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Oh boy, this is a hard question. There are so many bad to pick from. I can easily name the good ones. The best would be a toss up between Ms L and Mr F. Both excellent. But there were just so many mediocre and bad that could be the worst depending on which trait. There was Mrs I in 2nd grade who hated boys. One boy did something, every boy in class go punished. She loved to roam the room with her ruler and smack the back of your hand if you weren't doing something right, whatever random thing that was. Her standard punishment was to grab your hand and bend the finger back until you were on your knees and than smack the tar out of your palm with that ruler she carried. Or there was Mrs A, who loved the "Vulcan neck pinch." She'd grab you by the neck to pull you out of your seat for a "stern lecture" and then shove you back in it. One day she grabbed ST and he turned around and slugged the living snot out of her. He got a weeks suspension but she never grabbed him again either.
And there were the many who really had no clue what they were doing. The all mix in a vast cloud of mediocrity. The best of that group was Mr B, who almost could have been great. He actually knew his stuff, but would get too sidetracked by a group of girls that would deliberately ask the same questions over and over, one at a time, about yesterday's lesson. And he'd dutifully repeat yesterday's lesson four or five times as each asked him in turn. So each day he'd only get maybe 15 minutes of actually teaching today's lesson in. And he never caught on they were doing it deliberately just to derail the class.
I've had a few very poor teachers disengaged types, people drawing a check until retirement types, a capstone math teacher in high school who didn't know the material at all etc.
One college professor, found out later he was institutionalized, just stopped showing up midway through the term. Another, a TA, would show up and lecture for a little bit, initiate class discussion and then tune us out and she'd work in her dissertation.
The worst though was a lady who in one day, she had been losing it for a while. Her husband had taken up residence with a man, someone ran over her cat, she packed on about 50 pounds in months, and her hair had begun to fall out in clumps.........she'd cry about all this in class. The one day in a span of about ten seconds she punched a boy in the face, threw a book at a girl KO-ing her cold, and then pulled out a gun. A male student near her gave her the full bum rush treatment, it was like something out of a movie. Anyway he wrestled the gun away and yes it was loaded. Cops showed up took her away and we never saw her again.
Fourth grade. Mrs. Spitz (was distantly related to the swimmer famous at the same time, IIRC). Horrid old hag who should not have been near a school, much less leading a classroom. If she didn't hate kids, she did a good job of simulating it. Psychologically abusive bully and beeyotch supreme.
Imagine a kindly grandma (around other family) who tells you she's going to bury you in the basement when no one else can hear.
Probably the teacher that threw me off the rails; I had indifferent grades all the way through my sophomore year that can't really be attributed to any other cause. A kindly old duffer past retirement age in fifth probably didn't help, but the incredibly dedicated new teacher in sixth did.
I've had a few very poor teachers disengaged types, people drawing a check until retirement types, a capstone math teacher in high school who didn't know the material at all etc.
One college professor, found out later he was institutionalized, just stopped showing up midway through the term. Another, a TA, would show up and lecture for a little bit, initiate class discussion and then tune us out and she'd work in her dissertation.
The worst though was a lady who in one day, she had been losing it for a while. Her husband had taken up residence with a man, someone ran over her cat, she packed on about 50 pounds in months, and her hair had begun to fall out in clumps.........she'd cry about all this in class. The one day in a span of about ten seconds she punched a boy in the face, threw a book at a girl KO-ing her cold, and then pulled out a gun. A male student near her gave her the full bum rush treatment, it was like something out of a movie. Anyway he wrestled the gun away and yes it was loaded. Cops showed up took her away and we never saw her again.
For K-12, there was the Problems of Democracy teacher my senior year who was also the athletic director. He would dictate some notes for about 10 minutes and then go to his office across the hall for the remainder of the period. There was also my 10th grade English teacher who would have coughing fits and leave the room. The class assumed she was an alcoholic and had a bottle stashed in an unused locker. Both of these teachers taught absolutely nothing.
In college I had an English professor who told us about the time she was going to commit suicide by putting her head in an oven. Don't ask me how this was supposed to work. She then described how she got a "feeling of tranquility" and a vision, which caused her to change her mind. It was a weird class. I never go any feedback on any papers I wrote.
I had a horrible 8th grade science teacher who would conduct experiments in the classroom that sickened the students, causing vomiting and diarrhea. The ones who told their parents about it, had their grades dropped by him. He would go on an angry tirade in class about the parents who complained. He was married to the drama teacher at the same school, but there were many rumors about him being gay, and he blamed this on me. I didn't even know what "gay" meant at the time. I was actually a year younger than most of my classmates and a little more naive. I never talked about him to anyone, for any reason so it's weird he blamed it on me. Years later I learned the rumors were true and a gay friend of mine had seen him in the gay nightclubs in our city. He said, "Oh, do you remember Mister H.? Guess where I saw him out." I don't know what happened to him but given how many years have passed, I'm sure he's dead by now. Oh well.
I've only had one teacher who seemed to be more than obliged to stop class, and go out of her way to immediately call my parents each time I:
1.) Wasn't wearing my glasses in class
2.) Forgot my textbook
3.) Was absent
4.) Received a poor grade on a test
This was one teacher in one grade in middle school. One of several, the rest of whom didn't know me from Adam. Didn't seem to care. Left me alone. Never again did an instructor EVER have such a keen interest in what *I* was doing, or rather, didn't do.
Teacher comments from other classes included notes on my report card such as "A pleasure to have in class".
Had a professor in college that was named Ken......guy was a failed department chairman so they gave him a teaching position. Guy was awful, I got a C in the class and complained to everyone in the department that would listen......they all told the same "off the record" story about his former position and why he was in a teaching position.
I had a pre-Algebra teacher in 8th grade who had his own methodology to teaching the topic despite parental concern of students with straight A's in Math (like myself) who suddenly started drawing D's and F's. The school/school board failed to act and as a result I never liked Math again, and actually never went beyond Algebra I the remainder of my time in school.
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