So my teacher flipped out on me the other day, gave me an F, then I got the F taken away and got a detention. I'm mad, I'm writing a letter to my principal. Can you guys read this and tell me if the grammar and everything is okay?

May 26, 2006

Dr. Hoge,


On Thursday, May 25, 2006, Mr. Cotter thought that I was trying to cheat with another student, Katlin Byers, in his web design class. However, this is not true.
Katlin and I had previously switched computers so I could sit next to the person I was working on my final project with. Some of the documents she had been using were saved on her desktop, which she could not access from the other computer. She had asked me many times before if she could quickly log onto her account on my computer to move files to the other. On May 25 she asked if she could do that, so I let her as I always do. She could not get one of the files that she needed to open. This file was a table that we had to make last month. I knew that I had the same file on my account since it was an assignment we all had to do, and I assumed that she had already done it and only needed the code for her final website project that we are working on now. As I was telling her that I had it, I had logged onto my account and moved it into the “Submit Files Folder,” which all of the computers have access to. Before she had a chance to say, “No, Sam, I don’t need it for my final project. I still need to do the actual table assignment,” Mr. Cotter called us up to his desk and yelled at us. What he said was, “You’re both getting zeroes, I have to call your parents, and this is going to go on your permanent record.” He never even gave either of us a chance to explain that we were not cheating and that it was all a misunderstanding.
Of course, since I try to be the best student that I can be, I was very upset at the fact that he was changing my grade from a 100 to a 0. This changed my Term 4 average from approximately a 91% to an 83%. When I went home I told my father what happened, so he emailed Mr. Cotter and tried to explain what actually happened. However, all that Mr. Cotter said was that he was going to talk to you. Today, May 26, when I walked into his class room for 9th period, he told me that I would not lose my points but I would get a detention. I do not think this is fair. On the “Reason(s) for Detention(s)” area of the detention slip, the “Breaking classroom rules” box is checked, and the “other” box is checked. The line next to the “other” box says, “Tech AUP Violation. Let another student use her account to cheat.” I want to apologize, because I did not know that innocently trying to help another student out was a bad thing. Maybe I should stop being a nice person.
I will admit that I should have asked Katlin Byers first what she needed the file for, and that I should not have assumed that it was needed for her final project. The thing that I am the most disturbed by is the fact that Mr. Cotter overreacted and did not let me explain myself. He had supposedly told my dad that this was the “third time this year that people have used the ‘Submit Files Folder’ to cheat.” I am sorry that other students do that, but I am not the type of person that does those things. I am class president and in student council, and I am a hardworking, dedicated, intelligent student who would never give a whole entire period worth of work to someone else who did not already do it. Since I have already signed the detention slip I doubt there is any way to get out of it, but so be it. I just wanted to let you know that I am not a cheater. I know that Mr. Cotter can see everything that happens on every computer in the room, so why would I cheat when I know he is watching? I have never cheated before, and you can ask any teacher that I have ever had. I work hard for my grades and I plan to keep it that way.


Thank you for your time,







Samantha Kardasz

Hmmm, I think mostly, it is fine, but there are a few changes I'd advise:

First of all, I'd advise you not to include the line "maybe I should stop being a nice person" as it could come across as sounding slightly rude and sarcastic to the principal.

In the third line of the letter, I'd advise you to change the sentence to "...so I could sit next to the person I was working with on my final project."

And in the first line of the last paragraph, I'd advise you to change the sentence to, "I should have first asked Katlin Byers." It just sounds better, to me, that way, mentally reading it.

But the rest is absolutely fine. Maybe your principal will be able to sort something out re. the detention.

Hmmm, I think mostly, it is fine, but there are a few changes I'd advise:

First of all, I'd advise you not to include the line "maybe I should stop being a nice person" as it could come across as sounding slightly rude and sarcastic to the principal.

In the third line of the letter, I'd advise you to change the sentence to "...so I could sit next to the person I was working with on my final project."

And in the first line of the last paragraph, I'd advise you to change the sentence to, "I should have first asked Katlin Byers." It just sounds better, to me, that way, mentally reading it.

But the rest is absolutely fine. Maybe your principal will be able to sort something out re. the detention.
thank you! :)

i think you should ask your father to setup a meeting with the Principal AND the teacher to settle this.

why wasn't your teacher aware of the problem with the "seating arrangement" in the first place, and why didn't he help the other student move her files off of that computer right away?

i think you should ask your father to setup a meeting with the Principal AND the teacher to settle this.

why wasn't your teacher aware of the problem with the "seating arrangement" in the first place, and why didn't he help the other student move her files off of that computer right away?
well the seating arrangement wasn't really problem. he doesn't really care where you sit. but we all stayed in the same places without realizing it and decided to move.

her stuff was saved to her desktop. she didnt realize she needed that file and this is all just ****ing ridiculous and i'm getting pissed off.

i'm going to settle this damn mess myself. i'm not a cheater.
i don't even care about going to detention because i just sit there and read for 45 minutes. i just don't want the principal thinking i'm a cheater. **** mr. cotter

**** mr. cotter
Indeed :D

**** mr. cotter
up his nose with a rubber hose!

The only thing I can say is get even. He screwed you so go screw him. You should file a complaint with the Board of Ed of whichever town/city you live in.

The only thing I can say is get even. He screwed you so go screw him. You should file a complaint with the Board of Ed of whichever town/city you live in.
well i want to. that's why i'm going to the principal first. maybe he'll realize that cotter is a moron and i'll win. hah.
this normally wouldn't be a big deal.. i don't know what my problem is. probably just the fact that he wouldn't let me explain. and that he thought i was the type of person that cheats. definitely not.

