Would you enforce a consequence for this? Or is a low grade enough?

[Anonymous 1]

My step son tends to be very rigid in his beliefs and now he has met his match. His Algebra II teacher is also very strict and rigid about things. One issue my step son is having is that the teacher requires the students to use a decimal point even if the answer is a whole number. The teacher apparently has a lot of "rules" like this which my step son thinks are silly. He refuses to do it, so the teacher takes off 1-2 points every time. My SS could have a 100 in the class, if it weren't for the teacher taking off points for things like this, but he currently has an 81 in the class.

Other examples are that the teacher requires you to show your work and circle the answer in your work even when the test is a multiple choice question. So he is essentially required to show his work, circle the answer in his work, circle the answer in the question answer options, and also fill out a scantron. There is more but, like I said, I'm not a math person so I don't really understand the rest of the rules my SS is upset about.

I have told my SS that there may be a reason the teacher is requiring this- perhaps the decimal point thing is related to another skill they will learn later on. But my step son insists it doesn't, that the teacher is just hard headed and petty. But the teacher isn't the one with a lower grade than what he could make simply because he doesn't want to follow the teacher's rules.

I think my step son is hard headed and petty as well. I told him that we have wasted more time and energy going back and forth with each other and with the teacher than it would have taken him to just follow the rule in the first place, even if he thinks it's dumb. Both his dad and I have told him multiple times to just use the damn decimal point and follow his rules. Now, because my step son dislikes his math teacher so much, he has started acting out in other ways in class, like refusing to turn in his cell phone on test days which is a school-wide rule but he only refuses to do it in math class.

Anyway, there was a consequence for the cell phone thing but I'm not sure how to handle my son being so hard headed and petty over the decimal point and other "math rules" that he dislikes. He currently has an 81, which is still a good grade. I know that learning to follow the rules is not the entire point of an education, but it is part of it, especially when we are talking about a rule that isn't unjust and isn't hurting anyone.

WDYT? Is a lower grade than what he could have consequence enough? I kind of want to let it go but it keeps happening and continues to be an issue and honestly, I'm sick of hearing my SS complain about it all the time.

[mcginnisc]

Personally, I think his teacher is ridiculous. Hell, my college kid doesn't have to deal with such supid rules and never did in HS when she took college courses. Honestly, I would end up being as annoyed and stubborn as your kid as it is just silly and more work than necessary. I can't stand teachers like that as they just enjoy the power trip. I wouldn't say a thing to my kid except for the cell phone thing.

[Anonymous 1]

Personally, I think his teacher is ridiculous. Hell, my college kid doesn't have to deal with such supid rules and never did in HS when she took college courses. Honestly, I would end up being as annoyed and stubborn as your kid as it is just silly and more work than necessary. I can't stand teachers like that as they just enjoy the power trip. I wouldn't say a thing to my kid except for the cell phone thing.

I'm not a fan of the teacher. He literally sends an email for every single thing, every single time he grades a paper, etc. I have 3 kids spread out across 3 grades in 2 schools and I get more emails from him than all of the other teachers and schools combined.

But, the "extra work" he is being asked to do literally takes 2 seconds. Using a decimal point doesn't really add that much "work", it's not like it's hard. Every form of employment I have ever had involved little rules or procedures which I thought were silly or just took extra time and 99% of them were not the type of hills I would die on. If it actually adds a lot of work or takes a lot of time, then I would agree.

But that said, it sounds like you're saying the low grade is consequence enough. Or would you actually take it up with the teacher? I just don't see the point. It would take a lot of time and energy to meet with the teacher and principal, etc., to get the teacher to stop requiring that rule and I just don't see it as a big enough deal.

I went to college and every teacher and class was different. Some teachers were super rigid like this and others weren't.

[EarlGrayHot]

Who is head of the math dept. at his HS? You might talk to him or her and ask why these rules are so important. However, a lesser grade than he could be getting might hurt him in the long run. I'd probably tell him he needs to start doing the dumb things and maybe offer something to reward him for ignoring his idiot teacher's stupid rules.

[Anonymous 2]

The kid is in High School? I stopped getting involved in crap like this at that age. It would be up to my son to work out. As far as the every little thing email I would just ignore those. Open and skim and then delete.

[Anonymous 2]

Oh the cell phone thing would not fly. If he is refusing to hand it in and those are the school rules the phone would be staying home on his bed. My DS in HS doesn't even bring his phone to school. Not worth the hassle.

[carterscutie85]

The "I don't like a rule so I won't follow it" attitude isn't going to fly when he gets in the real world. Best to teach him now.

[KendallsMom]

I'd stop going back and forth with SS and let him deal with the lower grade he created.

[SlimShady]

The "I don't like a rule so I won't follow it" attitude isn't going to fly when he gets in the real world. Best to teach him now.

To an extent it kind of does though…


If an adults hates the person in charge at his job and thinks he’s an asshole, the person can quit and get a different job…


We force kids to put up with a lot of things that adults have more of a choice over.

[SisterSomeone]

I wouldn't enforce a consequence because I agree with the kid. Hell, I'd probably find a way to reward him for using his own brain. This teacher is being ridiculous and the rule they're trying to enforce is unimaginably stupid.