Can the evaluations make up for a bad grade?

seb.g.b

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Hi everyone, this might me more of a weird question but it's one ive been wondering for a while now. My Pre Calc teacher is very hard, his class is one that almost everyone in the school would say is the hardest class they have taken, even though it is only honors. The average for his class is about a B/B- showing how hard it is. If I get a C+ as my grade I know that It does not look good, but what if he left a good report on the math evaluation. I know that my grade is not the best, however he knows that I am trying really hard to improve it by constantly going in for help, asking for clarifications on things if i dont understand after school, and other things that show him that I am really trying my best to excel although my grade is not that high. If he writes about my determination do really do well in his class on the evaluation, will it kind of make up for my low grade?
 
The more effective way for you to show your math chops is to ace the SAT/ACT. Much more convincing than a good teacher statement (though that doesn't hurt either).
 
I’m not sure that your math and English teacher evaluations are necessarily focused on your mastery of the subject matter. I believe it’s more of an evaluation of you as a student, compared to your classmates. Do you contribute to the classroom? Lead? Seek advice? Those kinds of things. Your standardized test scores will reflect your understanding and grasp of subject matter. This is how I have come to understand the evaluations from your english and math teachers.
 
The more effective way for you to show your math chops is to ace the SAT/ACT. Much more convincing than a good teacher statement (though that doesn't hurt either).
So how would it look if i scored a 750+ on the SAT math but had a C in Pre Calc?
 
I would think that would look pretty good, but a solid B would be better. There is no reason you can't get a B. If you need some extra help the Khan Academy has a free online pre-calculus course. Sometime a different perspective or teaching approach can make all the difference.
 
SAT math only tests through Algebra II. It does not test pre-calc. Regardless, acing (or almost acing) the math section will look fantastic on your application.
KhanAcademy is an excellent study resource for both SAT and school courses. I use it for extra practice problems, especially for math/physics classes
 
I would think that would look pretty good, but a solid B would be better. There is no reason you can't get a B. If you need some extra help the Khan Academy has a free online pre-calculus course. Sometime a different perspective or teaching approach can make all the difference.

I understand that but the thing that makes him hard are his tests. When it comes to homework and reviews, I can always ace it 95% of the time. However on tests, he gives problems that you never do on homework or on the review and are much much harder. Like I said, I'm constantly always trying to learn what I don't know, and when it comes to tests, like most people, I know most if not all the stuff. We just get heavily blindsided by the difficulty of the questions he gives us on the exam.
 
Hi everyone, this might me more of a weird question but it's one ive been wondering for a while now. My Pre Calc teacher is very hard, his class is one that almost everyone in the school would say is the hardest class they have taken, even though it is only honors. The average for his class is about a B/B- showing how hard it is. If I get a C+ as my grade I know that It does not look good, but what if he left a good report on the math evaluation. I know that my grade is not the best, however he knows that I am trying really hard to improve it by constantly going in for help, asking for clarifications on things if i dont understand after school, and other things that show him that I am really trying my best to excel although my grade is not that high. If he writes about my determination do really do well in his class on the evaluation, will it kind of make up for my low grade?

Don’t get hung up over possibly receiving one C grade. Continue working hard to learn the material and do well in all of your other classes as well. Evaluations are important. They won’t “make up for a bad grade”, but one C alone will not keep you out of the Academy.
 
The average for his class is about a B/B- showing how hard it is. If I get a C+ as my grade I know that It does not look good, but what if he left a good report on the math evaluation.

If the class average is B/B- and you are a C+, you are below average. What do you think the Evaluation will say that overcomes below average grades ?

The whole purpose of the grades, SAT, and Teacher evaluations is to evaluate Academic Aptitude , i.e. does the Candidate have the ability to get through (and excel) in a very rigorous academic environment. Effort is important, but an evaluation that says Candidate "tries real hard" isn't going to overcome bad grades. USNA is looking for academic achievement, not effort. That said, pre-Calc/Calculus is hard, and some people just don't get it right a way (Raising my hand here, I got my a$$ kicke at NAPS until the light bulb kicked on and I got through the program; I did fine as a Plebe). If you are one of those that get it after digging a hole with bad grades early, I think a teacher evaluation would be very helpful.

Finally, always keep in mind that there are two hurdles to overcome in the USNA Admissions process, i.e Qualification (i.e. 3Q), and then the competitive nomination slate. i.e. how do you stack up against the other people in you District/State.
 
I understand that but the thing that makes him hard are his tests.
If you understand the material no test is hard, it just requires some thinking through the problem. Take those hard questions home and make sure you understand what you missed on them. If you do that you'll soon be knocking those hard questions out of the park. I don't mean to be callous but here's the way folks will look at it... "You can have results or you can have excuses". You have to do hard work to get results.
 
If you understand the material no test is hard, it just requires some thinking through the problem. Take those hard questions home and make sure you understand what you missed on them. If you do that you'll soon be knocking those hard questions out of the park. I don't mean to be callous but here's the way folks will look at it... "You can have results or you can have excuses". You have to do hard work to get results.

You got that right sir. I may have sounded like I'm trying to make an excuse when I said that, but I do take full responsibility for all the ones that I miss. I was completely blindsided by our first couple tests, but I'm constantly trying to put in the work to get better. In fact, this may sound a bit ironic, but on the last test all but one of my mistakes were due to careless mistakes. Still not good as I got them wrong, but it does show that I actually understand the material, and it was just those dumb mistakes that got me.
 
So then the fix is easy. Have at it! Good luck!
 
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