My students felt their papers should be graded on how hard they work. The fact is they are graded on how good the papers are, whether you work 3 weeks, 3 nights, or 3 minutes on it. I told them that by their reasoning, the Greek exchange student should get an “A”, as English wasn’t his native language and he had to work the hardest and that everyone else should be graded down from there. Furthermore, do you want the best open heart surgeon or the hardest working surgeon; they are not necessarily the same thing.
Sorry, I failed to imply the outcome reflected the input. Let me reframe it:
Susie worked 3 weeks and made a good project.
Johnny worked 3 nights and made a crappy project.
Both got the same ribbon.