Dartmouth Charges 64 Students with Cheating in Ethics Class

[unokitty]

Boston Globe

Dartmouth Charges 64 Students with Cheating in Ethics Class
Balmer said the irony of the situation — alleged cheating in an ethics-related course — is inescapable, and he called the matter “very sad and regrettable on many levels.”

“I think honor no longer is something that has a lot of resonance in society, and I suppose in some ways it’s not surprising that students would want to trade the nebulous notion of honor with what they perceive as some sort of advantage in professional advancement,” he said.

Cheating scandals have hit local colleges, including Ivy League schools, in recent years.

In 2012, 125 Harvard University students were accused of collaborating on some answers on a take-home final exam.

In 2000, 78 Dartmouth students were accused of cheating in a basic computer science course, but all were later absolved after an extensive investigation by the college was unable to pinpoint which students had cheated.

NYMag

The widespread cheating scandal involved "clickers," digital devices registered to specific students that are used to answer multiple-choice questions or chronicle attendance with a professor. Some students brought in their friends' clickers to class and answered questions for them on tests, a clear no-no in any class, but especially in one focused on ethics.

No word on whether the students will be forced to take Irony 101 after returning from suspension.

Three questions.

Do you agree with the Professor that "honor no longer is something that has a lot of resonance in society?"

Would you, or have you, done something similar to cover for another student while you were in college?

Did they even have ethics classes while you were in college?

Uno

 

[cabri]

Do you agree with the Professor that "honor no longer is something that has a lot of resonance in society?"

The attitude that" I need to get ahead, no matter how" has become very prevalent. where there is peer/family pressure existing, the concept is much harder to resist.

Would you, or have you, done something similar to cover for another student while you were in college?

No

Did they even have ethics classes while you were in college?

No (Lowell Tech and MIT)

Only in the military officer service schools

 

[Subyman]

Clicker cheating? Went on in every class I went to that used those when I was in school. I'm not surprised at all.

 

[master_shake_]

irony found.

take home exam and 125 people got the same answer?

was it the right answer by chance?

 

[Caravaggio]

Do you agree with the Professor that "honor no longer is something that has a lot of resonance in society"?

No, I disagree. There are still honourable people about. Quite a few here, but maybe not a majority.

Discovering a truly honourable person is a great thrill. It is always a pleasure to be cherished.
We will all remember their names.

 

[norseamd]

Do you agree with the Professor that "honor no longer is something that has a lot of resonance in society?"

Most certainly.

Would you, or have you, done something similar to cover for another student while you were in college?

Did write down attendance in a nonethics related class so probably would have done that but I do not think there is a 1:1 full correlation even if now when I am older I am more thoughtful about cheating. But I also never took tests for any other student although I did do some mild cheating in high school.

Did they even have ethics classes while you were in college?

Yes. Have not taken one so far but I took philosophy years ago and am probably going to take classes on all these subjects again now that I am back in school.

 

[Subyman]

Honor has resonance in movies, but becomes very gray in real life. I don't believe people used to be super honorable like the professor alludes to. It is one of those narratives where the person paints the previous decades as being somehow better socially than the present day. Cheating has been around in schools since the first exam was ever given.

 

[BoomerD]

I've always thought...if you have to teach ethics...if you have to write down your "ethics rules"...you've already lost the battle.

 

[RampantAndroid]

Clicker cheating? Went on in every class I went to that used those when I was in school. I'm not surprised at all.

What is clicker cheating?

 

[IronWing]

Why is a school that charges $47k/year in tuition using clicker exams? For that money, students should be getting a more rigorous experience. Seems unethical.

 

[Subyman]

What is clicker cheating?

You have to buy a $30 remote that gets synced with a database in class. The professor puts a multiple choice question on a projector and you have to use the remote to lock in your answer. Students will bring in their friend's remotes to answer for them. It is pretty much the easiest form of cheating for students. Professors usually use them in 100+ student classes to cut down on grading and time spent passing out quizzes/tests.

 

[RampantAndroid]

You have to buy a $30 remote that gets synced with a database in class. The professor puts a multiple choice question on a projector and you have to use the remote to lock in your answer. Students will bring in their friend's remotes to answer for them. It is pretty much the easiest form of cheating for students. Professors usually use them in 100+ student classes to cut down on grading and time spent passing out quizzes/tests.

