Disclaimer: I have no advice for you. You are stuck. I was stuck too, and this is how I knew:
1. She's very hard to understand.
I don't know if it's a lot to ask, but I think if a student shows up to every section of office hour held then they should get some sort of assistance. However, sometimes it feels like you are just running in a circle trying to 'fix' some problem. Like does changing the sentence "Cognitive mapping is based on personal experiences." to "Cognitive mapping utilizes personal experiences." really make a difference??
2. She's a significantly harder grader than the other TAs.
Sometimes you take classes with friends, and it's a lot of fun! But, I swear I SEETHE with anger when I find out they got a 95 on a project they slapped together the night before, but I slave away for weeks and end up with an 85. Lady, I practically sold my kidneys on the black market for you; the least you can do is grade lightly like the other TAs.
3. You are scared to talk to her because it may just get worse.
One time, she gave our discussion section the opportunity to speak up about what we thought she could do better. Although each one of us was thinking "grow a heart," we sat there completely frozen out of fear that we might wake the sleeping dragon.
4. She decides your grade before she reads your paper.
Have you ever had this conversation? Me: "Hey! <insert TA's name here> do you mind looking over my essay and giving me feedback before I submit?", TA: "Sure. Fix this, this, and this", Me: "Oh, OK! And after that, I should be good?" TA: "At best, you'll get a B." *end conversation with no more feedback*
5. She's not actually qualified to be reading said paper.
I KID YOU NOT. The lady that is qualified to read my papers says "Don't worry guys, I had to repeat a graduate level class, because my teacher didn't like my writing." as an excuse to give us bad grades.
6. She changes her office hours 30 minutes before they are supposed to start.
I can not even tell you how many times I sat waiting in the College of Liberal Arts an hour before her office hours were supposed to start so I could beat the angry mob wanting to talk to her. In the end, I receive an email 30 MINUTES BEFORE her office hours saying "Sorry! Can't make it today!"
7. She came to class with the flu.
She came to our discussion section with the flu, made us all sit in the very back, whispered because her throat was sore, and then sat outside the room for 45 minutes and didn't let us leave. Is this normal?
8. Her participation criteria is unattainable.
Cut me some slack. UT is called the 40 Acres for a reason! IT'S HUGE. For a girl who barely reaches five feet tall it's nearly impossible to get all the way from the Communications building to the College of Liberal Arts without being a couple minutes late.
9. In the end, you just want to give up.
Trust me, I tried. I talked to my professor, I reached out to previous students, I went to Ombuds. It is not possible to get around a bad TA! All everyone says is, "I'm sorry.", "The TA grades your papers", and "Is it really that big of a deal if you're doing fine in the class?" Frankly, I don't need apologies or condolences, I don't want to take it to the President of the University, and I don't want to be told that it's just one class.
10. On the last day, your entire discussion section conspires to ruin her reputation through evaluations.
Like I said, I want to see a change. Kids, you need to be the change you want to see in the world. Take the opportunity to be as detailed as possible in the course evaluation. They are anonymous, so don't censor anything. If everyone feels the same way, (which in my case they did) you might just save future students from this cruel and unusual punishment.
11. You just have to remember: in the grand scheme of things, it's just one class.
Like I said before, every time someone told me this, I wanted to scream. But, they are right. As sad as it is, there isn't much you can do once you've tried all diplomatic pathways. Sometimes, you'll just have a bad TA that is actually the devil-- that's life.
