My Professors Demands (Teacher/Student)

So I took a look and my ratings were excellent although they did find my class difficult. Now what about my past prof's ratings? Exactly the way I saw them to be when I was their student. I have ratings on there that are somewhat negative but it leans more toward the difficulty of the class itself. It is very easy to read through the ones that are just simply upset about their grade. As far as I am concerned, that website is nothing more than a bulletin board with opinions based on a per student basis. Getting offended by comments is truly just childish behaviour. I wish most profs had your attitude, then maybe the school system in the US wouldn't be so messed up.

They are why many third world countries are surprassing us. OMG, which third world countries are surpassing the U. Other nations like Japan and Germany have been for years but they are hardly part of the third world. Then of course their students work slightly harder than their American counterparts. The only people who are going to be disgruntled are the teachers who are consistantly pulling bad ratings.

Every professor, no matter how good, is going to pull a bad rating. However, if you are not aware enough to take that into account when you are choosing professors, then you aren't smart enough to get anything out of the class or the ratings anyway. No professor's career is going to be ruined by even 3 bad ratings. Some people aren't made for teaching, it doesn't matter how hard they have worked, I don't want to work with someone who is a bad lecturer or a random grader. Bad teachers exist as sad as that is, and I don't think anyone can honestly say they want to take a class with a "bad" teacher.

Some professors have a certain teaching style, why would I want to waste my time and my professor's time in a setting where I know I don't learn best. I would never take a class from him. I would have been so dissapointed to take a class where I can sleep through it and get an A. I am glad I go to a college where I can take an upper level bio class where people want to do the work. This is why I love small liberal arts colleges, people are not here to make big research discoveries, they are here to help us learn, and there almost all good ratings at RMP for my school. Some of them do amazing cutting edge research in certain fields, but not at the expense of the students learning.

With no quality control, how good is the information? I've read ratings on professors which were totally opposite of one another. I just finished reading bad reviews on two of my math professors whom I thought were very good - hmmm. Whiners posting up an excuse for their poor scholarship I suppose. Other comments reveal the maturity not of the posting persons - they rate professors like celebrities.

The best source of information is first hand information from students you know - but take their comments with a grain of salt. This is kind of like asking your friends if they liked a certain movie - if certain of my friends tell me they enjoyed a certain movie, I know I won't like it at all! I was very hopeful that a ratings web site would help me, but I've decided it's not wise to make decisions on questionable information.

Some people are going to like it some arn't. See who got a better rating. The profs need to get over it and learn to deal with a little criticism. We are paying for our education and i want to make sure i have good teachers. I have worked in the administrations of both a small private liberal arts school and a big state school. Of course, all generalizations are wrong including this one , but I have found the state school students to be much better than those at the private school. The private school has to "meet their nut" by taking in x number of students every year, no matter how many quality applicants they have.

These students probably should not be in college at all, but the faculty feel tremendous pressure often directly from the parents to pass even those who can not read. The students' and parents' take seems to be and I heard this directly from them so many times it made me nauseous: I view private schools very differently now, and I am happy to be back at a state institution.

I still could never be a prof. At the university where I teach, all student evaluations are published on a web site owned and controlled by the university, and administered by the student government. They tabulate the student responses which are obtained before students know their grades , assemble the results into statistical totals for each course and put the entire thing up on the web as a PDF. Seems fair to me. This method is superior to sites like RMP for various reasons.

First, it ensures that all who respond are actual students in the respective courses as opposed to anyone with a computer who can post. Another factor is that this method offers a glimpse at ALL the comments, rather than just a select few; statistically speaking, a much larger sample size is always preferable. These things tend to ensure quality control, something sites like RMP do not really practice. I would encourage every school to use this method.

The profs think it is fair, the students get a very good picture of what to expect from a professor, and everybody wins. These comments are going to be made anyways, it just makes it easier for us students to hear it. You know how it is with our tech savvy lazy generation, we want info and we want it now Plus, now that we have the knowledge on how things can be, it wouldn't be long before another program As a professor, I am rather dismayed by RMP.

Although I have gotten relatively high marks, I have noticed that many entries are also left by students who got low grades in class and felt they did not "deserve" the low grades. For example, they feel if they do they work they should get an "A" even though many other students do work of much higher quality. Even after they spoke with me to explain their grades they were angry and felt RMP was a recourse. Further, many other comments are inaccurate, misreprented and so on.

