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I recently transferred to a different university, and at the same time I changed my major from Computer Science to English after taking Calculus and deciding that 6-7 more calculus-related math courses would leave me either insane or flunking out of college. I'm pretty happy with my choice so far, but I'm seeking some advice as to what to do in one of my English major classes...
I have been on pretty good terms with my English professor who teaches an Intro to Literary Theory class (the name is something like that), and I have received an A on all of the papers I have submitted for the class so far in the semester.
Yesterday, however, we received our graded papers analyzing some poetry, and my teacher's comments indicated that she felt that I had done the entire paper incorrectly. She was probably right--I analyzed the poem in a style that was pretty much the opposite of what we were assigned because...well....everyone makes mistakes, right?  I still did the work, and I still had 5 pages of analysis that is still valid, even if it was in the wrong style.
In other writing classes I have taken at the university level, something of the magnitude I did (which I haven't done before) would probably be marked lower or something like that, but instead my teacher gave me a big fat zero...on 10% of my entire grade for the class.
So that was yesterday, and she has office hours in about two hours. Should I go and ask her if I can obtain any credit by redoing it now that I understand what she wants (and I guess try to suck up and just agree with her assessment and admit that my paper was crap), or should I just tough it out and do better next time? I guess if I go during office hours then the worst that can happen is she says "No" and chastises me for writing a subpar paper, but is there anything else I am missing that could make me going to see her the better idea or a terrible idea?
I'm only 18, but I am already a Junior in college, so I'm not completely new to the ball game, but this is the first time I've had something so crappy happen in school when I still actually did the assignment.
Any input would be appreciated, but I'll leave this poll here for the people who don't comment but just read this blog.
Poll: Should I go see my teacher?Yes, but be careful with what you say (20) 65% Yes! You've got nothing to lose! (11) 35% No, that's a bad idea (0) 0% 31 total votes Your vote: Should I go see my teacher? (Vote): Yes! You've got nothing to lose!
(Vote): Yes, but be careful with what you say
(Vote): No, that's a bad idea
Thank you!
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CA10829 Posts
definitely go, but go in with the attitude of trying to learn how you could improve, rather than trying to fight for your grade on your previous paper.
if you show marked improvement for your next paper the grader will be more lenient. same with the end of the semester grades if you're borderline.
it's one of the benefits of being a humanities major with subjective grading.
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Well I can see you getting a zero if you did everything in direct contradiction to written instructions...
If you can argue you made an honest mistake and not just a blatantly dumb one, go talk to her. Otherwise accept it and don't do it again. XD
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LosingID8 is on the right track. You could bring up the grade, and being delicate and polite about it is definitely the way to go. Demonstrating that you understand the assignment and the poetry in question to some degree would be good to do as well.
Afterward, if you decide you want to fight the grade anyway, you can bring it up with either your prof, department head, or both, as the situation merits, but it's definitely worth simply speaking with your prof first.
If it was a TA rather than a prof that graded it, speak to the TA and then work your way up the chain as you decide the situation merits.
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I would be so pissed! I don't think I ever had an English teacher that would just flat out give me a 0 for misunderstanding the assignment - at worst I could redo it and take 10-20% grade cut or something. I hope it works out for you, I would definitely try talking to her.
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Go in, you have nothing to lose as long as you are polite. There is no reason why the teacher will not give you a 2nd chance at the assignment especially since you put in so much work already. It is clear just a misunderstanding on your part so I can't imagine the teacher getting off to giving you a 0. I've heard of lots of teachers who will give a student a zero like that in the hopes that THEY DO come to office hours or talk to them after class. The teacher isn't there to screw you, they are they to help you learn so most likely, some compromise can be made! Good luck!
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An additional question, should I go today or should I go tomorrow right before our class? I have the option, although tomorrow would be more convenient for me
She has office hours every day M-F for the hour that is right before our class, which is MWF
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On October 07 2011 01:09 Hikko wrote:
An additional question, should I go today or should I go tomorrow right before our class? I have the option, although tomorrow would be more convenient for me
Definitely go in during office hours. You might need more time to discuss the assignment than you'll have in the few minutes before class. Good luck!
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If you misunderstand the assignment to the extent that you do essentially the opposite that the teacher wants, it makes sense for them to give you a zero. Especially in a paper that is worth 10% of your grade, you should be consulting with your teacher as you write it. For big assignments, I would often e-mail my professors rough drafts to make sure I was on the right track, as well as run my topics by them before even starting.
