The Original Post
My youngest is in year 11 (UK, last year of high school) and the school is having a prom for the leavers. While I don’t agree with yet another Americanism finding its way over here, I know my daughter is looking forward to it now its her turn.
This year however, the school changed the rules so that the students have to earn their way to a ticket, with a certain amount of “merits” given by the teachers. Stupid, idiotic and frankly unfair. The students have kicked up a fuss, but school management is holding firm on it.
The teachers? Not so much. Just yesterday my daughter was given merits by different teachers “because your hair looks great”, “for the way you walked through that door” and because she gave her friend a high five for getting an answer right.
Others have been given merits for equally simple and silly things so the merits given are overflowing. Guess everyone will get to go to the ball after all.
What Reddit Said
Redditors absolutely loved this story of educational rebellion. The teachers became instant heroes for standing up against an unfair policy. Moreover, commenters praised the creative ways teachers found to subvert the system.
Many users shared similar stories of teachers going above and beyond for their students. However, some pointed out how ridiculous the original merit system was in the first place. The consensus was clear: the teachers did exactly the right thing.
The Verdict
Reddit’s verdict was overwhelmingly positive about the teachers giving fake merits for prom access. This perfectly executed malicious compliance showed how educators can protect their students from unfair administrative policies. The story resonates as a classic example of malicious compliance where the good guys win through creative rule-following.
Original post from r/MaliciousCompliance (4,050 upvotes, 171 comments)