Student blatantly plagiarizes paper -- what to do?

[Catshrink]

One of my students turned in a paper that was suspect -- it seemed too well thought out and articulate compared to others. Our school uses a website called "Turnitin.com" to check for plagiarized work. It compares submissions to its database of online sources, textbooks, journal articles, etc. and gives an originality report.

This paper was 92% copied. I check the references and sure enough, he changed a few words here and there, but it was copied.

Now what? I feel pretty strongly that students should do their own work, not copy. He gave no reference to the site he plagiarized, just turned it in with his name on it.

This student has not shown much interest -- as of Friday, the end of the quarter, he was still missing about 1/3 of his assignments. I had talked to him, called home, etc. but the kid did not respond. He earned an F for a quarter grade. He doesn't take notes in class and instead, I've several times confiscated a little skateboard toy from him. I'm just not too sympathetic toward him.

So, the kid is failing the class and this just nails it. I'm feeling like such a hard ass for my attitude toward him. He earned it, he made the choice. I'm so conflicted over this!

If you were the teacher, what would you do?

edited for spelling

[burrowowl]

1. Flunk him

why is this a problem?

[Catshrink]

4. Thank you....

That's how I'm feeling too. I don't understand where my guilt feelings are coming from.

[The Zanti Regent]

81. Why flunk him?

Introduce him to the local GOP Committeeman.

He has what it takes to run for office as a Republican!

[opiate69]

2. I'd fail him...

And, if I remember correctly, my teachers used to threaten us with criminal charges in their annual "plagiarism is theft" speeches. Don't feel bad for a second about failing him. You gave him plenty of warnings and oppurtunities to get his act together.

edited because I also can't spell "plagiarize"...

[Fuzz]

43. I'd fail him...

And, if I remember correctly, my teachers used to threaten us with criminal charges in their annual "plagiarism is theft" speeches. Don't feel bad for a second about failing him. You gave him plenty of warnings and opportunities to get his act together.

edited because I also can't spell "plagiarize"...

Edited to say, I'm such a smartass. :)

[grasswire]

3. I'd learn how to spell plagiarize

...sorry, couldn't help it.

[Catshrink]

6. Ouch!

Thanks... I deserved that.

[denverbill]

76. F, no brainer.

Now, if this was a hard-working student who, perhaps inadvertantly, copied one paragraph of an article, that's one thing.

But to deliberately copy and entire article and then change a few words to hope to avoid detection, that's practically Republican.

If it was hard working, A-student who did the same thing, I'd flunk him too.

[Nlighten1]

5. Give him a big fat F

If you don't do the work you don't get the grade.

[bluestateguy]

7. My suggestion

Get all the proof you can. Document everything, so as to prepare for the possibility that the kid my lawyer up. Document every transaction with you and the student from now on.

[Catshrink]

10. No problem...

The website reports the whole thing...sources, etc. It's pretty much a no brainer as far as that goes.

My principal will back me up. He says "I have no patience for those who are not consumers of education. If they aren't, I don't want them here."

[jiacinto]

24. Be sure of that

I don't want to alarm you; but, when faced with the rancor and the wrath of angry parents and legal actions, principals and superintendents will bend over.

[jiacinto]

21. Good point

Also remember there was a case on Oprah where a teacher in KS did fail several students who plagerized their work. I don't know the whole story; but, when she faild a large part of her class, the teacher faced the wrath of angry parents. This teacher eventually lost her job and was blacklisted from teaching. She is mired in legal bills.

I don't want that happening to the original poster.

[Wwagsthedog]

39. Kansas

This is the state that wanted to ban the teaching of evolution in its schools. Creationism was voted in by the school board but then partially overturned later. The moral of this post and Jiacinto's is if you are a teacher, stay away from Kansas.

[lynndew2]

65. I live in Kansas and she quit after the

School Board overrode her decision to flunk 3/4 of the class for plagerizing. They let the parents decide for them to change her Fs and she said she wouldn't teach there anymore. I hope you stick to your guns and fail the child but I hope you dont have to face the wrath of idiots that dont care about education. All they cared about was the kids getting through that grade.

Good luck and hope you stand strong...Fail him!!!

[jiacinto]

75. Yeah but now her reptuation is in shatters

nt

[patdem]

8. Demand he/she defend all the assertions in his/her paper verbally

he/she needs to know what it is about...and I think to force him/her to defend his/her written words will prove to him/her you are not 'out to get him/her' but he/she has no leg upon which to stand?

[Catshrink]

14. I was planning to do that tomorrow...

Ask him a couple of questions about it and see how he answers. My guess is he just copied and pasted it and never read it.

[Maddy McCall]

9. I am a teacher (college)...but you have to answer a question first...

It doesn't matter how you "feel" about plagiarism, but what you stated to your students either in class or in your syllabus.

