https://■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/question/index?qid=20160622000305AAUJBQs
I found this question on Yahoo Answers
What would happen?
There have been numerous cases in which both the cheaters and the people they paid have been found out and kicked out of college. There is a prominent story from the last couple of months of a whole ring of Chinese students who were caught doing this, I am thinking it was Iowa State? Anyway, the point is, don’t do it.
If you are talking about a student at a high school hiring someone else at the high school to take an online course and submitting that course’s grade to the high school for credit, then if the high school learns of what has occurred: (a) both would most likely be suspended, both could face possible expulsion; (b) if the high school pursues it, both could possibly be charged with crimes; if they are 18 or over, they could include charges as adults for false pretenses, forgery, potentially others, and if under 18 charged as juvenile delinquents. Point (a) is highly likely to occur while point (b), the criminal charges, is more likely not to be pursued but it is possible.
As to “evidence,” there obviously already is some including the prepetrator has informed a friend and apparently an admission was also made online and there may be a screenshot. Moreover, you have the Yahoo page itself with the admission and the perpetrator who posted it seems to be oblivious to the fact that he is creating evidenece against himself and that his identity as the author of the Yahoo post can be discovered You should note the high school does not need proof beyond any reasonable doubt to do a suspension. They will also have any records of taking the course and submitting results. Moreover, if the high school gets wind of this, someone is going to talk when questioned. If police authorities actually become interested and question one of the perpetrators and the perpetrator denies anything happened, you can start adding obstruction of justice to the charges.The Yahoo poster’s comment that all he needs to do if she tells the high school is to say that the course he took was for someone else while at a different school indicates the poster does not even understand that you do not save yourself by admitting you committed a separate wrongful act at a different time.
There is also mention that the friend whom has been told about this has not reported it but instead is seeking something, referred to as “win an argument,” to keep quiet. I cannot tell what is going on there but the friend may also be walking on eggshells if she is trying to gain some real favor for keeping silent, which conduct could possibly constitute extortion, a crime.
Each computer has its own IP address. It wouldn’t take much for a school to find out what computer submitted answers. Who would want to live with the threat of someone blackmailing them to keep quiet? You never know when the “friend” might show up again. What did they gain in exchange? A few hundred bucks? I wonder if they think it was worth it.
The friend with alleged claim does not have any other evidences and verbal evidence or maybe of a screenshot of what he or she allegedly claimed to do. Is that enough? how are they going to know who is who? The friend claiming that he or she will report only has the word of the person who was paid to log in. School have no way of knowing who’s account he or she has used to log in because the friend who wants to report only has the information of the person who logged on with the other person’s info. How can they even find out who he or she has logged on the computer with?
@austinmshauri I see what you’re saying but the only evidence is the claim of the person who wants to report. She has no information on who he or she took the course for, which account was used, which course was taken, which semester was taken. The person who was paid to take the class could’ve used school computers or his macbook or whatever. Since they don’t know who’s account he or she has used how are they going to catch him if he or she did it or not?
@austinmshauri Can’t the person who is being accused simply say “oh it’s for another school, oh I was only joking to make myself look smart” or other BS excuses? And since the questionnaire is under “University and Higher level education” It’s probably not high school.
@brick0319
You don’t seem to be aware how much information is stored on a computer in any transaction. Even using VPN, etc.
But more importantly, it doesn’t matter. A school is not a court of law. They do not have to presume innocence, nor do they have to prove anything beyond “reasonable doubt.” My university, for instance, accepts the word of professors over protests of innocence by students, as a matter of policy. All the school has to do is satisfy themselves, by re-examination for instance, and that’s enough to establish guilt, with full consequences.
@ProfessorD So the person who wants to make false accusation has no information which course the person cheated on, which semester the person cheated on, who’s id he or she has used, which computer he or she has logged into. And it’s fair to just take someone’s word for it to ruin one’s life and that’s all fair?
Catching a cheater on the spot is one thing. Vaguely accusing someone of cheating to get them screwed over is another thing. I’m sure today’s technology is advanced and sophisticated. But I think that’s just a bit out of line.
@ProfessorD So I saw people trying to cheat off of each other in my class I know one particular person, she also cheated in one of her assignment for her other class, she told me verbally. I can accuse her and get her in trouble if I feel like it? simple as that? I know exactly which courses she took, which assignments she cheated on; both online AND offline. I saw her cheating on quizzes when she took a class with me and she also told me she paid someone to write an essay for her online class. She is still dumb though. She still gets C’s and B’s after cheating.
I can accuse her as simple as that? I’m a 3.7 - 4.0 GPA student and they have good reason to believe me over a truftfund loser party girl with 2.8 GPA in my opinion according.
The fact that you have a 3.7+ and just wrote the phrase “truftfund loser party girl with 2.8 GPA in my opinion according” is strong evidence of grade inflation in the higher education system.
@brick0319 ,
There is a significant difference between a student accusing another student, and a university taking the word of a professor ovef that of the accused. For a “3.7 - 4.0 GPA student [sic],” you seem to be having some issues with equating dissimilar situations.
In particular, the yahoo question in your OP admits that the charges are not false. They’re not “vague accusations to get them screwed over.” They’re guilty.
You can accuse another student of cheating, at which point the school would likely ask the supposed miscreant about the situation and assess the evidence (including computer records, communications, witnesses, re-examination, or whatever). The fact that schools are not held to US Courtroom standards for their student-discipline decisions does not mean that they are going to simply assume every student accusation has merit. And, of course, you would be risking a boomerang effect if it was determined that you were falsely accusing others maliciously.
It seems to me like you have a certain connection to the situation above…
But anyway to answer your question. Cheating has severe consequences. The difference is that one party has a screenshot, an admission of guilt. It is going to be difficult to explain away that because if there is one thing that teachers and administrators are good at it is smelling lying from a mile away. Even if the situation was at another school with a different course, that is still cheating and something that most schools have zero tolerance policies for. The situation does not look good.
@ProfessorD I comprehend what you’re saying but assuming that in OP’s situation, it’s a student accusing another student. So you’re saying that in admin’s perspective, just because the procedure of student discipline does not follow the procedure of US courtroom, does not mean they will see a merit in every student accusation, am I comprehending it right?
If you have a question that’s pertinent to you then you need to ask your own school. We don’t know your school or how they handle these things. Using a Yahoo answer about a different question is doing you no good.
@brick0139
Not quite. Any school is going to take an accusation of cheating seriously. That said, one student simply accusing another is grounds for an investigation, not immediate consequences.
However, in the Yahoo question you refferred to in your OP, not only is there an accusation, but screenshots. At that point, the ‘burden of proof’ is likely going to be on the cheater to prove that he or she didn’t cheat…which is going to be impossible, becausr not only are there screenshots, but other information stored on both the cheater and the accuser’s computers, proving that the cheating occurred. People think they’re anonymous online…they generally are not. You have left reams of evidence of your visit to College Confidential, for instance, from timestamped IP records on CC’s server to cookies in your own browser.
At this point, the best move for the cheater is going to be to confess. At some schools - my University, for instance - an instance of academic misconduct is a ‘first strike’ and gets you academic probation…but lying to administration about it after getting caught is a second violation, which can lead to immediate expulsion. The specifics at your school may vary, as Erin’sDad notes, but the principle remains. Confession is likely the only route to any mercy one can expect.