125 Government students caught cheating at Harvard: law students laugh
DID 125 students at Harvard cheat in a take-home exam? The number marks almost half of the scholars in a – get this – introductory government class. There is evidence of collaboration between students, with allegations of plagiarism rife. They are accused of breaking this rule:
“The exam is completely open book, open note, open internet, etc. However, in all other regards, this should fall under similar guidelines that apply to in-class exams. More specifically, students may not discuss the exam with others—this includes resident tutors, writing centers, etc.”
Jay Harris, the dean of undergraduate education, says passages of the students’ work was often identical or “too close for comfort”. Harvard President Drew Faust adds:
These allegations, if proven, represent totally unacceptable behavior that betrays the trust upon which intellectual inquiry at Harvard depends. We must deal with this fairly and through a deliberative process. At the same time, the scope of the allegations suggests that there is work to be done to ensure that every student at Harvard understands and embraces the values that are fundamental to its community of scholars.”
Those found guilty of cheating in Government 1310: “Introduction to Congress” will be sent home fro ayear or worse. Some may ever be forced to get a job. A few observers write to the college’s Crimson magazine:
* Indeed, these 125 students will be prime candidates for campaign canvassing jobs this fall after their forced withdrawals from Harvard. They’ve all proven they can stay on the same message and have no qualms about being dishonest.
* Forced withdrawal? Are you kidding? What’s the big deal here? They should just have the law school hire them all. They could all be TAs for Elizabeth Warren.
* This all just really boils down to the fact that these students were bad at cheating, and that is why they got caught.
American Thinker writes:
Consider: legendary law professor Laurence Tribe was guilty of plagiarism, as were former Harvard prof and current Massachusetts senatorial candidate Elizabeth Warren Law and Harvard grad and historian Doris Kearns Goodwin. These luminaries of Harvard get caught, mumble a stilted apology, and move right along, so why shouldn’t the student body in general.
In the NY Times, we hear form one of the accused:
“I was just someone who shared notes, and now I’m implicated in this,” said a senior who faces a cheating allegation. “Everyone in this class had shared notes. You’d expect similar answers.”
That opinion was echoed by 124 others who all said: “I was just someone who shared notes, and now I’m implicated in this. Everyone in this class had shared notes. You’d expect similar answers.”
Posted: 1st, September 2012 | In: Reviews Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