You should have made a policy on plagiarism clear PRIOR to receiving the assignments, so that your students would know what the punishment is for intellectual theft.

You should have defined plagiarism for your students, as it is defined in your class.

IF you covered the two bases above, you can give him an F for the semester, IF that was your stated policy.

IF YOU DID NOT STATE A POLICY ON PLAGIARISM, then the worst you can do to him is either give him an F for the paper, or give the paper back to him and tell him it is unacceptable and give him another chance, with the best possible second-chance grade being a C.

I stated my policy in my syllabus, and I defined plagiarism for my class prior to their writing assignment. 12 out of 40 students plagiarized, and they flunked my class for the semester. I had to have all of my ducks in a row, or I could have been called to the dean's office about it. But since all my bases were covered, the students couldn't raise hell--all they could do was leave my class.

[Catshrink]

12. Covered!

Got that -- it's in my syllabus and part of the school's written policy handbook.

[Maddy McCall]

15. Then follow your and the school's policy...

The way I see it, your question is moot. You need only to follow your policy and punish the student in whatever way your policy spells out.

What's your policy?

[Clete]

11. I would give him an incomplete

and inform him that you know the paper was plagiarized. Show him the proof. Give him a chance to turn in an unplagiarized paper like in a week or so. If he doesn't, give him an "F" or however it is that you grade.

[Nikia]

13. He deserves to fail

He won't learn if you let this slide especially if he has a history of not putting in effort. I would say that if you are really feeling guilty, you should talk to him about it and give him a chance to redo the paper, but I don't think he is likely to do that anyway. You might want to teach proper citations in class or make sure that the English teacher goes over this with students. At my school this was never emphasized and it is was perfectly proper in many classes to write papers without them. Make sure your fellow teachers are not allowing or encouraging this. If they are and unlikely to change, be sure to make special mention of citation and what is not acceptable when giving the assignment.

[Maddy McCall]

16. It's not "proper" not to cite...

It may have been standard practice, but it is in NO WAY "perfectly proper."

Sad that these are the kids who are now entering my college classes who get kicked out because their high school teachers let them slide or expected so very little from them. What a rude awakening college is for them!

[Nikia]

31. I meant that it did not affect one's grade

I agree that it is a great diservice to students for their high school teachers to be lax on citations and quality of work in general. Luckily, my college had an honor code with expectations defined, a freshman required class where the professors covered citation before the first paper, and a writing center that encouraged any student who might have questions on proper citations or writing to visit them. I think writing proper papers should be taught as part of the curriculm early on in a child's education.

[Catshrink]

18. Good point about citations

This paper was in place of a chemistry lab which he failed to turn in so it was a second chance. I didn't cover citations and I don't know how much of this they actually do in English classes. I will check into that. Meanwhile, this kid is toast.

[Maddy McCall]

22. You need to get with an English teacher...

whichever one he has taken English under, and ask if that teacher has discussed plagiarism and citations with the class.

IF not, and you declare the kid toast, it may come back to haunt you and the school system. If you didn't discuss citations with your class prior to assigning this paper, or even with him, even if it is a second chance, it may come back on you.

Be sure to cover your bases...failing a student for plagiarism can be a sticky thing to do. Just make sure that you do it in the right way.

[jiacinto]

17. Is this a high school or college class?

If this is college I would bring the student in and ask what is going on. Then I would fail him on the assingment. That is not in doubt. He fails the assingment.,

Now, depending on how contrite or whether there is something on going on, I would either give him one more chance to pass the class or flunk him completely. It depends on the student's attitude.

If this is high school I would call the parents at home. I would explain the situation and ask them to come in for a conference. I would try to find out if there is something going on at home.

There very well may be something going on with the parents. Or maybe the parents aren't there. Maybe this is a cry for help of some kind.

But ultimately, if the child is a smart ass, I would flunk him.

[Maddy McCall]

28. good point, jiacinto...

If this is high school, then this situation mandates a conference with the parents.

If this is college, then the student should be responsible for himself, and if he earned the F, let him have it.

(Can't flunk someone just because he is a smart ass, though.)

[Catshrink]

29. HS

I do need to conference with the parents and will get that set up next week.

This kid hasn't displayed enough ambition to be a smart ass.

[Maddy McCall]

32. Something may be wrong at home...

you could handle this with a lighter touch than flunking him for the semester. It could be a cry for help, like Jacinto said. That you be fair is mandated, but you need to talk to the parents before you take either action.

How long have you been teaching? Is this the first time you have encountered this? How did you handle this situation in the past?

[VermontDem2004]

91. I hardly think this a cry for help

I've been in far tougher situations at home but I never plagarized an entire article. Another thing, I think what this kid was thinking that what he was doing wasn't that serious, when I was younger I didn't think it was that serious til I got older. I think this kid was just trying to get the assignment over with.

