Screwed over in CompSci 11 (HOW did this happen?!)

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In Computer Science 11 I got screwed over HUGE. Like, screwed over like there's no tomorrow.

The programming language of the day was Turbo Pascal. For a while, we used it to program images on a grid, so we'd do neat things like making a car move across the screen. I'd print mine out and keep them.

But eventually, we were brought to the section of the course where we had to tell the computer how to add numbers and produce a result. Now here's where I got totally messed over:

The course book did not have, in any part of it, the command/syntax for adding numbers nor for making it calculate out. And I looked through that book, and I looked through that book...and you get the idea. And the teacher never told me what the syntax was either, even though I KEPT asking him! And somehow the kids knew! I KNOW I was sick the day the teacher taught how to do it, because I came back to the class the next day wondering wtf was going on and how to do some small project involving programming the machine to do some math stuff. I COULD NOT do this, as I had no instructions. I asked the other kids. They refused to tell me, even the ones that were somewhat friendly with me.

I ended up not doing the project and getting a 0 for it because I couldn't do it. This was before internets; not a single computer there was hooked up to a LAN. So it's not like I could go online and find out. And there weren't any books in the library that were of any use either.

How could this happen? I'm suprised the teacher refused to tell me.

You want me to believe that basic arithmatic operations were not in a book on Pascal? I looked through my class textbook and found it immediately. Plus It was in the 2nd section of the book.

When you miss class, it is up to you to make up the missing work. Some instructors will not go back for a student who was not in class (either privately or in class). You then have to ask one of your fellow students to tell you what was missed.

I'm dead serious, it wasn't there. If it had been, I'd have found it. The book itself was not exclusively on Pascal. It was a Computer Science Grade 11 text, not a Pascal Text. Pascal was but a small part of the course. You've got to remember, this is a Canadian high school. Some of the textbooks were horribly inadequate. Some teachers taught things that were not in the texts.

All I wanted was the instructions on what syntax and commands to use. I told him I couldn't find it in the book and he didn't even contradict me, nor did he tell me WHERE in the book to look. This was High School, not college.


Like I said, I TRIED. THEY REFUSED TO TELL ME.

As your professors for help.

Legally, they MUST assist you. If they don't you have an issue before the Dean of Academics for the school.

Heh, I wonder if I could sue them for this. Because of this, I only got a B in Computer Science, rather than an A.

Likely not. But you can protest a grade, for what it's worth.

Professors only perform to the standards the students demand of them. If you don't assert your rights as a student (as spelled out by the school's academic rights policy), you won't get them met.

Many NT students are too timid to do this, and they gripe about poor grades but wonder why nothing changes. If you don't ask the professor for help or for further explanation, then you aren't doing YOUR part to get an education. If the professor can't do a better job, he's either bad at his job or isn't gifted at communicating to his students. You either need to drop the class or pursue the issue elsewhere (with the Dean of Faculty/Academics).

It's a bit late for that considering the OP is 36 and this happened when he was in high school..."Before the internets" was quite a while ago.

And ADD strikes again.

Shebakoby,

Does this still bother you? Because this happened maybe 20 years ago or so?