he time when DD's assignment was to write a story using 10 spelling words, and copy it over using her best handwriting? What she turned in was 4 pages of scrawl, having chosen not to copy it over, and she got full credit for it. If the teacher doesn't care, why should I care?
Man, I totally would care. I would care because she is getting full credit for not following the directions. I think that's a bad precedent. I remember getting good grades on substandard work as a kid, and I remember the sort of smarmy but also weird and guilty feeling it gave me. It was like I pulled one over on them, but in my heart I felt wrong about it.
I think this teaches kids that they can do just fine regardless of whether they do their best work, or even good work. It also can teach them that "Hey, I'm smart enough so that I can get away with not doing it right," which I think can lead to obnoxious feelings of superiority or excessive ego.
It's not that I think that "best handwriting" is such an important learning goal, but if the handwriting actually doesn't really matter, then leave it out of the assignment.