[jiacinto]

33. Then talk to the parents first

Then I would call the parents first and have a conference with them. I would also bring in the student and talk to him. There may very well be something going on at home.

[VermontDem2004]

92. Why?

Because he plagarized a paper? I think he was a lazy ass kid just trying to get the assignment over with, I was in high school just last year and I know what kind of kids the teacher is referring to. The ones who play with little Tech Decks in class. Like I said I don't think what he knew that he was doing something very serious, when I was younger I didn't think something like that was very serious til I was much older. I guarantee I had by far much larger problems at home than this kid but I never plagarized an entire article.

[Shakespeare]

19. Fail him.

We are far, far too reluctant to be tough on grading anymore (presumably out of a misplaced fear that we'll harm the child's self esteem--something so ridiculous I won't even get started on my usual rant). We do so at our own--and our children's--peril.

You had a clear policy on plagiarism, the student violated it, and he should be graded accordingly. Period. Plagiarism is a very serious offense, and the only way for the student to "get" that is to reward his labor with a big, fat F.

[democrat in Tallahassee]

20. I spend all weekend writing a paper--give him an F!

F F F F and he should be kicked out of school for plagairism (or however you spell it)

[bicentennial_baby]

59. Me too!

After staying up till 3:30 am friday to finish my 7 page Foreign Policy paper, I say flunk him!

[Sean Reynolds]

23. As a student myself, you have no choice but to flunk him.

[jiacinto]

26. I hate zero tolerance rules

IF this were college I would agree with you. But since this seems to be high school or younger I would hope that she find out what is going on before she takes the most draconian action.

[Maddy McCall]

30. Again, I agree...

Need to confer with parents, no doubt. Try to come up with a solution...this kid may need help.

[jiacinto]

36. Here is my problem with zero tolerance rules

Specifically, some students may not know what complete plagiarism is. Or they may be so busy with class work that they may inadverently forget to cite something.

But you can usually tell the difference between "inadvertent plagiarism" and intentional, flagrant plagiarism. In cases of the latter I strongly believe in coming down hard.

I just think that each situation is different and has its unique circumstances.

[blondeatlast]

52. Yep, the parents need to be informed.

Unfortunately, they may not give a rat's ass about it. That is why I quit teaching.

Sometimes I deeply regret the decision, then I remember when I called the particular parent that put me over the edge. She didn't take an ounce of responsibility for the 8th graders actions; wouldn't come in and discuss it, then complained to the principal that I was picking on her son.

You have my support, discuss with the kid, then talk to the parents. Make sure you back up everything. If you get no satisfaction, flunk the kid.

It is time to empower teachers again.

[arcane1]

25. Colin Powell created a permissive environment for plagiarism

when he sent his "report" to the UN

hey, they can blame Clinton for everything else, at least this makes sense!! Colin got away with it!

[Mikimouse]

27. You have a responsibility to the other students

Think about it this way: If you don't take action, you denigrate the efforts of all of the other students who did not cheat. That type of information spreads like wildfire to other students, costing you your credibility and the school it's prestige. I had a similar incident last week, and am pushing it to the point of petitioning to have the student removed from the college for at least a year. I will not have my honest students pay a price for someone else's sloth. I don't mean to rant, but this is an issue on which I am utterly inflexible. I have only had to remove one other student during my brief career, but did it without a second thought. If you push this, you will be doing the dishonest student a favor as well; you will give him/her an opportunity to reflect on the cheating, as well as presenting the opportunity to experience the real world. I wish you the very best of luck, and understand that you probably feel that you have somehow failed. You absolutely have NOT! If youdidn't care, you wouldn't be agonizing about it. Sounds to me that you are one of the good ones.

[jdsmith]

34. Changes demonstrate that he was aware

Had the paper just been a cut&paste from some website, then you might be able to talk yourself into thinking that the little darling just didn't know. But he CHANGED WORDS to hide his tracks.

[Catshrink]

37. Wow! I totally agree

Other kids who missed the lab and wrote the paper did a decent job on it. Other kids worked hard on the lab writeup. So why should he get away with laziness and dishonesty?

I think the administration will take an interest in this. This is the first time a student has been "caught" using this new service (Turnitin.com). They may want to use this to show the students how serious we are about using it. Test case. I'm not sure how they can keep the kid anonymous -- I know I won't say anything but kids talk. And maybe that's good. Then they'll know they can't get away with it.

[Maddy McCall]

38. Be prepared for the backlash...

Make sure you have all of your bases covered. Make sure your syllabus states clearly the punishment that you will give this student. Make sure you made him aware that citations were required, and that he is aware what plagiarism is. IF you haven't, then you can't justly punish him for something you did not explain to him.

Make sure admin is behind you.

