:sigh:
Do your students have as hard a time grasping that concept as mine do?
Yes.
Some of it is just kids being kids. High school boys are concerned about pussy and girls are concerned about social status, jolly rangers, bubbles or whatever the hell else they think about.
But they definitely don't understand that life is a competition. Those who are the most competitive will often be the most successful. My students expect their half assed work to be given the same grade as the good work.
For example, I showed my students a picture of a nasty great white shark with its mouth open and its teeth exposed. I asked for a poem that described the image of the shark in a new way. I had a girl turn in a poem that was 14 lines long, rhymed, made excellent use of alliteration, included figures of speech, AND had a point. She got full credit. One kid turned in this:
"The shark is scary.
I think he's hungry.
The shark is scary."
He seriously couldn't understand why I gave him a zero on the assignment. He threw a hissy fit and said I was being unfair. For some reason, he thought because he completed A poem that it should be counted as a great poem.
Something's going on in elementary school. I sure as hell don't do anything to promote this kind of thinking. I wonder where it starts.