[Miswimmy1]

Hi all,

I was wondering if I could get some input on an issue that I'm having in my statistics class.

I am in intro statistics this quarter. The lecture is 3x per week with one small group discussion section per week that is taught by a TA. We have three midterms plus a final exam. Those four tests make up the bulk of the grade for the course. NOTE - none of the TA's really speak English.

The class is SO disorganized. For the first week, there was no discussion section because the TA's were not prepared. I shrugged that off as it just being the first week - there wasn't much to talk about anyways as the course had only just begun.

Then came our first midterm. According to my professor's syllabus, students with exam accommodations are to arrange the specifics at least two weeks prior to the exam date. At the beginning of the quarter, students submit a form electronically to each of their professors, just so that the professor is aware of the student's approved accommodations. When the professor opens the letter, the status of the document online changes to 'confirmed'. A week into the quarter, my professor had not opened the letter. The first midterm was two weeks into the quarter, so it was imperative that I get in touch with the professor immediately. I sent her two emails, to both of which I received no response. I went up to her in person after class and she said that she would get back to me via email, and no response. Our first midterm approached. Finally, she sent me an email and CC-ed the head TA, and said that the two of us should arrange details directly. Cut to - the TA emailed me on Tuesday afternoon (the exam was Friday) and said, you will take the exam tomorrow at 3:00pm. Mind you, the day I was to take the exam was two days before the rest of the non-accommodated class, and the day before the discussion session (where we would most likely be reviewing). Not fair. However, I let it go.

The exam had three questions with typos on it. The TA didn't tell me that there were typos. As I result, I was unfairly marked down for leaving those answers blank (I knew that thtere was something wrong with the test because the answer options didn't make any sense). I had to hunt the professor down for a regrade. I did that. Then she sent out a mass email to everyone saying that she had messed up something on the answer key and that everyone's exams had to be regraded. So my exam was regraded twice and now I don't even know what my score is anymore.

Next - we have had five discussions so far, and three different TA's because they can't organize themselves. Last week, our TA was the same head TA that abruptly told me that I would take the exam early. He spent twenty minutes writing in gibberish on the board (nothing we had ever seen before) until finally I raised my hand and told him that we hadn't learned that stuff. He asked what we had learned, and I told him. He said that was what he was doing (even though it clearly wasn't and everyone was confused). He continued writing until other people backed me up, and it became clear that no one knew what he was doing because no one could even begin the practice problems that he gave us. Then he said, "Sorry I don't have the book. And I do not have class website. I just assumed you were doing this". He is the HEAD TA, it is week SIX, and he doesn't have the book?!?! That is unacceptable. Another student asked him if he could just pull some problems that had to do with what we were learning, and he stood there in awkard silence and said we could all go.

Finally, our second midterm is this week. I have been trying to get in touch with him for a week now, and he keeps saying that he won't arrange anything until the professor tells him the details. Except the professor made it very clear that he and I were to work out specifics by ourselves. I finally got to the end of my rope. I got my learning disability specialist involved (she works in the student center). She emailed my professor, who then sent me a very passive aggressive email reminding me to talk to the TA instead of her to set up exam accommodations. I have been trying to talk to the TA! Worst of all, I keep CC-ing the learning specialist in my emails back and forth with the professor and this TA, so that she can see what I am dealing with, and every time the TA replies, he does not hit 'reply all'. So she doesn't see how stupid this all is.

What do I do? I can't drop the class. But all of this is making my anxiety increase. The unpredictability of when I will take exams and whatnot is making it really hard for me to keep on top of things. I already have issues with organization. I just don't know what to do when I'm trying to adhere to my professor's expectations outlined in her syllabus and she is not helpful and neither is the TA.

[DesigningWoman]

Ok. Here is what I would do...

I would Pick my battles. Decide what is winnable and what is really important.

I would focus in on the lack of accommodation. This is federally mandated. The head TA moving up the exam like that is a very big deal. It might potentially have affected your performance and grade. Also, it is not in the syllabus that this can happen. Basically head ta violated the syllabus. This is also a very big deal.

I would schedule a face to face appointment with your learning disability coordinator. Email is not working. For this meeting, I would print out every email, all sides (mine included) relating to this issue. Arrange them chronologically. This is your proof. Printing and arranging is time well spent.

