Ugh.
Cheating on an exam is an reprehensible thing. The loss of a person's integrity by cheating is just atrocious beyond measure. No damn grade is worth the loss of a person's integrity.
I am reasonably good at rooting out cheating, and because of the care I take in making my exams and their many "versions" I have not had many cases of cheating over my many decades of teaching. But, a new form of cheating appears to have arisen.
At the U, there is a "Disability Services" office where students can be evaluated for "conditions" that that fall under some sort of legislation that would allow the student special test accommodations (like taking an exam in a quiet room, read aloud exams, extra time on exams, etc.) .... anyone in education knows the litany of potential accommodations that may occur.
Well, I had a student who just recently (half way through the semester) qualified for accommodations in the Disability Services office. She "earned" the option of both an isolated, quiet space and time extension (due to a potential "Attention Deficit Disorder"). But, apparently this student did not know the U's Disability Services office will video record the student during the exam. While taking her exam, she pulled out and was using her cell phone to look up answers. I was notified by the office this morning.
The gall of this is appalling.
PipeTobacco
6 Comments:
Whatever other penalties she receives, I hope they include a requirement that she meet with some other disabled students (and maybe also Disability Services administration) and is required to explain to them why she was willing to abuse that accommodation, especially when she had to know full well that if her cheating were discovered it could make things harder for disabled students in the future.
Of course, the academic seriousness of her punishment will surely depend a great deal on whether she is a graduate student cheating in a course vital to her intended profession, or an undergraduate cheating in a course required for her major, or an undergraduate looking for an easy way to get through a general education requirement.
If nothing else, I hope this infraction disqualifies her from receiving future Disability Services accommodations, as she has demonstrated her inability to use such accommodations properly.
I find this post surprising and illuminating. Simply put, I had no idea of the Disability Services test accommodations.
The post also provoked disgust at deception of the student.
Her first year of teaching my daughter caught a girlfriend/boyfriend cheating and called them out on it. The university wasn't very supportive toward my daughter and wanted her to sweep it under the carpet. The girlfriend confessed but the guy was angry at my daughter for the whole rest of the semester. I hope you have better success with your situation.
Wow! That took some nerve. But I have to wonder if her parents cheat there way though life.
Coffee is on and stay safe
It appears that she cheated on two levels, the special needs and the actual exam. What a total lack of integrity.
Sadly, it seems that the "nice guys finish last" philosophy is gaining more traction. The thought process behind it is...."Everyone cheats and lies to get ahead. Why not me?" A sad, cynical way to go through life...
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