How to Get Over a Bad Grade

Co-authored by César de León, M.Ed.

Last Updated: October 16, 2024 References

It happens to everyone. The teacher hands back the test or assignment you thought you did okay on, and your heart sinks into your stomach. You got a bad grade, not even an average one. The questions start flooding in. How will this change your GPA? How will you tell your parents? What grade will you end up getting in this class? In order get back on track and avoid the mistake in the future, you'll want to be able react in the right way. Start with Step 1 in order to learn how to get over a bad grade.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Finding Immediate Relief

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Your academic career is made up of lots of different tests, not just the tests you take in class or the presentations that you give. Your academic career depends on the relationships you make with your teachers; the impact that you make on other friends; and most importantly, the stuff you learn. Judging the success of your academic career by only looking at a single grade is like judging the success of a party after only a single guest has arrived. It's not an accurate guess.
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Just to make sure, go over the test and recalculate your points. Make sure the teacher didn't make a mistake in counting the points or arriving at a grade. Remember, even math teachers make counting mistakes!
- If you do happen to find a mistake, double check that it's actually a mistake and then find a time when you can talk to your teacher. Instead of accusing them of making a mistake — "You made a mistake on my test, I want my grade changed immediately!" — try to be more understanding. Remember that you get more bees with honey than you do with vinegar. Try something like: "I noticed that the numbers don't add up here. Am I missing something?"
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Carefully figure out what grades other classmates received. You probably won't feel bad about getting a C or a D if everyone else in the class got a C, because C was the benchmark. Still, be careful about finding out other people's grades — they may not want to share, or they may want to know yours in exchange.
- If your teacher grades "on the curve", the grade that you get will take into account the grades everyone else got. So if the highest grade on a test was a C, then a C might become an A and a D might become a B-.
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Let your panic pass quickly. When we get a bad grade and we're not used to it, we panic. We think we've lost our smarts, our focus, our mojo. But that's just not the case most of the time. Everyone can slip up from time to time. In fact, it's the mistakes we make in life that really teach us who we are and how to do even better the next time.
- Don't panic because panicking will cause stress, and stress doesn't make for good grades. One recent study found that students who stressed over big exams actually did worse than those who stay calm.^{[1]
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  Research source}

Part 2

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Seeking Help in Order to Improve

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1
Reach out to your teacher and talk about the ways that you can improve. Teachers love it when students who get a bad grade show a willingness to learn and get better.^{[2]
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Expert Source

César de León, M.Ed.
Educational Leadership Consultant

Expert Interview. 11 November 2020.} That makes the teacher feel successful, like they're doing a good job. So if you go up to a teacher after a bad grade and say something like "Hi Ms. Kowalski, I'm not happy with my performance on the test. Could we go over the problems that I missed or talk about preparing better in the future," they just might faint with satisfaction.
- Even though it's really hard to do, a lot of good can come from meeting with your teacher:
  - The teacher will explain problems you missed or ideas you struggle with
  - The teacher will see that you want to learn and may factor this into your final grade
  - The teacher may give you extra credit work
^{[3]
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Expert Source

César de León, M.Ed.
Educational Leadership Consultant

Expert Interview. 11 November 2020.} It feels good to help other people, which is why many students who ace tests offer to help out students who didn't. Just be sure to actually spend time studying and working on improving instead of goofing off. And remember to try to choose someone you're not attracted to or have a secret crush on — we all know how much "studying" gets done when you're in the same room as a total man-hunk or she-angel.
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Consider telling your parents that you got a bad grade. Although you may not have to tell your parents, it may very well be a good idea. Your parents care about you succeeding. That's why they show concern over a bad grade — not because they want you to feel bad. Remembering this will help you open up and hopefully make getting help a lot easier.
- Your parents may sit down and explain to you what you got wrong; they may hire a private instructor or tutor to help you out; they may schedule a meeting with your teacher (even though this is unusual after just one bad grade) in order to learn how you could improve.

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Acing the Next Test

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Study effectively, not necessarily longer. A lot of people think that studying the right way means studying for a long period of time. That's not always the case. Studying with purpose and enthusiasm usually wins out over putting in longer hours.
Having thorough notes from class will make it easier to study for tests.^{[4]
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Expert Source

César de León, M.Ed.
Educational Leadership Consultant

Expert Interview. 11 November 2020.} Write out your notes using a pen and paper instead of typing them on a computer or laptop. Studies have shown that writing with a pen and paper actually enhances your memory over simply typing the same out on a computer.^{[5]
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Research source} That's because the act of writing out letters and numbers with a pen activates motor memory in your brain. Increased motor memory means increased overall memory of whatever it was that you put down in your notes.
10-minute study breaks every hour can be helpful in memorizing and learning your material. So take a walk, play with your dog, or call your best friend and commiserate for one-sixth of an hour before you get back to studying.
Practice test are great if you can find them. They give you a good idea of how well you're doing and what areas or problems you need to improve on. Practice makes perfect!
You probably don't want to cram for a test if you can afford it. Cramming leaves you tired, with a weaker understanding of the material, and sometimes with an outsized confidence in how well you'll do.
Grab a good night's sleep before the test. Studies show that for each hour of sleep you lose during the night, your chance of psychological stress goes up 14%.^{[6]
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Trustworthy Source

PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source} That's not necessarily a problem until you realize that stress affects your academic performance. So be sure to grab a good night's sleep at least a couple night's before the big test in order to give your body the best shot at success.
Have a good meal the morning of the test. Your brain and body need fuel in order to do well on the test. So getting prepared with an excellent breakfast is a huge priority not to be overlooked. Try not-so-sugary cereals, whole-grain bagels, yogurts and granola, as well as oatmeal and fresh fruits to give your body all the energy it needs to do great.^{[7]
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Research source}

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What if I want to die because of how bad my grades are?

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Reach out to someone. Bad grades are never easy to receive, but they don't define you as a person. Consider, perhaps, how many people have visited this article; you're not alone in the frustration. Those feelings will pass if you let them. Challenges (and failures) are part of progress, and you can get through it.

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How do I NOT get depressed?

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Focus on the things that you have achieved. You are not a loser, you have your own skills and talents and things that make you unique. This is just a setback. Keep working, don't give up, and try to do better next time.

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How do you get over a bad grade when all your friends get As?

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Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses, and everybody does poorly at things sometimes. You shouldn't worry or feel down if all of your friends got A's and you didn't; you're not in competition with them. Let the experience motivate you to worker harder toward getting a good grade the next time.

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If the grade is very bad and you have to get it signed, do not make up a flimsy excuse and say that your babysitter signed it because that can get you in even bigger trouble.

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Try, try, try again. The primary point of differentiation between good and bad students is one will learn from their mistakes, while the other will give up. DO NOT GIVE UP! Everyone fails; however, the "good" student won't allow that failure to get to them.

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If you're feeling especially upset or annoyed, look through the good test scores that you've gotten in the past.

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