room locked and light off. DD would leave a note that she was there and talk to her again the next day, teacher would set up a time to take the test before school and wouldn’t be there.</p>
<p>^And sometimes that’s unfortunately true. I didn’t mean to suggest everyone needs a current math LoR. What majors are they thinking of? My coments were more about kids who go for teachers who may love them, may gush about what nice people they are, but can’t speak to the relevant skills for whatever major.</p>
<p>I am a teacher. I will only agree to write letters for students that I can say positive and interesting things about. Here is an example. This kid’s GPA was fairly low.</p>
<p>To: ___________University Admission Office</p>
<p>____________has asked me to write a letter of recommendation for him. It is my pleasure to comply with his request. </p>
<p>I have known _________ for two years. He was in my US History class last year and he and I have maintained continuous contact since that time. ___________is a special student and a student who will respond favorably to the college environment.</p>
<p>__________ is a special student because he takes responsibility for his own learning. __________ asks meaningful questions and is not afraid to speak his mind. It is very refreshing to have students in class that make class discussions interesting and lively. _________ is such a student.</p>
<p>I predict that _________ will have much greater academic success at college than he has had in high school. _______ is a bright young man but his high school grades were often dependent on turning in daily worksheets and other minor assignments. _________ usually scored well on tests in my class and completed major assignments. I can certainly foresee __________doing well on his mid-terms and finals, as well as turning in projects and research papers.</p>
<p>_________ is also a busybody. I say this with admiration for his energy and his drive. He has participated in athletics, clubs, student government, and a host of other activities at our school and in our community. I think about becoming more active. Mr. __________ never stops being active.</p>
<p>Based on his learning style, his energy, and his personality I am sure that _____ will be a successful and valued student at your university.</p>
<p>I hope this helps in your selection process,</p>
<p>Great thread. </p>
<p>What about a child who has an accommodation? DS gets good grades and his English teacher really seems to like him. She comments about his insightful and witty contributions to the class. But he gets time-and-a-half on all essay tests because writing comes slowly for him. (This is his only accommodation). </p>
<p>Will she wind up mentioning the accommodation? Will this work against him? We have not yet decided what we will say on applications re: this matter, as he is a STEM student and doesn’t need it in those areas.</p>