And, if I were you, and it is a high school class, make sure you meet with the parents first, to see if the kid is having problems at home before you severely punish him--I would want to be able to sleep at night knowing I was fair and did the right thing.

[Mikimouse]

40. Hang tough on this, your reward comes in the long run

SInce it is at the HS level, you probably don't have as much leeway as you might at the college level, but I will tell you what I have done in the past. I teach at both a four year university and a two year community college in the same locale. Many of the students I have at the two year community college end up at the other one a year or so later. I spoke to all fourof my CC classes this week about the situation, without mentioning names, and without identifying the class in which the cheating took place. Very simply, I told them that this was a matter of protecting their right to a quality education through protecting the reputation of the CC. There are many who believe that this particular CC is nothing more than an extension of HS (no offense to HS, by the way, but there should be a difference-I'm sure that you would agree). Frankly, I teach my courses in both places in an identical manner and expect nothing less from my CC students than I do from my four year students. This is essentially the gist of what I told my students: I will NOT have someone accuse you of taking a kindergarten course where people get away with cheating, plagiarism, etc. When you walk through that door, you become my students and I feel that it is my responsibility to you to ensure that your experience is not 'cheapened' by the irresponsible actions of a single individual. I explained what had happened, and the action that I planned to take. I don't know if that approach would be appropriate in your setting; your call. It is never easy to do these things, and I empathize with you

[Maddy McCall]

41. I gave an almost identical speech...

promise that I didn't plagiarize from you, though :evilgrin:.

Still, in high school, you are dealing with a different situation. Because the kid is considered a child until he turns 18, whatever happens must include the parents.

In college, federal privacy acts keep us from having to deal with parents, unless we have 17 year old students. High school is a different ball game. Parents must be included in the process.

[Mikimouse]

44. I have to be very careful as well

because I teach first year students at the CC, so some of them are only 17. Thus far, I have not had any problems with my younger students (putting hands together and being grateful). Like you and other educators at DU, I would much rather get an honest piece of garbage from a student than a perfect piece of dishonesty. In many particularly bad cases, where the papers were almost incoherent, I have allowed the student to do a re-write (but only for extra credit points, not a new grade-all of my students are allowed to earn extra credit points, so this is not 'special treatment'). I'll be the first one to admit that having a student cheat makes me very sad and angry at the same time. I usually feel that somewhere along the way, I have failed to make the point that the final course grade is not as important as what one learns along the way. I have a reputation for challening exams and quizzes, and for not awarding more than 7%-10% A's in my courses, but many of my students at least have an understanding of the material. Sorry, I'm rambling and will stop now! :toast: :hippie:

[Catshrink]

47. You said it!

"I'll be the first one to admit that having a student cheat makes me very sad and angry at the same time."

This is exactly how I feel -- which is why I reached out to DUers for advice. It's the first time this has happened in one of my classes (it's my first year).

We'll see what happens tomorrow I guess.

[Mikimouse]

49. Best wishes and DU hugs tomorrow

Your response to this type of thing will never change; doesn't matter if it happens in your first year or your 20th. Still hurts like hell, but...remember this: it only hurts because you care about your students, and that is a good thing!

[Booberdawg]

35. Sounds like he was already failing even without this incident

He has failed the course, he deserves a failing grade. Nothing to feel guilty about.

In fact, if he has to take the class over again you might be doing him a favor. Can't tell if this is college or high school, but either way he's not going to have the foundation he needs for the next level if he doesn't put some effort into this one and learn something.

[Ediacara]

42. blatent plagiarism is totally uncool

Fail him for the assignment, don't give him another chance. If I was teaching the course (in college, which I realise you teach HS) I would fail him for the class with a zero and suggest he not come anymore.

With your situation however, you need to follow the school palgiarism guidelines to the letter, and I suspect they probably are fairly harsh. You should also talk with his parents about it, although I suspect that won't be very fun.

[markses]

45. I've worked as both a teacher and administration

in a university level composition program. I've dealt with dozens of plagiarized papers at both levels. Most of the comments you've received here are right on.

1) Follow the policy.
2) Have all your bases covered - inform administration of the situation, so they're not blindsided.

There are also good questions here about previous background with citation, especially if the student is in high school. At the same time, if you have a 92% copy rate with some words changed around, it's probable that this student knew what he or she was doing, and knew that it was inappropriate. The student certainly didn't demonstrate anything nearing adequate reaching of pedagogical goals.

As for the "problems at home" angle, I have to admit that we didn't deal with that all that much at the college level. While I always tried to be sympathetic - and usually to excess - at a certain point you need to be fair to the other students, many of whom are themselves struggling against significant obstacles.

Here was our school's policy for composition: 1) Make copies of the paper and the sources. 2) Get a form indicating that the plagiarism will be submitted to the Academic Integrity Board (the student must sign off on this form, and check whether or not he or she will contest the charge 3)Schedule a meeting with the student, and present the materials to the student 4)Turn in the form.

