One thing I would observe is that K-12 education at present rewards and praises students for raw intelligence--being able to get by having read the material once is considered proof you're "smart." I have never yet heard a student praised for being dependable, reliable, or for hard work that allowed them to excel despite difficulties. This attitude is endemic among parents and also among students.

Students then show up to college with the expectation that the material should be immediately comprehensible because they are "smart" and that's all success needs. When students do poorly, they feel it reflects on their intelligence or their value as a person rather than on their preparation, and they attack the system for "devaluing" them--leading to bullsh*t like what your colleague experienced.

I've been one of these students, though I've chosen not to evaluate professors instead of condemn them; but I know this was my attitude and my preparations, pre-college, and that it cost me horrendously and placed (I think) an unfair burden on my professors.