report a cheater or MYOB?

Parent Cafe
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<p>I am taking classes at the local CC and today as I was gathering up my stuff after an exam I noticed someone behind me surreptitiously look at the teacher and then look at notes hidden under the test paper. I mentioned it to my lab partner who sits near this person and she said that the student has been cheating all semester.</p>

<p>Is this a MYOB moment with the thinking that it is the teacher’s responsibility to monitor the class during a test or a rat out the cheater moment or an anonymous note to the teacher suggesting she monitor the class more closely during exams? </p>

<p>Lots of studetns are working very hard in this class and it isn’t right for someone to have an unfair advantage but of course life isn’t fair. </p>

<p>We have one class exam left and one lab practical.</p>

<p>What do you think?</p>

2

<p>Is the class curved? How big is it?</p>

<p>If it’s a small, curved class, I wouldn’t let somebody else mess up my grade.</p>

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<p>The class has about 22 students and the grading is on a 10 point scale. </p>

<p>According to my lab partner the student writes down answers on her hand during lab practicals.</p>

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<p>“The only thing necessary for evil to flourish is for good people to do nothing.”</p>

<p>Follow your conscience.</p>

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<p>I agree with Chedva. The person who is cheating is cheating everyone and deserves to be reported.</p>

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<p>I have spoken privately with this teacher once before because she came to class with bruises on her chin and around her ear one day and I asked her after the other students had gone if she had been hit. Fortunately not. She had had extensive dental work done on the back of her jaw.</p>

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<p>I think you need to tell the teacher face to face, not via an anonymous note, which the teacher would have no reason to believe.</p>

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<p>I think the ethical thing to do is to report it. And whether to report it or not should not depend upon whether it helps or hinders your grade, but simply because cheating is wrong.</p>

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<p>a guy in my class cheated too in our econ exam too, and he still got an F. If you really do not know the material, even if it is open book or notes, you still will fail.</p>

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<p>busyparent - how kind you are to ask after her well being.
I agree with those above - have a private conversation with her and tell her what you saw.</p>

<p>At West Point they have this saying about “choosing the harder right”. I think this is one of those times.</p>

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<p>At West Point, you will get into trouble not only if you cheat, but if you don’t report cheating.</p>

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<p>Since this was in the cafe and a parent as the OP, I thought it was going to be about spouse cheater. I was a bit disappointed once I opened it up.</p>

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<p>

true that. that is also what makes it the “harder right”. It is difficult to be in the position of standing up for what is right by making the report. As hard as it is to report someone you don’t know well, it’s even harder to report a friend.
We are conditioned to MYOB. We were told as kids or told our own kids not to be a tattle-tale. Being a snitch is often frowned upon and conjures up a conotation of disloyalty. Here - it is the teacher, class and school that one must be loyal to.</p>

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<p>If you are not comfortable pointing the finger directly at the person perhaps you could encourage the teacher to proctor the next exam with particular care. I did this once as an undergrad. I don’t think an anonymous note is necessary.</p>

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<p>DH, widely known to his students as strict-yet-merciful, has caught several students cheating over his years of teaching. He says:</p>

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<p>So, check your syllabus and check the college cheating policy. It’ll typically have guidance on this sort of thing. Definitely report it.</p>

16

<p>Cheating is something I simply can’t tolerate. As the saying goes, when it comes to this topic I am black and white - do your own work. </p>

<p>I had a student copying off of me in a multiple choice exam when I was an undergrad. I felt him looking, shifted the paper so he couldn’t see and he then poked me in the back and said move it over.</p>

<p>I proceeded to mark every single remaining question wrong - shifting my answers one bubble to the right (e.g. putting B for A) etc. When I turned in my test, I told the teacher I needed to speak with him urgently and said I would be waiting outside his office. </p>

<p>I explained what I had done - he provided a new scantron and we moved each answer as I described it - over to the left. I got a B on the final - but I am sure the cheater got an F. </p>

<p>I think I get this from my Dad who was a college professor - and who also hated cheating in his classes and went to great lengths to prevent it - even giving an oral final in an engineering class when he had one group of students who were extremely prone to cheating. </p>

<p>He would want to know that there was an issue - and would take appropriate action.</p>

<p>I am not suggesting that you say Student X is cheating - simply that you are aware that others are cheating and that he needs to pay close attention.</p>

17

<p>Thank you everyone for the input. I asked my math teacher today and she also said that I should tell the science teacher. I will speak with her after class tomorrow. </p>

<p>I started another thread about how inspiring so many of the students are and how many balls they juggle. It is disappointing to see this young woman cheating her way through the class when others are working so hard to succeed.</p>