Dear Professor,
At the beginning of the semester, I was so excited to take your class. I felt like it was going to be an enriching experience, and I hoped that I would finish the class with a wealth of knowledge I had never possessed before. But as the semester began to progress, I realized that, while you were teaching me a lot, I was overwhelmed with the amount of work that you were demanding from me. I tried to keep up with the weekly homework, and I thought that I was doing a pretty good job. However, every week when I presented my work to you, it was never enough. It always seemed like you expected more from me, like you wanted me to go further than I was going. For part of the semester, this motivated me. I was thinking, Professor is just pushing you, he wants you to be the best student you can be, so keep trying! You'll live up to his expectations some day. But I was wrong.
For the majority of the semester studying with you, I busted my butt trying to find ways to please you. I prepared more than was asked of me, went above and beyond (in my opinion) studying and reviewing the material assigned for the next week of class, and came to each class ready to present what I had worked on. I started to realize that it made no difference how much I worked - you were always going to have negative comments to make.
It used to make me feel so terrible. I would leave your class angry, frustrated and upset. This was supposed to be one of my favorite classes of the semester! I was putting more effort into this class than any of my other classes and it didn't even matter because it seemed like I was getting no reward for my hard work. I understand why you spew this negativity. You think your students need tougher skin, and you think the harder you push us the more we will succeed. But I think you're wrong.
I am not motivated by negativity. When you make me feel bad about the way that I choose to study, or disempower me by harping upon how incorrect my mistakes are, it doesn't motivate me. The classroom has always been a place where I, the student, have the freedom to make the choices that are best for me in order to learn the material you assign, and a place where I am free to make mistakes that you can correct. There is a way to correct mistakes without making someone feel inadequate. It's called being kind.
Maybe you're right. Maybe I need to toughen my skin, maybe I need to work harder, spend more time studying, fully immerse myself in the material so that I can meet your standards and live up to your expectations. But I'm proud of the work I have done this semester, and I have seen my own improvement and potential growing. I'm sorry it's not good enough for you; it's good enough for me, and that's what truly matters.
Sincerely,
Your student.
