Venting is a normal way to alleviate stress; it’s the subject of a number of Coors Light commercials (“Hey honey, I’m gonna go vent with my buddies”) and it is the first thing teenage girls turn to after getting blown off. We pour our hearts out to people, not in the hope that it will help the situation, but rather that it will help our frustration.

In school, teachers demand strict adherance to the laws they’ve established. We can’t talk back to them, we can’t swear at them, and somehow we’re not even allowed to call them by their first names.

Many teachers ask a double standard. They text and answer phones, they let the occasional unmentionable slip out as students act up, and they certainly get things done on their own time with no penalties. It’s frustrating, but at the same time one must understand the fine line between teacher and student privileges.

Students complain how “it’s not fair” and propose what they deserve. These students rarely get their way, and start to resent their teachers.
Ratemyteachers​.com offers an outlet for student complaints, as well as compliments. The site allows free expression towards those oh-so-familiar educators who reign over us every day. Sure, the website describes itself as an “education rating tool,” but it is no more educational than Formspring or Honesty Box, especially in the case of Garfield.

The site itself is made up of ratings, from average easiness, to average clarity. These numbers are compiled to make the overall rating for each teacher, which is displayed next to his or her name, along with a popularity smiley.

These smilies are based on another rating: happy faces for cool teachers, frowny faces for the others, etc. Yes, teachers check their ratings, and some even establish the profiles themselves.

Most interesting about the website is the selection of Garfield staff listed. Our two current principals, Ted Howard and Miguel Castro, fight for ratings, with Castro recently pulling ahead in popularity and overall rating (maybe he should take over?). Andrew Bennett, our lovable philosophy teacher, has fallen low in popularity on the site, while Garfield Headmaster Michael Cunetta remains in good standing. I wasn’t aware we had philosophy at Garfield, but I also don’t know who Teddy Freddy Boretti is, and he made the teacher list as well. 

My friends and I have questioned what the point of such a site could be, and upon perusing, I found none. It is merely a popularity contest hinging on the votes of students. It is like those notes girls used to write, the “lists” that dosed out the newest reviews of cute boys. But it does serve to absorb the suppressed comments, good and bad, of many students.

Another website, teachercomplaints​.com, is clearly directed at the more frustrated students. The site is devoid of ratings and is essentially a blog for rants about incompetent teachers. Headlines scream “Why don’t you do some work!!” and “Very unprofessional behavior.”

The latter site is especially popular because of its ability to imply that complaining will have an effect. Posters drone on in their messages, working hard to get the point across, while really all the site can offer is an outlet for frustration. We all know teachers can be insensitive. We all know they can be harsh. When teachers rub you the wrong way, teachercomplaints​.com is the Coors Light of the education system.

Teachercomplaints​.com, ratemyteachers​.com, and (soon enough) ratemyprofessors​.com all have one thing in common. They allow us to express our true feelings to the very people who judge our abilities on a daily basis. They allow the apprentice a shot at the boss. Students will leave the site feeling more content, although the site is a placebo with no ultimate purpose.

Maybe we should get a student rating. Oh wait, that’s our grade. It helps decide our college choice and future plans. The grades for teachers probably matter too. Oh wait, they don’t. I applaud the intentions of the site, however until it prohibits me from making myself into a teacher, its credibility rating is a frowny face.