Karlsruhe, Germany - The German High Court Tuesday rejected an appeal by a teacher against a website that allows pupils to grade their teachers.

The decision, seen as a landmark in the battle between free speech and privacy rights, was the third time the teacher, a woman from Moers on the Lower Rhine, has failed to in her objection to the site.

The woman - who has not been named by German media - claimed that her rating on the website "spickmich. de" infringed her personal rights. Two lower courts rejected her case in 2007 and 2009.

A spokesman for the website, which argued that the evaluations published were legitimate expressions of opinion, welcomed the ruling.

"It's a great day for Germany's schools and a super day for freedom of expression," said Manuel Weisbrod.

In handing down the ruling, the judge said it was not a precedent that applied to other internet portals which evaluate performance.

Lawyers for the woman had argued that evaluating teachers on a public website was "inappropriate" and undermined proper communication between teacher and pupil.

Users have to register as pupils with the website, both to vote and to see the rankings.

The pupils vote on a scale from 1 to 6 in several categories, such as, "motivated," "highly prepared in class" and "gives fair marks," as well as fun categories such as "cool" and "sexy."

The site's founders, three Cologne university students, say that at least four voters are required for a valid poll. They note that the rankings given are generally high - with an average of 2.7.

More than 250,000 school pupils have registered as users on the site, which offers a range of services of interest to teenagers alongside its teacher ratings. (dpa)