I'm going to the Dean...

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Tonight I was in class - my Unix system administration class. And had my laptop out. I wasn't particularly of the state of mind to pay much attention. I just started some new meds and they're slightly causing havoc among various brain functions. So I was in class for the sake of my attendance record, had my laptop out and was doing my own thing. About an hour into the class, the teacher came up to me and asked me a question. Of course, not expecting this, I froze up and didn't furnish an answer. The teacher asked if I was having fun "playing games". I showed her my open word document (class notes from last week) and it passed snuff with her and she moved on.

Ten minutes later, she unexpectedly called on me again. And I didn't have her answer.

Five minutes later, she called on me AGAIN (clearly picking on me now). I'd had enough. I closed my laptop up and shoved it into the bag, got up, and moved toward the door. The teacher had the audacity to block me. "Class too hard? Can't take it?" she taunted, in full view of the students.

I snapped. I told her, at a near shriek, to "get the f**k out of my way right f*****g now."

She did well and moved. I bolted and came home. I'm dropping the class and reporting this to the Dean. I am not going to tolerate this kind of treatment - and shouldn't have to.

1 hour later, I still have an adrenaline rush going. *sigh*

I would definitely go to the dean. That was unprofessional behavior on her part to single you out, let alone become verbally abusive to you. I would put your concerns in writing ans copy everyone from the dean upward.
Laure

Lyssie, before I begin, I want to apologise if I offend you.

First of all, it was wrong for the teacher to taunt you about the class being to hard. She especially shouldn't have done it in front of other students, that was not very professional of her.

However, you were also in the wrong. Firstly, you shouldn't have lost your temper. Secondly, generally when teachers single a student out, it is because they are trying to give them the subtle message to pay attention. If I were teaching a class, and a student was ignoring me, I would get very annoyed. A teacher has taken time to teach a class, and you're wasting that time. Even though you weren't playing games, you were looking at last week's notes.

I understand what medication can sometimes do, I take it too. But that can't be a reason to ignore a teacher. By having your laptop open, you might have also been distracting her if she was giving a lecture. I'm not the perfect student, there are days where I don't want to pay attention, but I try to appear that I am. But if a teacher takes the time to teach a class (there are days when they don't want to be there either), I try not to waste their time.

A person has to earn another person's respect. In other words: To get respect, you have to give respect.

I'm sorry but I'm going to have to agree with Bec- yes the teacher was wrong to ask you if the class was too hard for you- however I don't think that a teacher is wrong to want all the students in the class to be actually paying attention. Even if the meds did make it hard to concentrate you have to thing how it looks from the teacher's perspective- you're sat there looking at a previous week's notes instead of trying to focus on this weeks.

I think she probably kept asking you questions to point out that you weren't paying attention.

To sit in class and be so blatantly not listening is plain rude and sends out a signal that says you don't feel the teacher is worth paying attention to.

I would be wary of going to the dean with this issue- after all you weren't paying attention, you stormed out and you yelled abuse at the teacher- I would consider appologising for your outburst instead (even if you weren't the only one in the wrong).

Mel

I am with you on a few aspects and with other posters on a few.

I have been treated horribly by teachers in my past, and think the teacher was unprofessional, heartless and wrong to say that.

But usually when a teacher springs a question on you it's a cue to put away what you're doing and pay attention, or at least try or pretend to pay attention.

I think it's rude to be ignored, and if I was a teacher I would get annoyed at any students doing so.

Overall I prefer a more relaxed environment in a university situation, so I can see where you're coming from, I mean the teacher is there to teach, if you don't pay attention it's your problem, and they usually just let you get on with it.

I had a uni teacher that was a bit like that, I had trouble with falling asleep in class due to some sleep disorder, she didn't like me and questioned me, although I couldn't help it.

When I was little I was told to stand up for not answering a teachers question, just not saying anything while she abused me in front of the class, told me I wasn't shy, I was rude and selfish. I just sat back down and didn't say anything. It isn't nice, at all, and I think your outburst was justified, but not appropriate.

I will have to side with the others here and suggest you go an apologize to the professor.

In public schools, swearing at a teacher would have gotten me a suspension. But on the collegiate level, the tolerance for such things is much smaller. I know of at least one student who was expelled from college for expressing some not-so-nice things about a professor to others.

Depending on what the mindsets are of people where you go, you might very well get expelled too unless you make amends. At the bare minimum, I would expect at least to get a suspension.

I don't know, I don't really agree with the general consensus here. I can understand the teacher being a little annoyed, but since you weren't disturbing the rest of the class (I'm assuming) it really shouldn't have been that big of a deal. If she was really that annoyed with you, she could have just asked you to leave rather than pick on you which is childish. And if she was really that annoyed with you, she should have been happy when you were leaving. I don't care who she is, that was WAY out of line to physically block you from leaving. Where I'm from, I wouldn't dare do something like that to anyone regardless of my position because I'd be afraid of getting punched in the mouth. Picking on someone is one thing, trying to physically stop them from doing something they have every right to do, and then taunting them to boot is flat out abusive. I have been picked on and abused by people all my life, and I have decided that I don't take it anymore. You know, if it were me, I probably would have been so upset that I would have said something like, "If you don't get out of my way right now, I'm gonna tear your f*****g head off." I wouldn't actually become THAT viscious if it could be helped, but there is no way in hell that I'm going to be physically prevented from leaving either. I would probably do my best to get past the person as non-violently as possible. I realize that I'd probably just make things bad for myself by handling it this way, just like you've probably made things bad for yourself by saying what you said, but picking on someone in a physical way is not cool at all, and I cannot stress that enough. Definitely go to the dean, and be honest about everything that happened. Try to be reasonable and try not to lose your temper. If they're gonna kick you out and you decide that staying at the school is more important than your pride, then apologize if you think it'll help. You don't have to mean it as long as they think you do. I fully expect to get blasted for this, but it's just my honest opinion, and I am nothing if not honest.