No semester would be complete without a round of student complaints about grades. One of the great joys of the internet is that a complaint that brings mirth to one can soon be brought for the mirth of many. So, in the whinging holiday spirit, the following e-mail was sent by a student to friend of mine who is a professor in an unspecified-but-not-sociology department at an unspecified university:
I would like to express my EXTREME DIS-Satisfaction with the grade you gave me. To the point I almsot take it as a personal insult.
I look over the individual grades you gave me for each project and I cannot understand why it all added up to a virtual "D".
[...] It almost seems to me this grade is based one what I was CAPIBLE of and not what I did. Cause in reality, my projects grades are PRETTY GOOD. But then I come to "Exhibited qualities of creative and intellectual curiosity" And you gave me a "D" ... What does that even mean? I was constently giving my ideas on projects. [...]
And then attendence and participation... "D" This I don't understand. I was ALWAYS participating in critiques.. That's one of the things I know about myself, I like to express my opinion on subjects and give ways of makeing them better. And I DISTINCTLY remember myself participating throught the semester. PLUS -- According to you, you told me I was abscent a total of 3 times with 2 latnesses. Does that really qualitify me for a "D"? Again, I really think that grade is wrong.
Then we come to your written comments which I find particularly disturbing.
"frequently abscent or late" Again, 2 lateness and 3 abscenes in 5 months means "frequent"?
"disrespectful, disruptive" Okay. This I find almost insulting. There ONLY time you thought I was being distrespectful was when I made a joke about you being "brainwashed" it's not like I made a joke about your Mother or something. I don't understand why you felt the need to even put that down.
And disruptive? When was I disruptive? I like to joke around a lot. Have a good time. Have fun. Throught the sememser I don't remember myself acting up at all. Unless your opinion of what "being disrpitive" is, is different from mine, which is probably quite the case.
[...]
So in conclusion, I'm not sure why you felt I deserved such a kick in the balls with this grade, but I am deeply saddened that after all the work and money I spend on supplies and building these projects, a virtual D is what I get in the end.
I Really REALLY stress you rethink this grade. I appologise if there was something about me you didn't like, but if you talk to any professors who have had me, they will all say I've been a pleasure.
PLEASE respond.
[name]
Follow up message from same student's e-mail address one hour, seven minutes later, without there having been any reply in the interim from my friend:
Dear Professor [name],
The previous email that I sent to you was written after I just learned what grade I will be receiving for the semester.
It was written in haste and I was very upset and disappointed. Unfortunately, I hit "send" before I had time to calm down and review the letter. Now that I have, I regret some of the things that I wrote and am writing again to you now to apologize. I want you to know that I enjoyed your class very much and learned quite a bit that I'm sure will help me in the future. Although I was hoping to achieve a better grade, I realize that I should have worked harder to earn it. Perhaps I am more disappointed in myself than the grade that I earned.
Thank you for an enjoyable and informative semester.
Sincerely,
[name]
It's unclear to me if the same person wrote the second e-mail, or if his girlfriend or Mom stepped in for an intervention.
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