I don’t disagree with you at all, and am not an English teacher (I’m a lecturer with an engineering background). The system I work within feels like it has be designed to squash dissent, for better or worse, it is a system with rigorous control to provide confidence that the grades given are the grades earned (so help reduce resources directed to rework/remarking). This meant that because of the system I couldn’t actually mark the student’s work again to absolutely confirm their mark was representative of their work (although from looking of their work, there is no reason to worry about the grade being accurate). I had an hour long conversation them, providing details of the process, they appear slightly less annoyed by the end. 

Unfortunately the student had been comparing their feedback with other student who had got better grades, and thought they had earned a higher grade. Suggesting that they could provide a better assessment of their project than the whole module team. I feel bad  for the student, “comparison is the thief of joy”, they will never be happy with their grade rather than seeing how the two pages of feedback could guide them to improving their work moving forward. I like appreciate that they would have liked to have got a better grade, but they never asked me what he needed to do to actually have improved his project during the entire hour of the meeting.

Given he is also questioning another assignment where he didn’t breach the magical level he believes he deserves, the meeting was probably less about my module and more about the student. I do fear they’ll leave the degree focusing on the grade they should have been given, rather than focusing on getting his final modules completed to the best of his abilities.

I only hope he feels like he has got something out of the process, although given the system, a higher mark, will, unfortunately for him, not be it. Thanks for the reply Jack