...so glad I didn't have that at my school. Kids shouldn't be cheating, but profs should be doing their job, or admissions cutting down the number of students admitted.

 

[cabri]

You have to buy a $30 remote that gets synced with a database in class. The professor puts a multiple choice question on a projector and you have to use the remote to lock in your answer. Students will bring in their friend's remotes to answer for them. It is pretty much the easiest form of cheating for students. Professors usually use them in 100+ student classes to cut down on grading and time spent passing out quizzes/tests.

The student should still have to select the proper answer.

It would seem all the remote will do is "identify" the student.
So unless the student is swapped out, how is the cheating happening


I can see them as a time saver for the facilty

 

[theeedude]

Looks like they are ready for Wall St. and corporate boards.

 

[who?]

The cheating is happening because the friend knowing the right answer doesn't show whether or not the absent person being answered for knows the answer.(Anser answer what difference does the w make?)

 

[norseamd]

Honor has resonance in movies, but becomes very gray in real life.

All reality is gray. Gray does not mean that it is nonexistent or that it is inconsequential bullshit.

I don't believe people used to be super honorable like the professor alludes to. It is one of those narratives where the person paints the previous decades as being somehow better socially than the present day. Cheating has been around in schools since the first exam was ever given.

All of the above is most certainly true.

 

[Subyman]

The student should still have to select the proper answer.

It would seem all the remote will do is "identify" the student.
So unless the student is swapped out, how is the cheating happening


I can see them as a time saver for the facilty

Each remote has an ID that is assigned to a student in the computer. A student brings in his friend's remote and answers for both him and his friend. The friend isn't present, but he gets credit for the quiz or test. Provided the student in the class knows the answers.

 

[Knowing]

Three questions.

Do you agree with the Professor that "honor no longer is something that has a lot of resonance in society?"

Yes. I think technology and the break down of community is de-emphasizing a large number of very useful mores.

Would you, or have you, done something similar to cover for another student while you were in college?

Absolutely not. You either did the work or you didn't.

Did they even have ethics classes while you were in college?
Uno

Yes, private STEM school

 

[Zorkorist]

I don't know what clickers are; in my time, they called attendance (if they cared.) In College, they didn't care because if you didn't attend, you didn't learn.

Honor is and always will be important.

Yes, I think there were Ethics classes. Nothing wrong with teaching how to skirt, ethics.

-John

 

[tential]

You have to buy a $30 remote that gets synced with a database in class. The professor puts a multiple choice question on a projector and you have to use the remote to lock in your answer. Students will bring in their friend's remotes to answer for them. It is pretty much the easiest form of cheating for students. Professors usually use them in 100+ student classes to cut down on grading and time spent passing out quizzes/tests.

It's really just a form of laziness. Usually it's used as an "Attendance" thing where even if you get the answers wrong sometimes, it still counts. Sometimes, it's used just to see if students are paying attention.

IMO, get rid of the clicker questions in the first place. They were useless grade boosters that people almost always cheated on. Instead, give just 3-4 written exams (which most classes have anyway) and cut out the "grade boosters". Students don't show up to class? Fine, let them do poorly on tests.

 

[Double Trouble]

We now know at least 64 people who've demonstrated they are ready to become politicians and lead us from Washington DC.

 

[disappoint]

Wall St. firm: Your resume says you failed your ethics class. Do you know how many applicants we get in here claiming to have failed ethics but are not as unethical as they claim? Tell us: What makes you less ethical than all the other unethical people out there?

Applicant: I cheated in ethics class.

Wall St. firm: When can you start?

 

[chubbyfatazn]

Clicker cheating? Went on in every class I went to that used those when I was in school. I'm not surprised at all.

Yeah. Clickers at my school were only ever used to enforce attendance of lectures; the questions asked were always trivial ones, and you got credit so long as you clicked in.

I didn't and still don't see that as cheating. Not like skipping class inherently puts you at an academic advantage, and mandatory attendance for lectures is stupid. Different scenario if the clickers had an actual legitimate use, though (eg, quizzes).

I've never seen nor heard of a clicker test before. That's just a lazyass prof/TAs.

 

[CZroe]

Took mandatory Work Ethics classes in school. Didn't cheat.

 

[CPA]

Had to take Ethics in college back in early 90's and have to take Ethics CPE every four years in order to renew my CPA License. Even in my profession, I see unethical behavior.

Geezer alert: I have no idea what a clicker test is.