At this time, I would suggest that the head ta is not understanding accommodation. Request a meeting (soon) between coordinator, head ta, and yourself for clarification purposes. For that meeting take all printed emails too. Again, proof is incredibly important.
(The head ta will hate me, but this has to be dealt with ASAP.)

Then, I would do some serous thinking about prof and all TAs disorganization. I would ask around about other large intro classes at your Uni. Is this completely out of line?

I highly suspect it is not. Profs don't care at all about intro classes. Some don't care about any undergrad classes. It's the nature of the beast of higher Ed.

I would not complain about disorganization of prof or tas to learning disability coordinator. Even if the LDC is sympathetic, it is completely out of anything they can help me with.

I would try to be proactive. The tas are lousy in the discussion group. TAs are pretty much always a walking disaster. Ok, undoubtedly other students in the group are frustrated and worried about grades. However there is a built in peer study group right there. before discussion group ask who wants to go after to a close coffeehouse and review. Or set a convenient time weekly to meet on campus and work on stats problems together. Peer support, plus maybe make some friends.

This is solely what I would do. I know you are really frustrated and scared for your education. However most of what you described (non accommodations) disorganization etc. is really fairly common. It's annoying, but the nature of higher Ed.

[Miswimmy1]

Thank you for your input. I met with the LD specialist yesterday (I didn't check PC until just now, so I didn't show your comment). She basically said all of what you expected. She sympathized with me and expressed her own frustration about how the professor did not reply to her attempts at communication either. She also said that it is a fine line that we are walking in terms of the law. Legally, the professor has to provide the outlined accommodations. However, it's not that the professor is not allowing them. She is just accommodating me at the expense of my preparation time by having me take the exams days earlier than everyone else. I don't know how far I want to push - I worry about negative repercussions. I have one more midterm and a final exam that I need to discuss specifics about. I am going to wait and see what happens.

[DesigningWoman]

Your LD knows the law and your school. It's great you have a sympathetic ear and knowledgable counsel.

And even though it's stressful right now, we have already made a lot of progress into the semester. It will be over before we know it. Once you complete your intro classes and move into upper level ones in your major department, you might even find it less stressful. The class size will be much smaller, profs will be more interested in you as an individual and at least some will be a lot more supportive, and hopefully it will be a field you really enjoy learning about. So something to look forward too.

[IceCreamKid]

Does the woman helping you with your accommodation know you were given short notice and then required to take the first exam two days before everyone else? If not, tell her.

At this point I would also get my student advisor involved and the head of the department (whatever department Statistics is in). I'd quote the TA as saying he did not have the book, I'd relay his confusion in the class about what you were supposed to be going over; I'd indicate the refusal of the professor to take control when it was so obvious the TA was clueless.

The worst that will happen is your exams will be gone over with a fine tooth comb. Don't worry about the professor getting mad--you deserve better than you have gotten in this class. Many professors are very dedicated people. Some are not. I never cut the ones who are not any slack. If they don't want to deal with students they are in the wrong profession.

I'm assuming that you take the test alone with the TA present? Don't let him or her push you into taking it at a time not comfortable to you. You should be given the opportunity for the same instruction and review that the other students are given.

Keep sticking up for decent treatment. You deserve it. And be vocal about instructors who cannot speak English, if that is the language the class is supposed to be taught in. The school should be ensuring that these grad students are qualified. Those TA positions are usually competitive and should only be filled by the best.

[DesigningWoman]

Considering your LD coordinator was neutral to negative to taking on this professor based on the accommodation issue, I would proceed with extreme caution. You really might want to informally talk to some upperclassman, esp those with LD. They might have insight into your Uni and the possibilities and drawbacks of going higher with this.
See Uni profs are nothing like even college or community college ones. They are not employed to teach. They are there for research and publishing. It is bizarre but most unis could care less if undergrads are being taught well or really at all. Also, You might want to see if your prof is tenured. If she is, she is pretty much untouchable. I have heard of profs being heinous to students, but as tenured faculty they don't even need to show up for class regularly.
I agree you definitely deserve better. The Uni system may well not treat you like you deserve. Higher Ed systems can steamroll over undergrads. I again encourage to investigate what you are up against at your Uni before proceeding.

