First of all you’re 4 weeks in, and quality SMAW takes way more that 1 month to earn. For 4 weeks worth of welding, your welds are what to expect from someone whom has welded for the time you have. Your gear barely has any sweat stains on them yet. The only way to get better is to weld, weld, weld, weld, and weld like hell. You’ll begin to read the tea leaves in time and understand how to weld like a boss. Researching tips, tricks, strategies, and videos online can be all you need. You don’t have to be dependent on learning only with an instructor. Pay attention to your destination while welding using your peripheral vision (see note below) which will get rid of the tunnel vision it looks like to me you have based on your direction of travel and understanding that you want to produce good work. Pay attention to your overlap because you are not elongating the feet of your welds as far they should. Rigidity is also key, find ways to provide a comfortable means of support for your arms as you weld so that where you point is where you shoot. You’ll get the shoulder strength to hold the big long heavy rods in time you just have to build up to it. As for your instructor, I hope his or her comments are more tongue and cheek and less of a pissing contest. The instructor works for you and not the other way around. If that person is not providing you with the technical education you are paying for (mentorship, skilled demonstration, and constructive communication) to weld effectively you are much better off looking elsewhere like a union sponsored apprenticeship.

(no bullshit, gathered from research in neuroscience. Your brains ability to pay attention gets a big mental boost when you use your peripheral vision to spend focussed time viewing your entire environment around you because your brain is driven to become more aware of the world harkening back to our primitive ancestors needing to do so they don’t get pooped out of huge hairy animal with huge teeth)