I know my students fairly well and usually know who makes the posts. I have no way to "defend" myself against unfair comments, but I have found that it is easy to find them because they often are misspelled, have poor grammar, etc. I am glad there is some opportunity to express oneself, but the anonymity of the student can skew some ratings unfairly for the disgruntled poor student.

I wish it were a more respresentative rating system. This is am interesting site because it says a lot about education. As a teacher I have found that there are 2 types of students, one who wants to really learn and one who wants an easy grade. The one who wants the easy grade resents teachers who have higher expectations of them and often punish the teacher through ratings.

I teach in a large public college and I have been appalled by how many students see college as just another part of "The System" to "Get Over. Actually I would really like to have the students who "want", even demand, something more. I have tried to do this, but I have had many students who maybe just out of large public high schools don't want much expected of them but want good grades.

I don't want to complain, but it has been a hard semester. I have taught for many years and used to enjoy it very much.

But in the past year, I deal more with discipline problems students walking in and out of class, talking through class, using cell phones in class, never handing in papers on time and then using few references, only internet , etc. There has been little respect for learning and even for other students who want to learn. It feels like "the bigger world" where posturing and cheating are better than real accomplishment. From our current government on down I have had to lower my standards over and over and still have students argue with me over what I expect. I worked really hard for my PhD, which I got on my own while being a single parent.

Yet I am "criticized" by students who cannot write a decent paragraph and would rather party and talk on the phone than read. Perhaps it is just "the system" I am in, too. I am feeling "foolish" that I actually care about education and even the students as people! Like maybe this is the "real" learning: I am ready to give up on teaching even though I have really put myself into it.

Hope I get less cynical in ! I have been teaching for 24 years and I totally agree. My personal values of caring, honesty, integrity, and giving value are being undermined by the lack of those values in the students and the college where I work.

Consequently, in order to get out of the prison my profession has become, I am looking forward to early retirement. I may also leave the country for a place where society hasn't similarly declined, yet. Does anyone know where that is? You think you have it bad? Try being a student who wants to work hard and learn, but the prof sucks. We have NO recourse, and might lose thousands of dollars and untoild amounts of time which is wrong. At least you get paid, no matter what.

You have slack students? Flunk them or drop them and they will eventually get driven out of school. Push for higher admission standards, but don't whine because of a few bad apples that you get paid to teach and don't do anything about. That is not true. If students have been given an unfair grade from a professor they can take the issue to an academic advisor, dept.

Most universities have investigating committees that include student representatives and can examine complaints on a case-by-case basis.

Professors can certainly be penalized by unfair grading--provided the student has a legitimate complaint and isn't just whining or blaming the professor for their own lame work. When professors post grades they generally have to limit their comments to a simple A-F grade that only the professor and student will see.

Students that post on RMP, however, can post whatever they want about their professors for all the world to see. And because these comments are anonymous, professors have no way of appealing these comments or defending their grading policies. I wonder what would happen if professors started posting their student's grades on the internet and included comments like "this student is stupid, don't let them into your class" or "this student looks weird and sounds likea cartoon character in class discussion"?

The professor in question would be hit by 30 lawsuits within a week and their students would be whining about unfair treatment and a lack of professionalism. Thats the problem with too many students today, they can give but can't take criticism. Here, I agree with you. The problem with RMP is not the rating, but the public nature of the rating.

If students would agree, as you suggest, to have professors post their grades and comments on the web for all to see too, then fair is fair. Your comments are completely without merit. Sure you can complain after the fact, but your time and money are gone. The site serves a legitimate purpose, steering others away from bad teachers and towards good teachers. I suspect that most of the teachers here crying are those that do not deserve to teach. When a student graduates, his grades are certainly used as a means of employment, so your argument falls flat.

The fact remains that there is no recourse against bad professors, most have tenure and can never be removed. If a grievance committee determines that a student has recieved an unfair grade then of course the grade can be changed, the tuition refunded, or the student recieve another chance to take the course the next time it is offered. It happens all the time. Of course Professors can and in many cases have been investigated and if they are found guilty they can be disciplined and even removed--regardless of whether they have tenure.

Any college handbook will spell out the specific grievance policies that the institution in question has. Student organizations on campus also militantly monitor student complaints against professors. Professors change grades all the time, provided the student has a case. I have changed grades for students on several occasions throughout my career. In fact, our dept. Yes, good grades are important in the workplace. Which is why the average undergraduate takes around 60 courses, probably with at least different professors.

