| Wondering if you saw the actual email. When teachers decide to ream out an entire class, if they're halfway wise, they'll preface the comment with, "Although some of you have prepared extremely well, many of you have not..etc." Sometimes in the heat of things, if a class has just walked boisterously back to class for example, I began to say, "You really embarrassed yourselves out there..." but a mere look at the faces of a handful of okay-niks would remind me to say the formulaic, "Of course, some of you comported yourselves well and you know who you are, thank you. But as for the rest..." Blah blah. If the teacher's email has such a catch-all phrase anywhere in it, teach your D in the future to look for that and identify herself with the positive minority. If he didn't, he must have missed a few classes at teachers' college, no matter when he attended. That stuff is basic.
Besides all of that, the time to express those sentiments was NOT by email, in any event. If he wants his class (even the slackers) to do well, he has to teach with all his might and the night before send out a very optimistic note if anything at all. Guided imagery and all of that (sports coaches know to do this).
He might have even wanted to sabotage the class outcome to prove to admin that he shouldn't have been burdened with a mixed-motivation class, so it doesn't happen again next year. The place for that is in calm discussion with administration, however. For students, a teacher should always wish them well, and hope/pray that the students will prove his overall low opinion of the class wrong.
Just some thoughts. Understand I'm NOT justifying the teacher's email as described in your OP. I thought it was appalling...and just wanted you (or ZS) to check it again for that formulaic loophole that says to the "good students" hey, I know you're there too. |