05-26-2012 at 5:49 PM

Edited by mods

05-26-2012 at 5:40 PM

Edited by mods

05-21-2012 at 7:06 AM

Since you're going to have to see her anyway (like Clay said), plan for awkwardness. Just accept that she's going to be upset and you're going to be embarrassed, ashamed, and uncomfortable. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you can stop being preoccupied about seeing her and actually prepare what you want to say (trust me, I've been there >.&lt;) and start preparing what you're going to say (cause just winging it can have really bad results).<br /> <br /> You'll need to decide why you threw the sheet away before you go talk to her. Was it really because you thought it wouldn't be needed? Or was it because you saw the 55 and felt horrible about the bad grade and your lack of attention in that class and you couldn't stand having it around? I've been there - I've crumpled up bad grades and hidden them away in a dark corner of my room (because I'm convinced that the second I throw something away, I'll need it - so I keep everything until I'm not in the class anymore). Personally, I'd tell her that I was so shocked and embarrassed by it that I wasn't thinking straight and threw it away.<br /> <br /> But the main idea is to be as honest as you can (without being so honest that you say something she interprets as mean or rude) and as sincere as possible. It sounds like you realize your mistakes and truly wish you'd done better - use that emotion when you talk to her. <i>Feel</i> ashamed and embarrassed and be sure she realizes this - come right out and say it if you have to. I think sometimes teachers assume that if you have bad grades in their class, you must really not care at all. Showing them that you do care and are bothered by the fact that you're not doing as well as you could can go a long way to improving your grade. <br /> <br /> Just this semester, I was in a similar (thought not exactly the same) situation. I took a Pirates of the Caribbean class that was really interesting, but had extremely boring readings. I didn't do any of the readings on time and I didn't read the book that we were supposed to write our paper about. In addition to that, I misinterpreted the topic assignment and didn't write anything even close to what she wanted. I got the paper back a week later with a giant, red "F". I'm an English major, I work in the writing center (where I help people improve their papers), and I've never gotten worse than a B on a paper (and only then because I didn't fully apply myself). This "F" just about killed me (I seriously cried for the rest of the day - it was horrible >.&lt;). So I went to her and explained that I was confused by the topic, even though I'd read it a bunch of times and it was spelled out pretty clearly (I was sure to say that I must have misunderstood so that she didn't think I was blaming her assignment for my bad grade). I told her that I must have gotten wrapped up in my own thoughts about it and somehow missed the point. She didn't give me a better grade or allow me a chance to improve the paper, but I did pull out an overall "B" in the class, which I think was mostly because of that talk (since a flat-out "F" with good-but-not-great test scores generally means you'll be getting a "C" if you're lucky). Having a good, sincere talk where you own up to your mistakes and tell your teacher that you're embarrassed (heck, I even cried a little) can really, <i>really</i> help.<br /> <br /> Don't overdo it, though - just be honest with your emotions and reasons. Don't try to come up with excuses that you think will sound better than "I was ashamed of the grade and I couldn't stand having the paper near me." Saying "I didn't think it would be important to keep" can sound an awful lot like you're saying "I didn't think your class was important enough for me to keep this paper", and that would be bad.<br /> <br /> ETA: Wow. This is really long. Sorry xD<br /> <br /> ETA2: Also, don't try to talk to her during class - see if there's a time she can meet with you after class or after school. Talking to her before or after class, when you're both preoccupied, will just add more tension to the conversation and make it even more uncomfortable.

05-20-2012 at 7:16 PM

You're gonna have to see her anyways :S It's not the end of the world.