So it would take quite a few "unfair" grades from "incompetent" professors to sink your average. Which means either you are victim of an X-Filesesque conspiracy from at least a majority of your professors to intentionally give you bad grades, or maybe your low grades have more to do with your own efforts than you would care to admit.

Unfair grades, heck grades in general are not the point. Grades are meaningless without knowlege and that is why bad professors especially bad ones who are easy are so dangerous. You guys are the ones that keep bringing up the issue of "unfair grading" on RMP and this blog. I am just taking your apocryphal horror stories and glaring generalizations and following them to their natural, illogical conclusions. This whole "Its the professors' fault we make bad grades" school of thought is a red herring.

This Fall semester was a complete waste of my time and money, all because I had no prior information about a certain adjunct professor. If i had read comments about her teaching style on RMP, then I would certainly based my decision on whether or not to take her only after careful evaluation of the comments. SHe is always late to class and she never clearly explains the assignments. The class that is supposed to last for 3 hrs BUT it Always finishes before an hour is up.

Tell me, should this person be teaching? On the other hand, i was also lucky to have the most helpful and insightful professors I enrolled not having prior info about them. Just my 2 cents. I am a Prof who has read the reviews of me and others on Ratemyprofessors and think that it is a fraudulent forum. The submissions are also limited to words and the fixed ratings are limited in detail - superficial. Incredible, my comments read just like the ones I am criticizing on Ratemyprofessors.

It is amazing how so many intelligent professors make assumptions about the posts. I though you guys were supposed to be smart. Just because you do not agree with what people say, doesn't make it fraudelent or incorrect. How about stop being a child and take the good and bad comments and use them to better yourself? Because there is not way to verify that it isn't fraudulent or incorrect. Students can post whatever comments they want without any type of authenticity, using fabrications or innuendo to lash out at professors whose only crime may have been to flunk lazy students.

Its the same type of tactics the MCarthyites used in the 50s and the Limbaughs and O'Reillys use today, slander, gossip, rumor, innuendo, and character assasination. Besides, obvoiusly slanderous posts get removed, if you did not know that, they why are you even blurting out your ignorant opinions? Which RMP website are you consulting? The one I look at has dozens of cruel and untrue attacks on professors, critizizing everything from their physical appearance to lifestyle habits.

I haven't seen any that have been removed, except maybe edited for swear words. Get over it profs. Just because you have a phd, does not give you the right to a teaching job. It also does not mean you can teach. I have had many profs who were geniuses, but couldn't communicate their knowlege at all. I am the type of student that pushes profs to push me, even if they are slackers and only a pulse is required for an A. I want to learn, but very few want to teach, they just want to spew the info as fast as possible with little to no background info, nor teach reason why things are certain ways.

Most profs teach the what, not the why and how. That is why I give bad reviews, and it is legitimate. I have yet to read a RMP review that was inaccurate. Even with seemingly contridictory reviews they often aren't where some rate high and some rate low, it is still a good resource. RMP is a valuable source, but should not be the only source to decide who to take and who to avoid.

I look for the profs who can actually teach and are challenging. I avoid the easy ones unless it is for a pointless GR class and I have better things to learn, or if the prof is hard and can't teach. One more time, since I know most profs have this insane idea of entitlement: There is a reason why the best instructors I ever had, held a masters. You PHD's whining about bad reviews and less enrollment in your classes should wonder why masters make better teachers. Why is there so much hostility on this site?

Are students and teachers enemies? It is true that, at some universities, research is more important than teaching, so profs are more rewarded for publishing than teaching. Further, criticizing teachers alone will probably not improve much. Unfortunately, most college professors are supposed to be experts in their field per se, and rarely take courses in education, teaching, psychology, etc. But it is a shame to think that most are "against" students.

Likewise, it is a shame that students are "against" teachers. I think a better response is not students vs. Students do not consider good teachers their enemy. Bad teachers are another matter. A bad teacher can ruin a course of study, wastes months of work and potentially thousands of dollars. I agree with most of your comments, and I think they hiring process needs to go and a revamp of the tenure system is in order. Too many poor, unmotivated profs use tenure as a shield to protect them, and then use the sword that comes with it to destroy the educational process.

Students can also ruin a course of study, months of class time, and thousands of dollars all on their own through poor work in school. I don't think that blaming the professors is going to solve that problem. Sure universities could hire professors that are easy and value congeniality over objectivity, we could even weaken or eliminate tenure in order to bring professors more under student control. Then everyone will graduate in four years on time with at least a 3. The job market will be flooded with graduates, all of whom have the same inflated grades, so employers will just ratchet up the their criteria for hiring, and students are right back to square one.

