<p>My Spanish teacher assigned a writing assignment while I was out of school for AP exams. She had not put it on edline, our homework site. She did send out an email to the class, but so many people replied to it and threw in their own ideas that I didn’t think one was due, since she said she would talk to the class.</p>
<p>So now, because of her grading system, I lost my privilege of dropping my lowest grade and got a 0 for the assignment, bringing my grade down to a SEVENTY. I had an A- in the class, on my way to an A, but now I have a C- for the quarter.</p>
<p>Grades were due a week ago (the school year is already over) so she won’t and can’t change it. I didn’t know about this problem with enough time to fix it; we have a website where you can look at all of your assignments and what grade you got on them. She hadn’t upload them at the last time I checked my grades, which was during finals week and 4 days before grades were due.</p>
<p>So here’s the dilemma: now I have a B for the YEAR in Spanish. I had wanted to apply to Harvard, Penn, Duke, and Cornell, and I’m afraid that this severe grade plunge will hurt my chances.</p>
<p>I’m not freaking out saying “OMG I GOT A B I’LL NEVER GET INTO COUNTY COLLEGE”, but I am concerned because of the fact that my Spanish grade dropped a LOT, and it doesn’t reflect my true ability in Spanish, and it will bring down my GPA, and it looks like I flopped at the end of my junior year.</p>
<p>So the big question is…will this hurt my chances?</p>
<p>There’s a section on your application where you can explain any problems in your grades, so you can explain that one B. ONE B isn’t going to ruin your chances of getting in, but a C- as the last Spanish grade before you apply definitely won’t help. Make sure you explain that, and how the grading policy made it so ONE HOMEWORK assignment caused that.</p>
<p>Did you talk to your teacher? Generally, grades can still be changed but it is a big hassle and must be done through the registrar (at least that’s how it is at my school). It seems like there was just a misunderstanding and perhaps your teacher would be accommodating. If not, one B will not make it look like you flopped at the end of junior year. One B will not be the difference between getting into a top school and not.</p>
<p>If you do explain your situation, like NerdosaurusRex has suggested, be VERY careful not to sound like you are whining or trying to make excuses.</p>
<p>I already talked to my teacher, and she was basically like “Tough luck, I told the class”. I know that I should have checked with her or my classmates, and I know that she had told us about her class policy, and I know that I am responsible for doing my homework, but STILL…I wasn’t there when she told the class, and she didn’t let me know about the assignement in any way, and the grades for the year have been submitted so there’s nothing I can do (I already checked with the guidance counselor, and even if my teacher was nice enough to give me any points back, she can’t change the grades).</p>
<p>@Collegehappy: I’ll make sure to do that. I feel like I’m whining by complaining about one B, but I’m furious that one homework assignment would bring down my GPA so much. ONE. HOMEWORK. ASSIGNMENT. Emphasis on the ONE. And HOMEWORK.</p>
<p>One B isn’t going to kill your chances for top schools. What probably would kill your chances would be having ECs with breadth, but no depth, something that many students with excellent gpas who apply to top colleges have.</p>
<p>I don’t think you need to explain the grade drop on your apps. I do think you should take more responsibility for keeping up with homework assigned when you’re out of class.</p>
<p>Don’t whine about it. I hate to sound cold-hearted, but this is actually the sort of thing you will need to deal with in college and the world after college. And, college professors are already getting tired of dealing with students (and parents) who complain about low grades - the last thing admissions needs to see is that you might be another one of them.</p>
<p>Definitely get your parents involved. Many teachers will treat kids disrespectfully and unfairly until they get called out on it from a parent or superior.</p>
<p>This was something unfair, and could damage your chances at top schools. People will throw bs at you like “your parents wont be there to bail you out forever!” But the bottom line is that as a teenager, theres nothing wrong with having your parents support you and help you when you find yourself in bad situations.</p>
<p>^ Agree re: getting a parent involved, as long as they can maintain a professional, polite, assertive, but caring mentality toward the teacher. Although, this sounds like an issue that should have been addressed with your parents prior to this late in the game.</p>
<p>I completely agree with the parental suggestion. Grades can be changed. From personal experience an adult intervention can make the difference. Just stay calm, cool, and collected. This is obviously bothering you so even though you might not want to get your parents involved you might as well try. You don’t want to be saying “why didn’t I do anything?” later on.</p>
This is the key. You can get your parents to ask about some consideration from your teacher but it was your obligation to check on what you missed, including any assignments. I know when my children missed classes that was their first duty on return.</p>
<p>“if you can get a letter of rec from your guidance counselor, ask her if she can mention situation in her letter…”</p>
<p>What would the GC say other than that the OP’s grade dropped a full letter because the OP didn’t bother to contact the teacher or to read the teacher’s e-mail or ask classmates about homework that had been assigned in the OP’s absence? I doubt that colleges would be very sympathetic to that.</p>
<p>Definitely talk to your parents and try to talk to the teacher if possible. Get the principal involved if absolutely neccessary. Your Spanish teacher seems like a b*tch. When you explain your grades in the miscellaneous section, as much as possible, try not to make it seem like you are crucifying your teacher.</p>