So my teacher flipped out on me the other day, gave me an F, then I got the F taken away and got a detention. I'm mad, I'm writing a letter to my principal. Can you guys read this and tell me if the grammar and everything is okay?

May 26, 2006

Dr. Hoge,


On Thursday, May 25, 2006, Mr. Cotter thought that I was trying to cheat with another student, Katlin Byers, in his web design class. However, this is not true.
Katlin and I had previously switched computers so I could sit next to the person I was working on my final project with. Some of the documents she had been using were saved on her desktop, which she could not access from the other computer. She had asked me many times before if she could quickly log onto her account on my computer to move files to the other. On May 25 she asked if she could do that, so I let her as I always do. She could not get one of the files that she needed to open. This file was a table that we had to make last month. I knew that I had the same file on my account since it was an assignment we all had to do, and I assumed that she had already done it and only needed the code for her final website project that we are working on now. As I was telling her that I had it, I had logged onto my account and moved it into the “Submit Files Folder,” which all of the computers have access to. Before she had a chance to say, “No, Sam, I don’t need it for my final project. I still need to do the actual table assignment,” Mr. Cotter called us up to his desk and yelled at us. What he said was, “You’re both getting zeroes, I have to call your parents, and this is going to go on your permanent record.” He never even gave either of us a chance to explain that we were not cheating and that it was all a misunderstanding.
Of course, since I try to be the best student that I can be, I was very upset at the fact that he was changing my grade from a 100 to a 0. This changed my Term 4 average from approximately a 91% to an 83%. When I went home I told my father what happened, so he emailed Mr. Cotter and tried to explain what actually happened. However, all that Mr. Cotter said was that he was going to talk to you. Today, May 26, when I walked into his class room for 9th period, he told me that I would not lose my points but I would get a detention. I do not think this is fair. On the “Reason(s) for Detention(s)” area of the detention slip, the “Breaking classroom rules” box is checked, and the “other” box is checked. The line next to the “other” box says, “Tech AUP Violation. Let another student use her account to cheat.” I want to apologize, because I did not know that innocently trying to help another student out was a bad thing. Maybe I should stop being a nice person.
I will admit that I should have asked Katlin Byers first what she needed the file for, and that I should not have assumed that it was needed for her final project. The thing that I am the most disturbed by is the fact that Mr. Cotter overreacted and did not let me explain myself. He had supposedly told my dad that this was the “third time this year that people have used the ‘Submit Files Folder’ to cheat.” I am sorry that other students do that, but I am not the type of person that does those things. I am class president and in student council, and I am a hardworking, dedicated, intelligent student who would never give a whole entire period worth of work to someone else who did not already do it. Since I have already signed the detention slip I doubt there is any way to get out of it, but so be it. I just wanted to let you know that I am not a cheater. I know that Mr. Cotter can see everything that happens on every computer in the room, so why would I cheat when I know he is watching? I have never cheated before, and you can ask any teacher that I have ever had. I work hard for my grades and I plan to keep it that way.


Thank you for your time,







Samantha Kardasz

Oh wow, i wish i had seen this thread earlier. I might be too late. but here is my input anyways.

Never ever put your feelings/emotions in a professional letter. Stick with the facts. Instead of saying "Mr. Cotter thought I was cheating." it should instead say, "On Thursday, May 25th (no year is necessary), in web design class, john doe and I were accused of cheating by Mr. Cotter." His assumption came about because of the fact that we had switched computers this particular day.

I know the great student and other stuff you mentioned is trying to bolster your credibility, but your grades and your teacher (believe it or not) will be your source to answer those questions should the principal want to know these things. Whether or not you are a great student shouldn't have any bearing on the fact that you are being accused of cheating. You must remain with the facts and try to keep your letter short. Too much info can cause the reader to feel inundated with too much stuff and the important facts may get lost.

Hope this helps. If in the future you need help, I would be happy to assist you with writing a letter, for any reason.:wave:

BOTTOM LINE, NEVER ALLOW YOUR EMOTIONS/FEELINGS (especially negative ones) TO TAKE PRECEDENT. You don't want emotions to be a driving factor behind any decision you make or don't make. It's easy to allow anger to step in and control your decisions. Use your head. You are a good student and you don't need "stuff" like this to tear you up emotionally.

Oh wow, i wish i had seen this thread earlier. I might be too late. but here is my input anyways.

Never ever put your feelings/emotions in a professional letter. Stick with the facts. Instead of saying "Mr. Cotter thought I was cheating." it should instead say, "On Thursday, May 25th (no year is necessary), in web design class, john doe and I were accused of cheating by Mr. Cotter." His assumption came about because of the fact that we had switched computers this particular day.

I know the great student and other stuff you mentioned is trying to bolster your credibility, but your grades and your teacher (believe it or not) will be your source to answer those questions should the principal want to know these things. Whether or not you are a great student shouldn't have any bearing on the fact that you are being accused of cheating. You must remain with the facts and try to keep your letter short. Too much info can cause the reader to feel inundated with too much stuff and the important facts may get lost.

Hope this helps. If in the future you need help, I would be happy to assist you with writing a letter, for any reason.:wave:

BOTTOM LINE, NEVER ALLOW YOUR EMOTIONS/FEELINGS (especially negative ones) TO TAKE PRECEDENT. You don't want emotions to be a driving factor behind any decision you make or don't make. It's easy to allow anger to step in and control your decisions. Use your head. You are a good student and you don't need "stuff" like this to tear you up emotionally.
thank you very much, irene! that helped a lot. it's rewritten. :)

i'm not really trying to get anything out of this letter... i just want my principal to know that i'm not just letting something like this slide. he's known me for a very long time as a honest, responsible student who's in charge all the time. i just don't want him to think i actually did this.