Final answer:
Bart's attribution of his failing grade to his professor's teaching instead of his own performance exemplifies self-serving bias, a common psychological tendency to externalize failures and internalize successes.
Step-by-step explanation:
Bart coping with flunking his midterm by blaming his professor's poor teaching is an example of a psychological defense mechanism known as self-serving bias. This cognitive bias involves making internal attributions for successes while attributing failures to external factors. It's an effort to preserve self-esteem by attributing positive events to one's own character but attributing negative events to external factors, which means that personal responsibility for negative outcomes can be avoided.
Similarly, the student who blames the professor's dislike for a bad grade on a psychology paper demonstrates an external locus of control, believing that outcomes are the result of factors outside of their control. In contrast, when an individual accepts personal responsibility for their failures, it indicates an internal locus of control. It's essential for students to reflect accurately on their academic performances to avoid the pitfalls of self-serving attributions, which can hinder personal growth and learning.