<p>My son has been enrolled as a dual credit student at a community college. Towards the end of the last semester, he told me (with disgust) that many of the students in his history class routinely brought their test booklets to class with the essay portions already filled out. </p>
<p>After the semester was over, I spoke with the professor about a recommendation letter, and while I was on the phone with him, I told him about the cheating. He told me he has suspected that about some of the students, assured me that he knew my son was not one of them, and thanked me for letting him know. I did not mention any specific names, but my main objective was to just let the professor know, so he could make some changes. He was fresh out of college and my son said he was very naive about what went on.</p>
<p>Well, this semester my son has a friend who is taking that same class. The prof did indeed make a change - he now has the students exchange test booklets right before the test. But, my son’s friend told him that they have beat the system again - the students just switch with a partner beforehand, then when the prof asks them to switch, they get their own test booklet (already filled out) back again.</p>
<p>Should I call/email him and let him know this? I don’t want my son’s friend to figure out that my son ratted on her, but it’s not too likely she’d know that he did. But, aside from that, this feels awkward. I feel sorry for this naive prof. and almost embarassed on his behalf. How do I graciously let him know? What’s the right thing to do in this case?</p>
<p>I would tell him. He tried what he thought would work and it didn’t. He should have all the booklets turned in at the beginning of class to hand back out, or at the beginning of the year ask each student to buy them at stockpile them in the classroom</p>
<p>You would e doing him a favor by emailing him…jsut say you know he came up with a good solution to solve the problem, but the students are getting together before hand to cheat…I think he will be grateful…and it is something he needs to know about…otherwise the students will never repect him…</p>
<p>If it was me, I wouldn’t warn the kids the first time I was doing it…i would just collect all the books, saying you were trying a new way…and catch the little buggers</p>
<p>How about not giving them the test questions before the day of the test? Or if he really wants to focus them on certain questions, giving them 5 questions, and telling them he’ll only ask 3 on the day of the test, but they won’t know which 3.</p>
This is a funny one! If he just came out of college, he should already know about the cheating.</p>
<p>If I were you I’d stay out of it and let your S decide if he wants to pursue it or not. It’s college and time for the kids themselves to deal with things like this. Even if he’s doing it as dual-enrollment, it’s still college. Cheaters are irritating but will ultimately cheat themselves while others will move ahead.</p>
<p>"If I were you I’d stay out of it and let your S decide if he wants to pursue it or not. "</p>
<p>My son is not even in the class anymore, so it has nothing to do with him. His friend, who is in the class this semester, is one of the cheaters, and just happened to tell my son.</p>
<p>It really isn’t about my son; it’s about whether I should give the guy the courtesy of letting him know, and how to go about doing that.</p>
<p>Thanks for all the suggestions. I think I will tell him what’s going on and let him figure out how to deal with it. Last time, the semester was already over so no one got caught…but this time…</p>
<p>“giving them 5 questions, and telling them he’ll only ask 3 on the day of the test, but they won’t know which 3.”</p>
<p>That’s what he does, except he lets them pick which ones (5 out of 7).</p>
<p>I just sent a short email. There. Now I will let it go.</p>
<p>Yeah, I know it would have been nice if my son had told him, but he wasn’t going to do that, and I felt the guy should know. And I do not feel strongly that it was something my son HAD to do.</p>
<p>I think the whole issue of cheating and reporting cheating is very difficult, but you know that at many schools your act of reporting the cheating witnessed by your son would be the equivalent of turning in your guilty son also.</p>
<p>Witnessing cheating and not reporting it is seen as the same crime as the cheating itself.</p>
<p>“cheating witnessed by your son would be the equivalent of turning in your guilty son also.”</p>
<p>Huh? What do you mean? My son was not guilty, and the prof knew that.</p>
<p>Or do you mean he is guilty because he did not report it?</p>
<p>Yikes! I had not thought of it that way. This is a community college and I don’t know if they have that policy, but that is good to know, as he is transferring to a 4-year school this spring.</p>
<p>I am a bit amazed by the fact that the instructor is getting fooled repeatedly. </p>
<p>I do remember one instructor at Berkeley when I was there who had students purchase and turn in X number (corresponding to the number required for the course) of “blue books” (that was the brand of blank test books they used then) before the first test of the term. He had students leave their belongings by the door when entering for the exam (handing them a marked book) with the exception of writing implements and stood at the back of the class and watched everyone for the duration of the exam.</p>
<p>And needless to say, he didn’t have any cheating going on.</p>