Frustration

[QtheQreater]

Alright, I'm writing this in a fairly bad mood, so take what's said with a grain of salt, eh?

I'm currently taking a Calculus2 course. We've had 2 quizzes so far and I have absolutely blown both of them. Under normal circumstances, the person who blows the quizzes merely needs to study harder because they've been slacking off.

I do not slack off. I even write pre-quizzes for myself out of textbook questions, and I make sure I know the material before I go into the quizzes. I spent three extra hours yesterday preparing for today's quiz...that's three hours that I'm spending outside of homework. For a measly quiz with a couple of questions on it. And I blew it. Badly.

I'm an honors student, and I can usually take the worst teachers and still get good scores on just about anything. But this teacher?!? I follow his lectures and take extensive notes, BUT IT DOESN'T HELP ON HIS QUIZZES! He finds the most bizarre way to express what we've been talking about, and barely gives one enough time to puzzle out what's going on. He doesn't hint too much at what's on a quiz; rather, he expects us to absorb an entire 4 sections of material, proofs and all, and be ready to do absolutely anything he manages to think up. He barely spends any time going over various forms of what we've learned...just goes over the proof a bit and lets us sweat it out. I'm not the only honors person in the class who's struggling, and it's only the 3rd week!

And to end the rant...and give this request some meaning other than ranting, I would like prayer for...my temper. By now, some of you are probably aware of my anger problem. I found myself feeling extremely livid at the end of that quiz, and it was mostly directed at the aforesaid teacher. I don't want to be like that. I'm going to try and get through this blasted class, but I really would like to get through without ill will towards this person. Mind you, it isn't mere annoyance I'm feeling. This is pure venomous hatred. It's wrong, and I know it. Pray that God will soften my heart.

Thanks.

*goes to cool off...*

[freerock1]

I've been there, with material that's already hard enough to grasp (largely in calc and similar classes), and a prof who doesn't explain it clearly and puts stuff on the quizzes that I didn't think I'd ever seen in my life. I would encourage you to talk to your prof during his office hours, though. That can be a great help.

Lifting you up in prayer.

[Tenshi no Ai]

I'll be praying for you...

[Puritan]

Good grief, that reminds me of a "Math for Engineers" course I once took where half the class (junior or senior mathematicians and engineers all) flunked out because of the professor... I will certainly pray for you.

[Ryupower]

I will pray.
Awww, I know how it is...the other day I got so frustrated of a teacher that I thought "you B*******". And I didn't want this to happen either, I even started crying so everyone could see how pathetic I was...

You sound like you're going through some major stress. I have a little problem with my temper too...

[QtheQreater]

Okay...I don't know what happened...but the quiz I was talking about?

I got 8 out of 10 points on it.

What...the...heck.

I nearly died when he handed it back. A heart attack, right in the middle of the class, wouldn't have been too unusual...WHERE DID THIS COME FROM?!?!?
I DON'T BELIEVE IT!! In my world of "this is how math grading should be done", if you get stuff wrong you don't get the points, eh? The concept of "partial grading" is soo...weird. I had no idea how to proceed with some of those problems! And I got a score like that?! I think the Prof is messing with my head. Good grief.

Especial prayer would be appreciated around next Wednesday...that's our first test and I'm still not understanding the Prof's system of doing things...I'm getting frustrated just thinking about it. GAH! >.<

[SP1]

Well, if the prof is going to give partial credit, you need to work with it:

1. Answer all problems, at least a little bit.

2. Layout the problem first. Show the theorem (or formula) you are going to use.

3. List any bounding conditions, limits, or other specifics.

4. If you have time, show the method of solution.

This can be done pretty quickly before you begin the grinding of numbers or variables. AND if it's partial credit, I used to get about 50% of the points for the items above. For a test with a hard (short) time limit, getting 50% on a bunch of questions is better than 100% on ONE question that took you an hour to crank out.

If you are having trouble on proof-questions, I have found that if I get stuck, then I reverse the problem and work backwards from the supposed solution. Sometimes you meet your original work in the middle and can piece it together.
Praying.

[QtheQreater]

Alright, as of the test, things went from bad to worse. I'm basically failing the class. There is the remotest chance that if I do extremely well on all tests, quizzes, and the final, I'll be able to get an A. What I don't know is whether I really should do that or just drop the class. There are many reasons not to drop, as finances and my course schedule will be affected. But I'm not sure I can handle what I felt today when the prof handed back the test.

I didn't say anything to him, but you can bet that I was thinking every swear word I know. I wanted to call the guy every name in the book. It took me several minutes to realize what I was doing. I feel so bad about this. He did make things miserable as far as the test is concerned, but I had no right to hate him like that.

Interestingly, God decided to provide me with some peace (funny how he does that in the least expected times). I left the class very bitter, and grabbed a few things from my dorm so I could go bang on a piano for a while...my friend came around the corner of one of the buildings and noticed that there was something wrong with me. She wouldn't leave me alone to go put myself in an even worse mood. She stuck with me and insisted that I go play racquetball with her so I could get some of the aggression out. I wasn't sure that'd work, but I tried it anyway. I felt pretty good after we were done, and we were leaving when lo and behold, the teacher came walking down the hallway. I didn't feel any anger. I even said hello. For me, that's incredible.

I still would like prayer for my anger problem...especially if I do make the decision to stick with the course.

Thanks.

[Tenshi no Ai]

I'll continue to pray for you...

[Puritan]

I'll pray for you. I know it's easy to get angry about stuff like this, I'm glad to hear you had someone helping you work through your anger, I know in my experience it's been altogether too easy to just let my anger build up and cause me far more pain than my experiences were worth. I wish you well.