[Miswimmy1]

Thank you to both of you for your responses. I do get the feeling that if I can make it through the quarter with a decent grade, I shouldn't push too far with this. DesiginingWoman, you make a good point that if the professor is tenured, it won't do much good for me to pursue resolution for these issues. IceCreamKid, I do know that I deserve better. I went to a private high school that cared for its students on such an individual basis that I had a hard time comprehending it - I was sure that it was all a farse. But it wasn't. Then coming to a huge university, where professors don't even seem to care ... it just seems backwards to me. I thought that the higher you go in education, the more important you become and the more important your learning becomes. But it appears like the opposite ...

[IceCreamKid]

Originally Posted by Miswimmy1

Thank you to both of you for your responses. I do get the feeling that if I can make it through the quarter with a decent grade, I shouldn't push too far with this. DesiginingWoman, you make a good point that if the professor is tenured, it won't do much good for me to pursue resolution for these issues. IceCreamKid, I do know that I deserve better. I went to a private high school that cared for its students on such an individual basis that I had a hard time comprehending it - I was sure that it was all a farse. But it wasn't. Then coming to a huge university, where professors don't even seem to care ... it just seems backwards to me. I thought that the higher you go in education, the more important you become and the more important your learning becomes. But it appears like the opposite ...

I also attend a big university. Some professors care, some don't. But I always hold them to what I know they are supposed to do. When I had an instructor blow me off when I asked for help, I told on him. I wasn't worried or concerned with him getting 'fired' or in trouble; I wanted the university to know he wasn't doing what he was supposed to be doing. And because many students will suffer silently, I pointed out I most likely was not the only one, and I suggested that they follow up with students who dropped the course to see why they dropped it. Turned out I wasn't and they readjusted the grades at the end of the semester. If you decide to go further after you graduate, you might consider attending a different, smaller university. For classes that really matter to you, try to find out beforehand which professors have good reputations with students. But keep in mind that some professors are disliked because they have a high academic standard; that doesn't mean they are bad. One of my favorite professors demanded academic excellence and I still feel I learned the most from him and I found him exceedingly fair and responsive when I did not understand something. Hang in there. I'm convinced that just getting through is a big part of the educative process.

[Miswimmy1]

I don't have a problem with high standards. I love an academic challenge I too have found that professors whose classes are known to be 'bad' often are just harder than some others. The thing is - I have already gotten a doctor here fired for not practicing to the standards that I expected. I am on a short fuse with my biology professor whose class is a whole other story of frustration. I have applied to transfer - I don't intend on staying here for the rest of my undergraduate studies. I realize that the problem is that if you want to attend a school where you can participate in research, the flip side is that the professors are there for research as well, and therefore may not care so much about teaching. Which kind of blows my mind.

[DesigningWoman]

Uni freshmen are the bottom of the heap. Intro classes are absolute lowest property to pretty much everybody. It can be a difficult transition for many from tight knit high schools with relatively small class size and special attention from teachers. I have sat three days a week in an auditorium of over 100 students taking intro to biology. I wasn't even a name, just a student number.

However once you get further along, things will greatly improve. I loved upper level seminars in my major and minor. Eight juniors and seniors sitting at a conference table with a prof and really discussing a subject. There you get that special attention and you are important and listened too. It just takes awhile to get there.

Heavily focused research programs are the same in grad school if not worse. Well done research is an insane amount of work. Honestly even if the profs wanted to work intensively with students, especially undergrads, there is no time. They have to produce important results at an alarming rate, make breakthroughs, and publish or perish. The prof I work for as a grad assistant is always working. She is always coordinating, having meetings, planning, and writing. Even on vacation she is continuing to work. She's tenured, but it's about academic standing and climbing up the ladder. Also profs are required to contribute significant amounts of time to the betterment of the university and the community.
Grad students usually start out at the very bottom hauling buns around. It's paying your dues. Eventually you move up, are given management duties, and start building your own portfolio of published papers. But it takes a lot of time and hard work.
I choose a less research intensive program. I don't have much interest in a PhD so no reason to kill myself to get publications, which mean nothing outside academia.