We all have memorable teachers, but not all teachers are remembered for, well, the ~best~ reasons. So, redditor u/MildlyAgitatedBidoof asked the internet: "What are some red flags for teachers that scream 'drop this class immediately'?"
Students shared things teachers have said or done that made them realize their class was *probably* gonna be the WORST. Here are the some of the top-voted responses:
1. "Professor claimed she didn’t allow people to step out of class to use the bathroom. 'You’re all adults, not children; you can hold it.' Exactly, lady. We’re adults, we paid to be here, and adults have to use the bathroom."
2. "'No one will get an A in this course because (insert some philosophical highbrow BS answer).'"
3. "Professor: 'Any questions?' Fifty hands go up. Professor: 'It's a fairly simple concept, so you'll get there. Let's move on.'"
4. "Had a drawing professor who put a stack of pre-signed withdrawal forms on his desk. Told us to grab one when we were ready."
5. "'Too many people got A's last semester, so I'm changing my syllabus for you all.'"
6. "'This is my first time teaching, so you'll be my guinea pigs.' Her test averages were low 50s with no scaling."
—[deleted user]
7. "Thinking that their students should only focus on this one particular class for the upcoming semester, like they should spend ALL their time on it."
"Had a professor ask, 'Show of hands, how many of you are taking other classes?' And when people raised their hands, said, 'That was a mistake.' Then said, 'How many of you have jobs? That was a mistake.'"
8. "When they really put down good students for small mistakes."
"I had an algebra professor in college who marked almost my entire test wrong because I abbreviated units of measurement such as cm., ft., etc. instead of spelling them out. All of my answers were correct, but he gave me like a 33% on my test for that. I had to complain to the math department dean, and he had to change my grade."
9. "When they read the PowerPoint word for word. I can do that at home. Teach, please."
10. "Gives a test on the first day that WILL be counted against you. Had one of my mathematics teachers do this."
11. "[When they] pride themselves in the difficulty of their course. If everyone fails, it's not our inability to learn but your inability to teach."
—[deleted user]
12. "When the teacher doesn't even explain anything — he just goes on YouTube and shows the class a video, and everyone is left without a clue of what is going on. I dropped computer science class because of this, and I'm glad that I did."
13. "Two-hour, in-class, pre-recorded PowerPoint lectures from 2008, 'because it saves time for me, and please don't ask questions until after the end of my PowerPoint.' This was in 2017."
14. "I once had a professor say, 'You get two absences this semester. More than two, and you fail. It doesn't matter what the excuse is.'"
"Sorry, with older relatives who were sick and dying...and not being a psychic myself to know whether or not I'd get sick or if I'd forget to set an alarm, or any number of unforeseeable things...that level of rigidity and unwillingness to compromise isn't worth it."
And finally:
15. "The required textbook was a Saran-Wrapped package of loose-leaf papers that cost $100, authored by the professor."
You can read the full thread here.
Do you have a teacher horror story? What are some WILD red flags for teachers that you've encountered? Tell us all about it in the comments below!
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.