Professorial Praise

Part of what makes me a nerd is my deep-seated craving for professorial praise.

Everyone likes to hear "good job." It's how we're wired. However, the professorial praise I crave the most is a particular kind. Although I smile if I get a good grade in any class, what gives me an adrenaline rush is when I get a good grade or a nice comment from a professor who is known to be an ungenerous grader and sparse with praise.

There is a professor I'm taking a class from this semester who is, simply, a genius. He's like the golden boy of the department. He's young, has a diverse educational background, and is passionate about what he teaches. He sets the nerd center of my brain on fire. Like, I eat this guy's class up. I sit right up front and I ask questions and make comments liberally. I know that I may annoy some of my classmates who just want to know what they need to know for the test and nothing else, but oh, well. To me, learning is more than "Just tell me what I need to know and shut up." Anyway, genius golden boy professor is known for being a hard grader.

We got our papers back today. I was afraid to turn to the last page to see the grade because he had just given us this speech about the first paper not being the best one and how we'll improve for the next one. But more than that, I really wanted to impress him and his little preparation speech made me think that he wasn't overly impressed with anyone's work. I breathlessly turned to the last page. Here's what I read: Excelente ensayo, Chantell. Escribes muy bien. Excellent essay, Chantell. You write very well. A.

Be still, my heart.