What can I do when I am treated unfairly by a professor?

Question

I am in a chemistry 102 lab course, and the teacher tells us to ask questions when we are unsure. I asked a question and she gave me a very mean and negative tone telling me that i needed to read the book more and i wasnt prepared. I asked her why she was using such a negative tone with me and she flipped out screaming at me that she didnt have to answer nequestions for me and i should be smart enough to answer that question (half the class were stuck on the problem, they were too scared to ask her) and then she told me that she knew what kind of student i was from other teachers ( i took and dropped this class over the summer because of work and family issues) and she says that she refuses to help me or answer anymore questions. I was furious and said back to her that she had no need to scream and embarass me infron of 24 classmates and she told me to get out of her class and never come back. I was cring afterwards for 3 hours and talked to her supervisor, but he wont help. HELP ME PL

Answer 1

I, for one, would never, EVER say something out of line to any number of my students regardless of the "type" of student they are. If she were having a problem with you she should be professional about it and set up a conference with you and POLITELY explain what bothers her about you and even then it should only involve your coursework, not your personality or attitude. The way I see it, unless you were harming another student, there is absolutely no cause for this.

It may not be a good idea to go talk with her personally, as this may cause another string of unfortunate events to occur; you should not meet with her unless you have someone there with you as your witness. This is absolutely allowed in universities across the country. If she refuses to let you meet with her in someone else's presence, decline the meeting.

It does sound like it has already escalated to a point where you need to file a formal complaint with your school's Academic Board. This board is, or should be, comprised of students, falculty and members of the Student Government. They are there to help you in matters such as these. They will help you file complaints to the right people.

You can also go to the dean of the program you are in, then the next step will be the deanof students and then the university dean. It may not get this far. Do document incidents, but keep in mind that they won't do any good unless you have other students to corraborate such incidents. Be sure to stay vocal about it. Tell your parent (s), friends, and other students in the class when things happen. This way when asked they can say, "yes, I remember her saying...fill in the blank, etc."

If you need more information, please let me know and send me an e-mail. Professors are not there to comment on anything other than how you are doing in their class, even then it should be between you and that professor.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

You need to go to the dean of your school. First off, you need to document everything you said and she said, the date, time, etc... so you will have this when you go and make your complaint. Also, and this is very important- write down your witnesses!! Find someone who will go in with you if you have any problems with the dean. If I were you, I would take a mini recorder in there and tape her saying this S#*@ to you so you would have even further proof. You should not have to take that from here, especially when you are paying for the class. Just get proof. Get her fired!!! Secondly, she should not even be saying that she knows what kind of student you are from other teachers. What the hell is that suppose to mean?! Go as high as you can go with this and dont give up. I have been in this type of situation before- dont let them win!!! Teachers should not be teachers if they are going to act like that and we need to do something about it. Good Luck.

Answer 3

College IS NOT high school.
Were you paying attention?
Did the book answer your question?
Not every college prof. is going to be nice to you or even helpful. Suck it up or transfer to another class-however transferring will send a message to the next teacher and perhaps prejudice them against you and you might not want that.
Chemistry is hard and does require preparation PRIOR to class

Answer 4

You should talk to the professor in private if you want to resolve the issue and continue with the class. It may be hard to believe this but it looked like you embarrassed your professor in front of her class.

I believe if you respect your professor, she would treat you fairly.