It's a primary school kid, they absolutely do not have the age to "take the responsible route based on the intents of the exercise". The only adult in the room should act like one and give the student the full grade.

[–] Menachem@midwest.social -2 points 1 year ago

You have completely flipped the concepts of mature and immature. Only a child would think the exact wording of a phrase is the absolute most important thing and that context doesn't matter at all. An adult would follow the intent of the exercise and make sure actual understanding was achieved--you know, the entire point of the test. Children love malicious compliance: "finish your homework," so they scribble a bunch of random nonsense; "stop hitting your sister," so they start poking them; "go outside," so they sit down and play phone games. The fault isn't with the adult for not being clear enough, the kid just doesn't want to comply. Rewarding that type of shitty behavior just encourages more of it!