Students spend almost an entire year with their teachers, spending each and every day in their classrooms for at least an hour. That being said, sometimes students feel like teachers are out to get them when they do not get the grade they felt they deserved. Do teachers really grade their students based on how much they like them? All teachers would argue that they do not, there is always a rubric or a grading scale to follow and the scoring for each student is objective. 

Look at it from a student’s perspective, the morning of your test you are making jokes with your teacher, scared but prepared for the upcoming test. A week later you see your grade and you bomb the test. The first instinct is to blame everyone else involved with the test. It is not your fault that denial is the first thing you come to, but that does not mean that the teacher is to blame. “I thought they liked me? How could they give me a C?” You first have to realize that the teachers are your educators before they are your friends. 

Grades are earned; effort does not go unnoticed, but neither does laziness. It is no secret that students may copy and cheat on their assignments; it is only a completion grade right? However, teachers can see right through it. They may not call out students outright, but they still hold onto that bit of information anyways. That being said, on occasion a grade that may seem like a given 100% could be docked a few points because it was obvious that the work was not yours. 

Maybe you feel like your teacher has it out to get you. They have a short temper that feels just a little shorter for you, or maybe every time you raise your hand it seems like they call on anybody but you. Though the drama of a teacher hating you is entertaining, it is unlikely that it is true. Yes, some people just do not get along, and that is okay, but as said before, a teacher is an educator before they are anything else, and they certainly are not your enemy.  

Bribery does not work like it does in the movies. Buying your teachers a Starbucks gift card does not guarantee an A on the unit test, nor does it win their favor when it comes to leniency on due dates. Students that get an extension on an assignment appear to be favorites, but you probably do not know the whole story. If you are just as behind in a class as the person next to you, but they get an extra day to turn it in, maybe there is a reason that is unaware to you. The full story is not always given, so do not expect it to be fair for all.