HOMEOWORK is a part of life for most kids, but without a teacher there to help it can be tricky.
That’s usually were parents would step in to help, but one mum was left baffled her her eight year old’s homework recently.
The mum was confused why the teacher marked her daughter’s work as wrongCredit: Reddit
Even fellow teachers agreed the homework question was unfairCredit: Getty
Confused by the question, the mum took to Reddit to ask for help – and it turns out others were left scratching their heads too.
“What am I missing here? On my [year four] daughter’s maths test,” the mum wrote alongside a snap of the question at hand.
So, what was so confusing about a maths question intended for eight year olds?
It stated: “Bradley bought balloons for his family’s party. The letter B on the number line represents the number of balloons Bradley bought.
“About how many balloons did Bradley buy? Write your answer in the box and explain your reasoning (2 points).”
The number line showed the letter B between the 200 and 250 markers.
The little one gave their answer and explained their reasoning: “230 because it’s right behind half way (fifty) but a little but close to 200.”
But despite their reasoning, it was marked wrong by the teacher who noted: “200 because it is less than 250.”
Fellow Reddit users were just as baffled as the mum, and many agreed they’d have put the same answer as her daughter.
“I prefer your daughter’s answer,” one said.
A second agreed: “Kiddo went above and beyond. Kinda wish her teacher did the same with her instructions.”
“I did this in science in High School. How much water was poured in the cup? I said 82ml.
“I was marked wrong because it was 80ml… Though the water went above 80 and up to the second dash on the beaker. I fought the teacher,” a third explained
And someone else said: “I used to write math assessments and teach maths.
This is a poorly written prompt to a question, and a stunning lack of critical thinking by the teacher in applying the scoring rubric. I feel your frustration.”
And another chimed in: “My wife is a teacher said your daughter’s reasoning is outstanding and her teacher is an idiot.”
The mum then clarified that she wasn’t bothered about her getting it wrong, but thought it was unfair her little one didn’t even get one mark.
“In this case, it seems like she should get 1 point out of 2 since she understands the concept of a number line, even if she didn’t round down to the nearest hundred.
“I won’t die on this hill, but it is an interesting example of how subjective grading can be given the range of responses from on this thread,” she said.
Secrets of a school headteacher
By the
I STARTED working in schools in 1996, when parents respected teachers and left us alone to do our jobs. Not any more.
Nowadays parents think nothing of barging into to read teachers the riot act if their precious child has been told off, or they’ll send angry emails in the middle of the night. Warning — it doesn’t make you popular.
I’ve worked in all manner of schools across the south west of England, from , and I can tell you that right now many teachers are dreading the start of the new school year.
They’re braced for tears and tantrums, not just from their pupils but from their parents too.
Believe me, if you are an annoying parent it will spread round the staff room like wildfire.
So whether it’s your kid’s first day at a new school, or they’re moving up a year, these are the things you do that drive teachers crazy . . .
Parents often turn up at the school gates complaining how frazzled they are, moaning that teachers must have had a nice long holiday while their stuck with the kids was the worst.
Nothing could be further from the truth. For the first two weeks I’ll almost certainly have been struck down by a lurgy which always seems to strike on the first day of the holiday.
The next two weeks might have been an actual holiday, just like the average Brit takes in the summer, followed by two weeks of frantic lesson planning and administration.
Also, consider that I’ve probably been working over 50 hours per week during term time. Contrary to popular opinion, we don’t clock off at 3pm.
Instead, we’re roped into all manner of and meetings before going home to do marking and more lesson planning. Please don’t turn up and make sarcastic remarks about our “six weeks off”.
We won’t be happy.
