Disagreement Between Me and My Teacher

It is commonly known that disagreement is something that cannot be pushed away. It is something that is usual to everybody’s life. Without disagreement people will not know and measure how important one person to others or how things work or does not work. Just like what happen between me and my teacher when I was in my high school, it was a long time ago but still the lessons I learned from it comes with me in my daily life inside my classroom. Students and teachers disagreed on what is actually being evaluated when a teacher gives a student a grade (Goulden and Griffin, 1997).
Students are emotionally invested in their grades and can have different emotional reactions to their receipt. For example, a student may feel pride, disappointment, desperation, helplessness, humiliation, relief, hatred, resignation, etc. Depending on what attributions are made, students may be more probable to experience a specific emotion. For example, when a grade is negative, an internal, firm and controllable cause may illicit feelings of guilt, whereas an internal, firm and uncontrollable (for instance, lack of ability) could cause feelings of shame.
On the other hand, an external, uncontrollable cause may illicit feelings of disappointment, an unstable cause feelings of uncertainty and external, controllable causes feeling of anger. It was the time when my teacher gave me a bad grade. It was just simple essay writing. My teacher told us to compose an essay with a particular topic. I happily do the paper but unfortunately my teacher did not like what I composed and give me a bad grade. Grades are important to me as a student. For me grades are seen as anything from an evaluation of my personal character to an expectation of my future success.

I felt angry at that time. I thought that I was not good enough to be her student; I felt that I have done my part, my best but still my best is not enough. It felt so degrading. A negative grade that is expected is not a joyful occasion for me, but a negative grade that is unexpected is a more disturbing situation. Students usually have an idea of what a fair grade is for the work that they have done. If my expectation of a fair grade is not met, I get very confused and angry. When she is giving me my grade, at that time I had the belief that I was being evaluated on my learning in the classroom.
For me as a student that grade in a piece of paper is a representation of me, of what I have learned in the school. I can not help my self but to confront my teacher for giving me such a bad grade. What was her basis of my grade? What did I do wrong? At first I was not being able to speak I do not know where to begin until she spoke and asked me “What is it about? I told her that the grade she has given me seems to be unfair. She asked me to sit down and explained to me something. She said that she as a teacher agreed significantly that grades usually do not correspond with how much a student has learned.
Grades may or may not be an accurate reflection of student learning. She explained to me that even I got a bad grade it does not mean that I am less intelligent than my classmates it just that I have not explained or elaborated more with my essays. That at the moment when I was doing my paper I may not be prepared or concentrating well enough. There can be so many reasons. She said that I have all the time to show and prove my intelligence to my fellow students. Grades are interpreted by me as something different than teachers intend them to be.
From that moment I have realized that I must not feel less a person because of a bad grade. It will not be a representation of my whole personality as a person. It may be a part of me that needs to be developed. I just have to think of it as a step to my achievement. Knowing a thing that you are not good at is a step for learning. Start feeding your mind with information concerning the matter. Try to be knowledgeable with it. In due time without knowing it, you will gain knowledge that is more than what you aspire for.
Students also have responsibilities with regard to their learning, which increase as they advance through their growth. Students who are enthusiastic to make the effort required and who are able to apply themselves will soon discover that there is a direct relationship between accomplishment and hard work, and will be motivated to work as a result. There will be few students, on the other hand, who will find it more complicated to take responsibility for their learning for the reason of the special challenges they face, which may include lack of support and other difficulties in the home or environment in which they are growing up.
For these students, the attention, patience, and encouragement of teachers can be extremely important factors for success. However, regardless of their circumstances, learning to take responsibility for one’s progress and learning is an important part of education for all students. I have realized that when a conflict exists between a student and a teacher, it takes a various form, and depends on various issues, than a romantic or workplace conflict.
When a teacher gives a grade, s/he may be thinking that the grade communicates an evaluation of a certain product of work; on the other hand, a student may feel that the grade represents a judgment of him/herself as a person. Conflicts between teachers and students regarding grade are likely for the reason that the teacher and student come from such different perspectives. I don’t think grades ever tell the whole story about a student. I think every student is more than their grades. Students have a social life. Students have time-demanding after-school activities and maybe even a home life that stresses students out from time to time.