Monday, January 14, 2008

My First Taste of Rejection

Well, I got my teacher/course evaluations back from my last quarter students. I've always had good feedback before, but this time around my students hated me. Well...hate might be a strong word...but I'm sure it is at least in the ball park. Here is a sampling of some of their comments about me. Enjoy.

"Was not a credible teacher. Had no credibility to be so tough."

"I think that Mr. Hales's grading was sometimes biased or unfair."

"If I would have turned my papers into another English teacher, I am sure I would have gotten a better grade."

"My friends helped me the most."

"He wasn't a very good teacher and didn't hold his leadership position very well."

"I really felt that the way he graded papers was a con to make the students believe they were becoming better writers."

"Sometimes he just talked about random things that weren't helpful." (I'll buy that one, by the way. It sounds a lot like me.)

"Only talked to one person."

"Terrible grader. Was not consistent."

"He tries to act like a tough guy." (Which was nice, because I've never been accused of acting like a "tough guy" before.)

"I did not enjoy this class only because of the professor and the way he grades. He does not compare in a positive way to what my peers say about their professors."

Well, that about sums it up. In my defense, though, I gave out more A's to this class than any other I've taught. I pushed all of them to write better and most of them did extremely well. However, I think I'll try to act less like a "tough guy" this quarter. I don't want to hurt anybody's feelings.

5 comments:

  1. I liked that whole "greeting card thing" thank you very much. I just wanted a change. You get no sensitivity points.

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  2. Okay, so technically I didn't read your post before I wrote about you getting no sensitivity points, and now I feel kind of bad. Better luck this quarter!

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  3. hey scott, its dave l. I was just remembering how we randomly saw each other at Little America a couple years ago - pretty crazy.

    Anyway, i found your bl*g today. I was a TA for one of my favorite teachers I had up here and I typed all his evaluations into the computer for him. He was really cool but some things people said about him weren't that nice. I think students just find something to complain about if they don't get the grade they wanted.

    ps. - i really promise i didn't deflate your tube

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  4. Geesh Scott. Well, you're handling it well. I think it's cool that you're not same easy teacher that everyone takes so they can get the credits. It's ok to be tough sometimes.

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