What usually happened: The student acceded to the charges, and did not contest. He or she received an "F" for the assignment, and had to re-do it anyway (since it was technically incomplete, and you had to complete all the assignments to pass the course). The student usually did not receive an "F" for the course unless the "F" for the assignment combined with other low grades to produce that "F." There was no punishment other than the "F" for a first-time offender, but the name was kept on file. If the person was caught plagiarizing again, then academic sanctions, including suspension and expulsion, were decided by the board.

I took this to be a fair policy. If you even suggested plagiarism, you had to follow the policy. On certain occasions, when I received what I took to be minor cases of inadvertent plagiarism (poor citation), I would give the paper back with no grade and ask the student to re-do it. However, if this plagiarism rose to the level of major plagiarism (significant parts of the argument and writing), I would follow the procedure even if it was inadvertent.

There is quite a bit of interesting intellectual work being done on the status of "plagiarism" under what some take to be new historical and technological paradigms. "Plagiarism" as a charge is not, of course, age-old; it has distinct ties to a historical period and social formation that we may be moving away from. Same goes for copyright, and other such techniques of stabilizing authorship. I expect we'll see a lot of variation on this historical-social dilemma and the way it plays out in classrooms over the next few decades. It is not at all closed or certain.

[Catshrink]

48. Your policy is more detailed than ours

I have printed out your response and will show it to my principal tomorrow. The student handbook discusses it, but not in this much detail. I think it needs to be better defined and spelled out. I thought I did a good job of discussing it at the beginning of the semester.

Thanks for your input. This is really helpful.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

58. It sounds as if his main "problem at home"

is parents who treat him like His Royal Highness and never make him do anything that he doesn't want to.

[Maddy McCall]

62. Or it could be abuse, depression, alcoholism, drug abuse, or...

many of the other problems that can distract students (and adults) from their work.

A chat with the parents should make it clear whether or not there is a problem at home. If the teacher can rule that out, then she can proceed with all due speed to give the student no further opportunities and a failing grade. I think he earned his F, but for the sake of his future, this teacher could chat with the parents so that this student (a high school junior is NOT an adult!) may possibly be saved.

I think junior level in high school is TOO EARLY to write off a student, and if it would have happened to me, I wouldn't be taking PhD comps at present. I was a miserable student in high school, and my work reflected the myriad home problems with which I dealt.

All I am saying is that the teacher should bring the parents in for conference, see what she may learn, and then proceed as usual.

[VermontDem2004]

95. I highly doubt it

I know many kids like the original poster described and I know their parents and they do not have problems at home, if they think they do then I live in an insane asylum. I think this is the kid and the kid only, he plays with tech decks in class and puts a half ass attempt in completing assignments. I would give him an F on the paper and if this is a repeat occurence I would either suspend or expell him.

[Elidor]

46. If there's any concern about fallout

You might give the principal a heads up, make sure he or she is behind you.

Then get out the little red pen and pencil in a big fat 'F.'

[Raenelle]

50. I usually fail them for that paper/test and also

take them aside, tell them that plagiarism is totally unacceptable, that I'm being generous just to fail them on this assignment, that they could be reported to the school, or tossed out of school altogether, but I'm assuming they don't know how very serious plagiarism is, so I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt this time and only giving them an F for this assignment.

[DrGonzoLives]

51. Flunk him and turn him in

to the academic rules committee (if this is college). Seriously - there is absolutely no excuse for plagiarism.

[WoodrowFan]

53. Flunk Him (from a former teacher)

I'd flunk him, he needs to grow up and that'll get his attention. Make sure you have documented things such as his attendence, etc, so you have a paper trail. And give your department head/Dean, whoever, a headsup first. Also, can you check with his other instructors to see if this is a pattern??

good luck!

On edit, I was thinking this was a college student. Since he's in HS I'd still flunk him, but I'd give him the option of taking a weekend to redo the paper RIGHT first.

[SOteric]

54. It's always been hard on me when one of my students cheats

I feel personally responsible for their failure, no matter how realistically I can assess their own culpability.

You suggest that doing the right thing, -and deep inside you know it's the right thing, would make you a 'hard ass.' When did our society devolve to the point where a teacher's allowing a student to cheat himself of an education and behave in a socially and academically unacceptable manner is 'nice,' and holding him to a standard is 'mean?' And why is the desire to please this young man more important than your obligation to teach him?

If nothing else, I urge you to consider how unfair it would be to the other students in your class if you set one standard for him, and another for them. How unfair is it for the students who struggled their way in academic agony from a C to a B- if you'd give a pass to the guy who'd steal someone else's work?

And, too, contemplate what message this sends to the subsequent classes you'll teach. Word gets around a school about the way you respond to and deal with your students. Future classes will not put much effort into the assignments you give them if they feel you'll pass them even if they plagiarise and perform poorly.

