Appealing unfair grades

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I have read some recounts of unfair teachers, and amidst the general background of bitterness, I thought I'd share a victory with y'all.
I'm a college student majoring in Sculpture, and this term I was forced to fulfill a introductory ceramics requirement. Not my first (or second) choice of medium, but I was generally fine with it. Until I met HER.
This teacher found something to criticize in everything I did. She actually once commented that I followed the project requirements too closely. (Ex: when assigned a piece which had to be at least 8 inches in any one direction, I made a sculpture which was almost exactly 8 inches long. B/c I take those instructions very literally) And this apparently demonstrated to her that I was doing the "bare minimum."
Also she was extremely hostile when I would contribute little in class critiques, calling me and other more soft-spoken students out by name several times, constantly reminding us that our lack of input would be reflected in poor grades. I am certain I was not the only one to feel a bullied.

This treatment finally culminated in a D+, a non-transferable grade. Sure it was 'technically' a pass, but I would not be able to finish my degree with it and would be forced to retake the course, despite the fact that I had completed all assignments.

I started the appeal process as soon as I was able, and after a few weeks of running around and filling out forms, I scored a sit down meeting with the instructor, a student advocate, and the head of the arts department.
It was emotionally grueling, I was terrified of this woman, but eventually it became clear that many of the objections she had were personal. They should have had no bearing on my final mark. She was forced to bump my grade up to a C, which was not a great grade, but would allow me to transfer the credit I had worked so hard for.


I wanted to post this to let people know that this may be an option, and sometimes you don't have to just grin and bear it. Generally if you've noticed unfair treatment, others have as well.

I had an English teacher like that, in grade 9. She even read our grades and percentages out to the entire class, one time, mine being the lowest. I was sure that the rest of my class saw me as a mental cripple. That was the worse day of my life.

Well done for winning the appeal! I bet it reflected badly on her.

This is why college students should read through the syllabus thoroughly. That is the contract between you and the professor and both sides mush abide by that. If the student does not fulfill the contract, they fail the course. If the professor does not abide by the contract, you can appeal the final grade (and it does look bad on the professor). The syllabus will also state if your grade is based on class participation and stuff like that so that if you need accommodations, at the beginning of the semester is the time to request it.

Unfortunately in High School, the teachers have more power and control over the grade and are very hard to overturn. A parent may be able to fight it but usually, a bully teacher can get away with what they are doing.

Perhaps all it takes is another retaking of the course.

Don't worry, I see this as mere setbacks, you can try again... If you can.