However, since 10% is a lot to someone who knows how to do math and also wants to be successful (I don't know math and am success-averse and I think that 10% doesn't seem like that big of a deal) you should approach your professor and see if there's a way you can get some points by re-writing the assignment or something like that. An even cooler idea is to simply write the paper the right way, and then hand it in saying something like if you can look this over please and tell me if this is better than what I did, and then kind of sneak in a polite beg for half credit or something like that.
Also in the future, for assignments where you have a significant amount of time to do it and is worth a portion of your grade that you feel is also significant, you should consider running your topic by your professor, the direction you are taking things, and even rough drafts in hopes of additional critiques and direction.
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On October 07 2011 01:09 Hikko wrote:
An additional question, should I go today or should I go tomorrow right before our class? I have the option, although tomorrow would be more convenient for me
She has office hours every day M-F for the hour that is right before our class, which is MWF
You can't go wrong.
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Definitely give it a go during one of her office hours. Before/after class is a terrible idea, often professors / TAs are in a rush to go to next class or home (either way, not in a mood for lengthy conversation).
I wouldn't be too hopeful on salvaging some marks out of that assignment though. At best I think you could leave her with the impression that you're an open-minded person with willingness to learn and improve (professors often assume the opposite, especially after an assignment submission like yours).
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As a professor of four years, my opinion would be for you to definitely reach out to them. I have never given a 0 just to have a student come seek me out but if the assignment was incorrect, I will give a 0 with the opportunity to turn it in again in exchange for a late penalty. I would explain the scenario and ask if you are allowed to resubmit the assignment with your new understanding of what was required. I would go in with the assumption that they will say NO so you are not disappointed if they do but hope that they do not. As for the timing, I think the sooner the better. The longer you let it wait, the less important that is for them to worry about compared to upcoming items. Not to mention that you let it 'sit' for an extra day before approaching them about it and, if they agree to a late penalty, you would already be a day behind. Best of luck!
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The prof probably already knows that you are a good student, and that you misunderstood the assignment. So don't feel shy or beat around the bush, just say "So, I guess I misunderstood the assignment. Any chance I can redo it?"
If she says yes, then you know what to do. If she says no, then I recommend either the classy approach---"Ok, I understand"---or the semi-classy approach---"Ok, I understand. Although I'm pretty depressed about dropping 10% of my grade over a misunderstanding."
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You always go to office hours, even if you were 100% in the wrong. At best, you get an opportunity at redemption. At worst, you don't, but she at least will see that you give a shit enough to show up and explain yourself. The key after this is to try to make a habit of showing up and putting in a little extra effort in general (raise your hand more, etc, etc) just to prove that you weren't just drunk as shit the night before and turned in a crap paper because you weren't paying attention
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whats the worst she can do if you go talk to her? say no? is she going to fail you for the entire class because you wanted to argue your grade/ask for a retry? absolutely not.
if you care enough about the grade on this assignment then JUST GO ASK ABOUT IT.
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I had a similar situation, but of significantly smaller magnitude. I did an entire problem correctly (worth like 30 points) and I forgot to write a minus sign on my paper for the same number in two different spots, but my answers were still correct. I merely made a writing mistake, I got docked like 9 points for forgetting that minus sign. I didn't want to talk to the professor because I knew it was my mistake and I should have been more careful, I accepted that it was my fault, not the graders. However, I felt that I shouldn't be knocked down 9 points for a minus sign and still have the correct answers, so I had a dilemma.
I consulted my brother who already finished college, and he gave me some very obvious advice that helped my greatly nonetheless: go talk to the professor during the professor's office hours and come in with an understanding and considerate attitude. Don't charge in demanding better grading, just show them that you realize you made the mistake, and ask them if they could re-examine it. The worst case scenario is that your professor says no, and even then it didn't hurt to ask. If professors see that you didn't screw up just because you didn't try, but that it was an honest mistake, they will generally try to help you out. Don't get me wrong, some professors aren't that compassionate, they will just say you should have studied harder or paid closer attention (happened to me before). However with any luck your professor will let you do the paper again with a big grade cut, which is better than nothing. Not to stereotype, but from my experience English/literature professors are generally much more compassionate, so you might have better luck.
Overall, I would recommend that you go to your professor during their office hours, that is the best time for them to address your personal issue, because that is what the time is designated for. Again, just be honest and courteous, don't try to suck up or fight them (figuratively).
In my case, the professor was very understanding and offered to re-examine the exam. He made no guarantees that I would get what I wanted, just that he would have another look, and honestly that's all I expected.
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EPT
