Do you think that teacher's can really affect a students grade?

chillin, you are both correct. You were a bad student with teacher #1. However with a teacher with good teaching ability and obviously with a good attitude herself, made the difference in how you approached the class. It is clear that teacher #1 and you didn't connect and you made the decision not to try. Now that you have experience this and you know that you are able to be a good student I hope that if you get another teacher like #1 that you will make the choice to excell in the manner that you have shown with teacher #2. Good luck I know you can do it.

Teacher's definitely can directly affect how a student performs in class. It's not so much as having a "cool" teacher as it is having a teacher who cares. The teacher can be an "old boring lady", but still be very helpful and have the students engage in activities --- rather than just in-class reading and homework assignments. There has to be a middle-ground between the students and the teacher. The teacher needs to make the students his or her top priority, while the students need to do their best to apply themselves in the given subject. I am in my 5th year of college (and going to school to be a teacher) and I can tell you from experience that generally teachers who really love what they are doing and engage with the students on a daily basis will (more times than not) have a better response and better grade reports from their students.

Absolutely. When in high school I got straight A's and then got the teacher from hell. She didn't like the girls in class and told us she wouldn't be giving out any A's. She actually taught directing her self to the boys in class. Joking with them and complementing them. When a girl would ask a questions she would say things like, "Oh for heavens sake, Lets ask one of the guys" The grading was unfair and the boys all got better grades and not one of them got below a C. Not so with the girls. No one got above a C. It was bad. I only had her that one year for that one class so it was better the next year.

My favorite teacher was a history teacher. He made history fun. He had a good sense of humor and told alot of stories that were about historical stuff. Plus you could side track him pretty easy too.