Cheater-Cheater, Don't Be A Repeater
Mike Bloom
Issue date: 3/24/09 Section: News
Deandre Ellis thought he could pull it off. In fact, he went through with it.
The 17-year-old and former Schenectady High School student from upstate New York posed as a female student to take a Regents Exam in place of the real student he was masquerading for. Ellis, who didn't fool school officials for long, was arrested on Jan. 29 and charged with one felony count of third-degree burglary under a strict interpretation of the burglary statute, according to local police.
Although the majority of students don't go to the lengths Ellis unfortunately did, there is still a culture of cheating in the academic world. So the question is posed: why has cheating become an accustomed practice in scholastic environments?
"I would guess students cheating in college have cheated before without consequence, thus believing they can continue such a practice. Some students may be dealing with pressure from home to achieve good grades, while others may not have taken the time to prepare for tests or do the necessary research to write papers citing reliable sources," stated Carolyn Tragni, Executive Dean for Academic Engagement and Planning at Mercy College. "If indeed students have been cheating in high school without getting caught, then they are coming to college without the knowledge and skills needed to meet the standard of college coursework."
Mercy College has its own policies when it comes to unacceptable and unethical behavior on the students end. They strictly prohibit any act of cheating or plagiarism and the consequences for wrongdoers can be severe. Under Mercy's academic integrity policy, the school encourages that all professors reserve the right to use all appropriate and available recourses to verify originality and authenticity of all submitted course work.
Furthermore, any instructor who justifiably determines that a student has cheated or plagiarized will proceed to give that student a failing grade for the assignment, and may give a failing grade for the course. Mercy also holds grounds for dismissal if they believe the situation presented calls for the removal of that particular student from the school entirely.
The 17-year-old and former Schenectady High School student from upstate New York posed as a female student to take a Regents Exam in place of the real student he was masquerading for. Ellis, who didn't fool school officials for long, was arrested on Jan. 29 and charged with one felony count of third-degree burglary under a strict interpretation of the burglary statute, according to local police.
Although the majority of students don't go to the lengths Ellis unfortunately did, there is still a culture of cheating in the academic world. So the question is posed: why has cheating become an accustomed practice in scholastic environments?
"I would guess students cheating in college have cheated before without consequence, thus believing they can continue such a practice. Some students may be dealing with pressure from home to achieve good grades, while others may not have taken the time to prepare for tests or do the necessary research to write papers citing reliable sources," stated Carolyn Tragni, Executive Dean for Academic Engagement and Planning at Mercy College. "If indeed students have been cheating in high school without getting caught, then they are coming to college without the knowledge and skills needed to meet the standard of college coursework."
Mercy College has its own policies when it comes to unacceptable and unethical behavior on the students end. They strictly prohibit any act of cheating or plagiarism and the consequences for wrongdoers can be severe. Under Mercy's academic integrity policy, the school encourages that all professors reserve the right to use all appropriate and available recourses to verify originality and authenticity of all submitted course work.
Furthermore, any instructor who justifiably determines that a student has cheated or plagiarized will proceed to give that student a failing grade for the assignment, and may give a failing grade for the course. Mercy also holds grounds for dismissal if they believe the situation presented calls for the removal of that particular student from the school entirely.
Be the first to comment on this story