Do the right thing: If a student cheats, the student fails.

[Catshrink]

56. Thanks for the support

He did make the choice to steal someone else's work and at our school, we try to hold kids accountable for their behavior. It's a hard lesson for a good student. For this one, I don't know if it will have an impact. Nothing I've said to him over the past two months has. How much do I nag him to get his homework in? I say a HS junior shouldn't need any nagging -- certainly most of his peers don't.

I think the message I've heard loudest from DU'ers has been that of being fair to the rest of the students -- those who try, who are honest, and really want to succeed. I hear you!

[Dogmudgeon]

55. It all depends

Young kid? Give him a punitively short time to re-do the assignment. Make sure his parents know about it.

Older kid? Instant flunk.

Gray area, with a bad 'tude? Flunk it, baby, flunk it!

--bkl

[Lydia Leftcoast]

57. Why are you conflicted by this?

"This student has not shown much interest -- as of Friday, the end of the quarter, he was still missing about 1/3 of his assignments. I had talked to him, called home, etc. but the kid did not respond. He earned an F for a quarter grade. He doesn't take notes in class and instead, I've several times confiscated a little skateboard toy from him. I'm just not too sympathetic toward him."

This "student" is taking up space that could be occupied by someone who actually has some interest in learning.

You'd actually be doing him a favor by flunking him. Either he'll go do something else that he's really interested in, or he'll take some time off, realize that he really does want to learn something after all, and enroll some place else, this time as a serious student.

[Maddy McCall]

61. He's a high school student...

and I know you aren't advocating him dropping out. There have been far too many students pushed out of high school by Bush's "No Child Left Behind" program.

[Rabrrrrrr]

60. Give him an F, but tell him he's now utterly qualified to be president

or at least Secretary of State, according to the new "morality" and "integrity" brought back to Casa Blanca :evilgrin:

[PittPoliSci]

63. i'd fail his ass.

why the hell not? he earned it!

[HEyHEY]

64. take the little fucker down!

[ET Awful]

66. He might be able to get a job with British Intelligence :)

Other than that flunk the twerp.

[trigz]

67. Flunk him, he's a cheat.

My wife's a teacher in upper secondary school and comes across these situations every now and then. The rationale is simple; it's cheating, the student knows it's cheating. He's taken a chance, got caught - fair enough, but there are consequences.

Conclusion: Flunk him, and while you do it ask him sternly whether he wants to finish school with shit grades and go on to struggle later in life because of it. At the end of the day, you're just doing your job.

[laylah]

68. Fail him!

It is called "consequences".....something I am finding that many, many, MANY of our young people today just don't "get".

Jenn

[JVS]

69. 2 Options

Fail him.

Or

Tell him that you want to meet with him. Give him a chance to re-write a paper to the best of his ability while sitting there for 2-3 hours. Tell him to NEVER do it again. Grade the new paper, which will probably be piss poor but still better than a zero.

[chemenger]

70. Ergo Flunkis!

His problem, not yours.

[salmonhorse]

71. Submit his name...

..to the RNC ~

[MSchreader]

72. Send him to Yale, get him into the Texas ANG, give him a baseball team...

Sounds like a Bush in training. :evilgrin:

Seriously, though, flunk his a$$. He made his bed, let him stay in it for another year.

Martin

[bleedingheart]

73. I agree with MSchreader... Flunk him

otherwise he/she may be running this country one day...

[RobinA]

74. I'd Flunk Him

Then find out if the kid can even read and write. Judging by his complete lack of anything in your class, I'm wondering if he can even do the work.

I work with children, although not in a teaching capacity. I had a 15-year-old kid who was doing absolutely nothing in school except getting into trouble. Bragged about how he had never read a book. Bragged about how he absolutely would not do homework. I tried to get the school to test him for learning disabilities. I tried to convince the parents to have him tested. No one was willing to do anything, the kid was just lazy. Finally they tested him in school and what do ya know, the kid had problems. Still, the kid was just lazy, parents and school weren't interested. Then he had a counselor who was trying to help him get a job. Kid couldn't even fill out a simple job application in a legible way. Still no interest from school or parents.

[CO Liberal]

77. Rules are Rules - He Earned an "F"

End of story.

[TXlib]

78. Flunk him

Also submit the paper to the principal to see if stronger measures are warranted.

Don't waste your time feeling sorry about it; it's his problem, not yours.

[Vitruvius]

79. Flunk him. If he plagiarizes today, he'll plagiarize tomorrow

on the job. Thereby stealing other peoples' raises, promotions, and jobs.