If they agree to that or at least acknowledge receipt of the information and still are intransigent, then you should end the conversation, calmly, by saying that you will have to take the situation up with the administration. I would then bring the matter to your department head and see what is suggested.

Welcome to Reddit,

If the faculty member is in a different department then it may be in order for the two department heads to have a discussion. If the department head does not take ownership of the issue you should ask whether he [I happen to know that the head of the OP's department is a "he"] wants you to take up the issue with the higher administration. If not, then as an assistant professor this may be the place to drop it, but again you should communicate clearly that policy is being violated and students are suffering.

Or you could take it up with the higher administration: I might have done that as an assistant professor. As a tenured associate professor I would probably do it now, and would not worry about it jeopardizing my future promotion or dealings in the department. On the other hand, the egregious behavior you described would probably not even be attempted at my large public university. Tenure and promotion is not a docility contest, and "He reported a rule violation" is not a point against someone's case.

I think honestly the issue is mostly one of your own peace of mind, so act accordingly. You certainly have my sympathies: It's hard to deal with unreasonable people -- you just can't reason with them! The fact that you care about the students and the other guy apparently really does not could indeed make you blink first. You may for instance end up having to give a makeup exam to some of the students. If so you should clearly document every time you do that and have the individual students vouch for you as well.

Where I did my undergrad, students' complaints were common, and now the dean has a zero tolerance policy towards extending compulsory lessons or exams beyond the allocated time.

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It takes them only one student complain to get involved. The most immediate action they can take is just not allow the booking of the room, which is quite effective in itself; and also talking to the professor in question. In case of repeated transgressions, they can attempt other actions, like giving that subject to another department in the following years. So, the best way you can solve this is to get the people in power involved, and show that the students don't need to go through many hoops to get their rights enforced.

If you want to ensure enforcement you need the students, because they are the only ones who will surely know when there is a collision. Make sure they know there are channels open for them, anonymous, and swift. As a student, I have e-mailed a professor to point out the difficulty caused by his overrun habit.

I was much older than most of the class, which had two consequences:. Not sure whether student councils are really so unimportant at other institutions, but once again I would advice you to address a student representative from that class or otherwise from that year. Point out the specific rules they are violating and they should know who to address and how to get the rules enforced, after all, that's a huge part of what the student council does assuming it's in the students best interest, which this does sound like, keep in mind to always highlight the advantages for the students if the policy is enforced.

The advantage is that you are not 'attacking' a colleague and the student council will never mention your name. On top of that - if played well - it will even put you on good terms with the student council after all, by pointing out the specific policies that were violated you saved them work , which might be useful if you ever make an unintentional mistake somewhere.

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IMO you best bet is to ask the other professor to help you out with an issue. Explain that students are complaining that the "other professor" runs over. The professor will then either engage with you in resolving the problem or will try not to engage. Either way summarize the discussion back to the professor in an email and try to use the mutually agreeable solution.

You may have to try this a few times but if within one or two meetings you don't resolve the problem you can then escalate it to "upper management" with documentation of what has been tried. If none of this works you could in clear conscious ask at the beginning of a course if your students have "that other" professor before you ad suggest that they not keep both.

Who's afraid of 'Rate your Professor'?

Once you show the way other brave souls may follow suit and the peer pressure could evoke a behavior change where your voice could not. By clicking "Post Your Answer", you acknowledge that you have read our updated terms of service , privacy policy and cookie policy , and that your continued use of the website is subject to these policies. Home Questions Tags Users Unanswered. What to do when other professors place unfair demands on my students? At most, they can complain, but enforcement of policies is a faculty or department's duty. This is an interesting problem. Did you talk to that professor about it in person?

This is the first thing one should do before involving any power. Just man to man talk. Much better for personal relationships at any workplace. Might be the easiest and humanly thing as well, but sadly, people often forget about this possibility! I know of one university when the time table software is linked to the lighting system, so the lights and projector etc are turned off in the room just after the lecture is due to finish.

The door locks are also integrated so an unbooked room cannot be used. The situation where the professor routinely runs 10 minutes late is qualitatively different from the others. The solution there is that the student simply knows they have to walk out in order to get to their next class on time. BenCrowell I had this situation as a student.

Often, the overrun was essential information for the homework, so simply leaving was not a realistic option.