Professor
rating Web sites sometimes inaccurate
Christine
Harmon
It
was close to the end of the fall semester.
Assistant Professor Christopher Karadjov stepped into the classroom slowly
with a piece of paper in his hand.
“
I just started teaching here and did not realize I was already being evaluated,” Karadjov
said to his journalism class.
“
However, I came across this and found it to be, well, interesting.”
Then he began to read. “The worst professor I’ve come across in
my entire college experience, and I am a junior,” the paper read. “He
is rude, incompetent, clueless, unclear and damaging to the reputation of Cal
State Long Beach’s Journalism
Department. He refuses to discuss his past career experience, which leads me
to believe he has none. Warning, do not sign up for his class.”
My heart dropped. I clenched my jaw and sat silently, only three feet directly
in front of him. Some students around me gasped. Some laughed. I didn’t
make a peep. I felt like an ant that couldn’t disappear fast enough through
a crack before getting squished. Thoughts of regret flooded my head drowning
out all sound.
No one has ever said life’s lessons would come easy. They rarely do.
This was definitely one of them.
As we make our way through college, we’re also making our way to adulthood,
which means developing an aspect of our character that always poses a challenge:
maturity.
About two months earlier, I was having an awful day. The odds were piling up
against me, and just when I could not bear anymore, it happened. Professor
Karadjov gave the class a writing assignment, but we didn’t receive the
instructions until two days before it was due. That tipped me over the edge.
I had to call in sick from work to complete the assignment on time, and that
only meant I would have to make up the hours on a later day because who can
afford to miss work with the cost of living in Southern California?
I was furious. I could feel the frustration down to my bones. I came to an
irrational conclusion, seeking instant gratification.
“
I hate this professor! I know what I’ll do,” I thought to myself, “brat-mode” in
full effect.
I had never been to RateMyProfessor.com before, but heard about the site from
a few students. So that’s where I went to vent. I thought of the most
mean-spirited, demeaning, ruthless comment and posted it hastily. No logical
thought went into it whatsoever. My entire “evaluation” was based
on pure emotion.
It didn’t take long to realize what a mistake I had made. I posted the
comment three weeks into the semester, and midway through, I realized I actually
liked not only the class, but Karadjov, too. He was understanding and responsive,
thus pouring salt on my wound of regret.
I went back on the site to delete the rating only to find that I couldn’t
do it because I had not signed up for an account when I posted it. I had to
live with my actions, but talked myself into believing it wouldn’t ever
matter. I never would have thought the next time I would hear my comments they
would be directly from him.
Karadjov handled it well that day in class. In fact, he cleverly used it to
segue into our next assignment, which required us to gather as much information
about him as we could for a profile in response to the “having no past
career experience” comment.
I couldn’t correct the problem, but I could come clean.
The week after spring break, I sheepishly tiptoed into Karadjov’s office
and asked him if he had some time to talk. I eased into the conversation by
asking him his feelings about RateMyProfessor.com.
Responding to my questions, he referenced my rating. I held my breath as my
stomach did a flip. While he was still in the middle of a sentence, I blurted
out my confession. I told him the irate comment was the result of my immaturity
spawning a swift, angry backlash.
After listening to my explanation from beginning to end, he said he had made
similar mistakes in the past, too, because of the ease with which the internet
allows us to communicate our first reactions. Karadjov told me he was impressed
by my honesty and appreciated the gesture. I walked away feeling incredibly
lucky.
In the age of instant communication, maturity must be practiced. You might
have more tact than me, and you might be able to handle your feelings better
than me. I know, however, almost everyone has sent an e-mail they regretted,
posted a bulletin they later felt sounded lofty, or rated a professor on a
Web site and later discovered they had it all wrong.
I cannot change the past, but I can help others learn from my mistake. If you
are only going to an instructor rating site to vent your frustration, you are
not providing future students with valid guidance. Instead, keep in mind these
three points the next time you are rating a professor online: Be as specific
as possible, evaluate based on actual performance instead of momentary emotions
and remember that everyone can read your rating at anytime.
Above all, try to use rating sites as a way to share your honest experience,
including instructor’s good and bad sides, so you can help others choose
classes wisely.
Christine Harmon is a junior journalism major.
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