This is good logic, but your fundamental premise is flawed. Academia does not have a "chain of command."

You guys seriously do not understand how the academic world works.

I'm fairly certain Wyman is in academia (or is a graduate student, which means he is constantly immersed in the world of academia and would understand how it works).

Also, we need ganjasaurus rex to answer the OP in this thread.

I'm an academic. I did my Ph.D. at the same place Wyman is at now.

fair enough

Who knows maybe complaining to the dean or whoever will get you somewhere...

Depends on the university and department though. I've had a professor who failed 80% of the class and was told he would "possibly be put on probation next semester".

In another department I had a grad student that was told he was passing too many students. Depends on who is in charge.

Graduate student. I try not to immerse myself in academia too much; that's probably why I haven't graduated.

Plus I think that dalerobk and I agree here that this is not an issue of chain of command. I'd personally go to the chair (or the appropriate chair if there are many) as a first step in all matters relating to teaching or to the department. Then again, I went to a small liberal arts school as an undergrad. At different schools, the "right" thing to do would be different. In my experience, the chair has often intervened or mediated when situations arise; the chair doesn't want to deal with any BS coming down from the deans in case you go there, and (s)he generally wants his(/her) department running as smoothly as possible, with happy students.

Going to the dean instead is fine; it just wouldn't be my first choice course of action.

DRK, what dept?

My Ph.D. was in history from UM. Though I'm a little ashamed to admit it after yesterday's game.

My larger point about the chain of command was actually much more cynical. With everyone having tenure, you can’t get anything done. I think most chairs, and even deans for the matter, would recognize the utter futility of any attempts to improve teaching performance of an individual prof—even a complete ****-nut of a prof. There’s no way to exert pressure. In an earlier post, you mentioned authority and influence. I would argue that there’s none of either. No one is really in charge of anyone else, because no one has the leverage of being able to fire anyone. You might be able to exert pressure on someone without tenure, but the tenure system creates something like gridlock and total stasis. Try sitting on a university-wide faculty committee tasked with a specific goal to be accomplished. It sucks ****.

Having said that, I can’t wait to have tenure…

As yet another UM Ph.D.,

1. What class is this? What type of school? That certainly changes the "chain of command", etc. It also changes whether you have any chance of anyone actually caring about teaching.

2. Dept. chairs & deans certainly can (and sometimes do) lean on younger profs.

3. Saying something like

will get you exactly nowhere. If people pride themselves on anything related to teaching, it's the chance that you might understand the material when you're done with the class, not the chance that you might get a good grade. If, for some reason, they care about the grade distribution, they'll just curve it. So, if you're having trouble learning due to the structure of the course, that's one thing. If you're having trouble getting the grade you think you deserve it, that's another thing.

That said, I'd talk to the prof ASAP. Then the chair. Then the dean if you think it'll do any good.

Talking to anyone higher up before you talk to the prof just isn't likely to work out well for you.