Plagiarism is rampant in industry today. All of the Fortune 500 companies have a "fast track system" in which management taps their favorites to be promoted. To "justify" these promotions, management then helps them steal the credit for other peoples' breakthrus and hard work. There is nothing quite as insulting as seeing some white-bread fast-track bozo who said it couldn't be done getting promotions & kudos for your ideas & breakthrus.

And plagiarists in industry have no mercy for the person who had the idea and made it work. One of the best ways to get fired and blacklisted is to make a breakthru that makes it into the company's Strategic Plan and/or Annual Report.

Plagiarists are dangerous people -- if they steal from you, they will do their best to slime you and ruin you. Because your continued existence in the industry is a threat to them. And they use the same kind of lies and ad hominem attacks that Bush Republicans use on Democrats -- not surprising, since most of the fast-track plagiarists I have known are Republicans themselves.

Plagiarists have no mercy for honest people. And they should get no mercy from us. I'd flunk him now to keep him from becoming a manager later -- he certainly fits the personality type of many of the arrogant & crooked managers I've known.

Please flunk him.

Vitruvius

P.S: Two sayings from industry: "First it's wrong, then it's obvious, then it's theirs" and "Management's job is to take the credit and affix the blame"; the latter usually said with a smirk by some lazy manager who has never accomplished anything. As he gloats over his promotions for something that has your patent numbers on the bottom.

[VOX]

80. He should learn the way the world works.

I know he's just a kid, and it sounds like he's possibly got some other issues going on -- a low-level depression, trouble at home, whatever.

The reality is that we exist in a world where, for example, if you don't pay your parking tickets, your car gets towed. That's simply the way it is.

Your student did himself, you, and his fellow-students wrong by plagiarizing.

Yes, flunk him, but give him the full story as to why, and make sure he knows how he can redeem himself. Actually, to do anything less isn't fair to him.

Best of luck.

[sexybomber]

82. If he went to IC...

he'd immediately fail the class with a 0, not just the quarter. I think my high school had the same policy. Sure, plagarism (sp?) is faster, but stil... he's gotta learn to do his own work, even if it's terrible.

[absolutezero]

83. As a college student

I can tell you that at my school (NJIT) if anyone is caught cheating/plagerizing...even forgetting to cite a source the proffesor is supposed to report them to the student senate...the senate then automatically has them expelled, or under certain circumstances merely failed/placed on probation...

[Best_man23]

84. Confront him on it one on one

Ask him if there are any sources he would like to cite for his paper. If he declines, then explain the reason you're asking is you have evidence that his work was plagiarized. Explain that in the real world, plagiarism can result in loss of job, lawsuit for copyright infringement, expulsion from college programs, etc.

If he comes clean, explain the consequences of plagiarism, then give him an offer he can't refuse. Give him a choice of having to write a paper on plagiarism and reading it before the class or a F grade for the quarter, suspension, or whatever your school recommends as punishment for acts of plagiarism.

[playahata1]

85. FLUNK HIM! No ifs, ands or buts!

I teach at a community college. I have had several instances of plagiarism -- only one of which was blatant. (I simply failed the essay.) With the others, it was a case of students not knowing what they were doing, and I gave them the chance to correct the mistakes.

I clearly state my plagiarism policy in my syllabus, and I direct them to the section of the college catalog that deals with academic dishonesty. I also require them to turn in photocopies/printouts of their source materials. Having to go through the source materials in addition to reading the essays themselves is a pain, but at least it keeps the students honest.

[Kamika]

86. id give him a break this first time, and tell him

Seriously, give him a break, but you can tell him your doing it.

Maybe he'll shape up.

If he doesnt hell fail anyway and no harm done

[MissMillie]

87. Failing grade on the paper

Conference w/ parents.

Opportunity to make up work--including this last paper.

[MUAD_DIB]

88. Call his parents in and give them the plagiarized text.

Flunking is too easy. His parents need to be involved.

If they are not at involved at home then it is also their responsibility to help their kid.

[WilliamPitt]

89. As a former teacher

Bust him. Flunk him. Where I taught, plagiarism was grounds for dismissal.

[VermontDem2004]

93. That is how it was at my school

but it had to be repeat occurences.

[Loyal]

96. Will, why couldn't you have been my high school history teacher?

lol :(

[VermontDem2004]

90. I would do what your supposed to do

when you find out a student plagarized paper.

[Heddi]

94. What would you do if you caught him cheating on a test?

Either by looking over someone's shoulder and taking their answers, or by having crib sheets hidden in his hand?

Would you give him another chance? Or would you give him a failing grade right then?

Plagarism IS cheating. It's taking credit for someone else's work.

In both instances (cheating & plagarism), the offender is getting the benefit of not doing their work, but hoping to get a good grade off the back of someone else and the work that THEY did.

Give him a failing grade and let him know WHY.

I've seen alot of responses in here that are akin to "Let him re-write the paper" or "Let him off the hook this time"---uh, no....

