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?”
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-.
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] X Research source
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
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.
