How do pencil erasers work?

Do any teachers have that policy of reducing student grades for doing work in ink pen instead of pencil? Why?

• As a tutor and a substitute teacher, I've encountered a number of student reports of math teachers with the policy of giving students a zero for completing their work in ink pen instead of pencil. I don't understand this policy. I've heard that some teachers assert it is better to do math in pencil so they can erase and correct mistakes. I believe this is counter productive because most undergraduate teachers would like to see students show work, cross out their mistakes and show the new corrected work. Additionally, If students are learning the topics that are of importance to us such as operations on fractions, rules for exponents, solving one and two step equations and the answers are correct, why would my collegues want to give a student a zero for such a petty reason. We have enough students getting real zeroes and F's for NOT doing the work or really misunderstanding the material and performing incorrectly, or NOT BRINGING ANY WRITING MATERIAL AT ALL TO CLASS. So I strongly believe it is unjust for my collegues to give someone an F for writing in pen. Moreover, I never had any teachers with such a rule as a student in the 1960's and 1970's when teachers were generally stricter with most academics. Can anyone explain why such a policy, from my view point, pretty petty { I would like to say chicken (you know what)} is just for our students. Thank You.

• Answer:

  These grades were not given because of school rules, or even federal law, usually it is just the preference of a teacher. So if teachers are giving 0's for good work made in pen, perhaps they are just not very good people, or they might just be THAT sick of work written in pen.