Note from Dr. A--This email was received at the end of the semester after the
student received his grade. This student's case is an example of what not to do--not
listen to the professor, not understand the syllabus, not follow directions, and not come
to class regularly. In addition, it is not a good idea to repeatedly beg the professor,
send poorly written emails that suggest you are not college material, try to get the
professor to change your earned grade at the end of the semester, and hold the
professor responsible for saving your future.
Subject: U GOT HELP ME OUT, PLEASE
HI DOCTOR, U TOLD ME AM GOING TO MAKE A "B" EVEN WITHOUT DOIN
THE FINAL BUT UNFORTUNATELY U GAVE A "C" WHICH IS OF NO GOOD TO
ME.PLEASE DOCTOR CHECK MY COURSE COMPASS,MY TEST AND MY
FINALS OUT AGAIN PLEASE CAUSE WITHOUT U PASSING I MEAN GETTIN A
"B" AM NO GOOD AT ALL AND ACADEMIC IS GOING TO BE AFFECTED REAL
BAD PLEASE ONCE AGAIN LOOK INTO MY CASE.
Within an hour, he sent another email-Subject: u got to save my fuyure
hello doctor ,how u doin hey doc. i check my grade
today and i realise i gave a "C" intead of a "b"
remember when i came to see u in about my grade u said
am good for a "b" but to my sadness u gave me a"C"
please doctor u got to help me out cause without me
passin ur class my educational carrer will come to a
stop and i know u don't want that for nor any of your
student please u got to help me ,please for love of
God u got to to me save my career .
My reply:
Joe (not his name),
Please realize I assign the grades that are earned. I am certain I did not tell you that you
would get a B for the class. I said you had a B average on your regular exams. Your
grade is based on the following:
61, 85, 75, 81 (drop the 61) on your 4 exams. You earned a 68 for participation (You
missed 7 classes, did not participate in class discussion and frequently did not follow
directions or requests--including my request that you not complain to me about points
taken off for not following directions. The class participation grade is based on
attendance and how you contributed to making the class better or worse. See syllabus for
further details). You earned an 89 plus 4 bonus (93) on your Course Compass and a 62
plus 2 bonus (64) on your Final Exam. This averaged to 77.6 which is a C average.
You have emailed me twice and left three voicemails regarding your grade. Let me take
the time to explain some things that might help you in future classes. First of all, the time
to be focused on your grade is not the week of finals. It would be to your benefit to be
conscientious all semester. For all your classes, you need to be certain you comprehend
everything in the syllabus. You need to follow directions. You missed 7 classes which
does not suggest to me that you were that desperate to make an A or B. You complained
to me about losing points for not following directions--but then made the same mistake
on the next exam and the next exam. Last but not least, the grammar, spelling and
punctuation in your email is extremely poor. The tone is very informal, as if writing a
long time friend. When writing a professor or boss, it is important to sound respectful
and intelligent. Your email does not sound like it came from a college student; rather, it
sounds like it comes from a 6th grade student. I do not say this to insult you. I say this as
a matter of fact, hoping you can learn from this in a way that helps you in the future. I
am sorry you are disappointed in your grade. Your grade is final and I will not change it.
Please do not ask me again to change it. I hope you take what you've learned from this
to make your life better.
I wish you the best-Dr. Anderson