It’s a rite of passage for every college student to have at least one professor who thrives on being unnecessarily strict and making everyone’s lives harder. And most of the time, students have no choice but to endure it, quietly counting down the days until the semester ends.
However, one Redditor who found herself in a similar situation decided to handle things differently. Her professor was notorious for power trips and public humiliation, and when he tried to drop her from the course for missing the first class due to illness, she made sure he regretted it.
Read all about it below.
The professor wanted to punish the student for missing the first class
Image credits: drazenphoto / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)
But she had a lesson of her own to teach him
Image credits: Dom Fou / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
Image credits: Time-Concentrate845
Image credits: LightFieldStudios / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)
Over half of students say their professor’s teaching style has made it harder for them to succeed in college
No one said college is supposed to be easy. After all, the goal of higher education is to equip students with the skills they need to succeed professionally, and a few challenges along the way are part of the process.
That said, there’s a big difference between struggling to master a tough subject and dealing with a professor who turns their authority into a weapon, making the classroom feel more like a punishment than a place to learn—just like in this story.
Unfortunately, many students aren’t satisfied with their academic experience. According to Inside Higher Ed’s 2023 Student Voice survey, which gathered insights from 3,004 students across 128 two- and four-year institutions, over half of respondents said their professor’s teaching style made it difficult to excel in class.
This puts “teaching style that didn’t work for me” as the number one barrier to academic success, based on the survey findings. This issue is even more pronounced among certain groups, such as those with learning disabilities or related conditions.
It’s no wonder students are eager for change. Half of the survey participants said they’d like professors to experiment with different teaching styles. This was the second most desired faculty action for promoting success, with only flexible deadlines being more popular. Moreover, around 44% of students said they want more leniency with attendance and class participation, ranking it as the third most helpful adjustment professors could make.
A big part of what makes studying engaging isn’t just the content or the workload—it’s also the human connection with the person teaching. Sadly, many students feel this is missing. About a third said they’d thrive if professors showed more interest in getting to know them.
Of course, it’s not realistic to expect professors to cater to every single student’s needs, especially in larger classrooms. But that doesn’t mean their concerns should be ignored. Open communication between students and faculty can help create a more supportive and effective learning environment for everyone involved.
Commenters were impressed with how she stood her ground and agreed that professors like that can make college a real headache