He knew what he was doing was wrong---that's why it was 92% plagarized and not 100%. He was obviously smart enough to change around a few words to make it 'seem' like it was his own.

Again, imagine the same situation where he's looking over the shoulder of another classmate during a test, and only copies 92% of her answers---would that somehow be cheating 'less', or make them not as worthy of a failing grade than if they'd copied 100% of the answers from another student?

According to you, the rules for plagarism are clearly defined. Enforce them.

If you don't, then you will have NO OTHER CHOICE but to give the same pass to EVERY OTHER STUDENT who plagarizes in your class EVER--for the history of time! Until you retire, you MUST give every single plagarizer and cheater and other unworthy student a second chance.

You also put your school and fellow teachers in the same bind as well. Since you teach at a High School, then I assume the plagarism 'rule' is meant to be enforced by all teachers (as opposed to a college, where each teacher can set their own rules ((to a degree))). So if you give this kid a pass, then you are compromising the enforcement of EVERY OTHER TEACHER YOU WORK WITH----because if you give a pass, then every other teacher will have to give a pass in the same situation.

It's not fair to the students who REALLY DID THEIR OWN WORK. There are people who REALLY DO deserve a "C" or a "B"---and to allow this kid to rewrite the paper, or do some other mamby-pamby bullshit exercise is a total slap in the face to EVERY OTHER KID who did their own work and EARNED their own grade--whether it was an F or an A+.

This kid did NOT do his own work. He took the easy way out. I don't suspect that you'd allow him to re-take a test he was caught cheating on? You wouldn't allow him to make-up an assignment that he blatantly copied from another student. DO NOT ALLOW HIM TO MAKE UP THIS WRITING ASSIGNMENT.

I'm a college student---and while this doesn't have to do with plagarism, it has to do with EARNED Grades----a few quarters ago, I was in a sociology class. About 90% of my class was made up of first-time college kids---fresh out of high school.

Because their writing skills were so bad, no one ever got anything less than a "D" on any writing assignment---if they gave lower than D's, then 90% of the class would fail.

It was an absolute SLAP IN THE FACE when I RIGHTFULLY EARNED AN A on my paper because of my writing, citation, reference, etc, and some kid who can't even LOOK at the page layout in the syllabus and use 'center' for the title AUTOMATICALLY gets a D NO MATTER WHAT THEY TURN IN.

We once had a paper due: 10 pages, minimum 10 sources. Had to be in correct format, all that jazz.

I worked my ASS off on my paper, and got a 98 for my work.

The kid who sat next to me turned in a 3 page report, NOT formated correctly, and got a 70 (the lowest score you could get in the class for doing the work)----now that's not fair. Especially to the people who did their paper right, but EARNED a 70.

Sorry to get off track---but you need to NOT give this kid a pass. Make him learn that his actions have consequences. If you don't, you are setting yourself, your fellow teachers, your school, and your STUDENTS for failure.

[Sephirstein]

99. That's retarded...

Why the Hell should you have to be taught by Professor Whistle Ass?

[Undemcided]

100. Your last paragraph was spot on!

Nice work.

[Catshrink]

101. I totally agree with you

on all your points. He said "I've done it before but no one ever said anything." Consistent consequences are essential as is fairness to other students. Thank you for your thoughts.

See this thread for the latest. My part is in this is pretty much over. The VP is dealing with the aftermath.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=292251

[MissMarple]

97. You obviously can't accept a plagiarized paper.

His grades are what they are. You can't "give" him a grade.

But you can't just leave him out to dry all on his own. Something seems to be going on with him. It may just be that he is not connected to school, a lot of boys slip through the cracks if they don't have truely vigilant parents. They really don't understand why school is important, so they drift. At the very least you must conference with the parents. Sometimes it helps to communicate with the parents on a regular basis (like weekly) to keep them informed of his progress. They may be clueless. Some of these kids develop a real talent for living under the radar. It can help if they realize that not doing the work is more painful and inconvenient than making an effort to do the work, assuming that he can do the work, that is. You can do a quick check on his reading, writing, and organizational skills.

Sometimes all it takes is logical consequences, like not going out on the weekend if the work hasn't been turned in. God, I hope he has reasonably competent parents. What does the counseling office say? Can they help? Can they rule out depression? A lot of teens, especially boys, are depressed.

Otherwise, can you get him engaged in class on any level? If he knows you will call on him, ask him to pick up papers, share a joke, and give positive reinforcement paired with logical consequences, he might begin to think and act like he is a student.

Good luck.

[Iverson]

98. been there

Some institutions have policies about handling cases of plagiarism and/or academic dishonesty. If yours is one, follow those policies to the letter.

If not, consult ASAP with your principal or director or associate dean or whoever in order to find out what latitude you have to act and whether they will back you.

Proceed from there, remembering that your first, highest obligation is to learning itself.