Accused of Cheating on Midterm... help!

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

Published

This happened this week and I am pretty upset over it all.

After taking our midterms last week a friend and I were discussing the test outside of class. I had asthma really bad and told him that I had been getting confused on some of the "matching" questions. We are not allowed to write on the tests, so I told him that "I wrote ABCDE on the side of my scantron, then for the "set" of questions I would write the q# next to to the letter....and use the process of elimination for the ones I just couldn't remember" .

One woman overheard me talking and the following class told everyone that I wrote the answers to the labs on my scantron and brought them into class to cheat with. Then she, and her friend, went to our Prof and told him that "Mary personally told her that I cheated on the midterm by writing the lab anwers on my scantron and brought it in to the test"! I was not at this lecture class as I was at the MD dealing with my asthma issue and by the time I got to lab later than day the rumor mill was running rampant. Most people not believing that I would do such a thing. There were a few who don't know me well and thought that since this girl was told "personally" that it must be true. I went to the Prof and told him I heard this story and that I would never cheat.... i told him what I did and what I said. He told me not to worry about it, that he never believed it for a second and had told the reporting party that he didn't think I would cheat.... thankfully he knows me well in class!

Durig that lab they kept rumoring etc... and finally my classmates told them that we would all meet after class to work this out. Well they left before class was over and everyone realized that they were lying.

For the next lab day, I decided to just let it go and concentrate on class and to just act as if nothing happened... I mean who cares right? Well, right away I can hear this one person telling the people at her table that not only am I a cheater now I am a liar on top of it! I finally got angry and went over to her and told her that I did not cheat and that I never even had a conversation with her to please stop saying these things. She was adamant that I cheated... one of the girls at the table asked to speak to me outside and so i went with her. She told me that nobody believed this person and that the whole class was behind me 100%. She was in fact defending me (I knew this) and that these two girls are just jealous over my grades and want to upset me. Which is true, they are not very gracious about the grades even tho we are not graded on a curve.

I again talked to our Prof and told him what was happening.... I mean why should I have to hear someone accusing me of something like this from across the room? I am the last person who would cheat, I've even taken tests back to Prof's who have mistakenly given me credit for a wrong answer before! I work really hard on my material, help anyone and everyone with whatever is asked. I make up study tests and share them with others, have study groups before tests to help others too. I am very popular in class because I know the material and am a willing helper.

I would have expected this type of stuff from teens, but these women are in their 40's and I am 45! I think part of it is that the prof is single, cute and spends a great deal of time with our table... we are all married women and only see him as a fun prof. One of the women involved is single and her friend has done her best to get the prof interested in her.

I know this is all really childish stuff, but it really bothers me that anyone would accuse me of cheating because I work very very hard to get good grades. My GPA is 3.6.... and I certainly earned every credit.

I am sooooo hoping by the time we go back after break, these two will have stopped. If not, I guess I need to do something.... I am worried that someone who doesn't know me might believe this garbage. :o

Thanks for letting me vent...... sigh...... I need a vacation! lol

Hugs!

MaryRose

This happened this week and I am pretty upset over it all.

After taking our midterms last week a friend and I were discussing the test outside of class. I had asthma really bad and told him that I had been getting confused on some of the "matching" questions. We are not allowed to write on the tests, so I told him that "I wrote ABCDE on the side of my scantron, then for the "set" of questions I would write the q# next to to the letter....and use the process of elimination for the ones I just couldn't remember" .

One woman overheard me talking and the following class told everyone that I wrote the answers to the labs on my scantron and brought them into class to cheat with. Then she, and her friend, went to our Prof and told him that "Mary personally told her that I cheated on the midterm by writing the lab anwers on my scantron and brought it in to the test"! I was not at this lecture class as I was at the MD dealing with my asthma issue and by the time I got to lab later than day the rumor mill was running rampant. Most people not believing that I would do such a thing. There were a few who don't know me well and thought that since this girl was told "personally" that it must be true. I went to the Prof and told him I heard this story and that I would never cheat.... i told him what I did and what I said. He told me not to worry about it, that he never believed it for a second and had told the reporting party that he didn't think I would cheat.... thankfully he knows me well in class!

Durig that lab they kept rumoring etc... and finally my classmates told them that we would all meet after class to work this out. Well they left before class was over and everyone realized that they were lying.

For the next lab day, I decided to just let it go and concentrate on class and to just act as if nothing happened... I mean who cares right? Well, right away I can hear this one person telling the people at her table that not only am I a cheater now I am a liar on top of it! I finally got angry and went over to her and told her that I did not cheat and that I never even had a conversation with her to please stop saying these things. She was adamant that I cheated... one of the girls at the table asked to speak to me outside and so i went with her. She told me that nobody believed this person and that the whole class was behind me 100%. She was in fact defending me (I knew this) and that these two girls are just jealous over my grades and want to upset me. Which is true, they are not very gracious about the grades even tho we are not graded on a curve.

I again talked to our Prof and told him what was happening.... I mean why should I have to hear someone accusing me of something like this from across the room? I am the last person who would cheat, I've even taken tests back to Prof's who have mistakenly given me credit for a wrong answer before! I work really hard on my material, help anyone and everyone with whatever is asked. I make up study tests and share them with others, have study groups before tests to help others too. I am very popular in class because I know the material and am a willing helper.

I would have expected this type of stuff from teens, but these women are in their 40's and I am 45! I think part of it is that the prof is single, cute and spends a great deal of time with our table... we are all married women and only see him as a fun prof. One of the women involved is single and her friend has done her best to get the prof interested in her.

I know this is all really childish stuff, but it really bothers me that anyone would accuse me of cheating because I work very very hard to get good grades. My GPA is 3.6.... and I certainly earned every credit.

I am sooooo hoping by the time we go back after break, these two will have stopped. If not, I guess I need to do something.... I am worried that someone who doesn't know me might believe this garbage. :o

Thanks for letting me vent...... sigh...... I need a vacation! lol

Hugs!

MaryRose

Hi,

I am new to this board and am also in school. There are always going to be people like the ones you have decribed . Some people never mature past the teen level. I see it this way. You have excellent grades, you try to help other students in the class, and the professor doesn't think you cheated. Don't let these one or two people get to you. You have enough to think about without worrying what they think. The proffessor probably knows what they are all about anyway. There are people out there who are jealous and have to try to bring others down in order to build themselves up.

Don't get caught in their trap. You know youre a good student and so does the professor. Good luck with school.

I seriously know where youre coming from! It's like if you make good grades while everyone else is struggling then you must have cheated. One possibility as to why these women are acting like teens is because of their own insecurities. I'd say that over time this rumor mill will get stale. You just keep on with all your hard work. They can never take your learning from you. I bet in a couple of years you will barely remember the choas the've caused. By then you'll have a good job and a great future!!

Thank you both for your support! I just never expected to ever be accused of something like this and it really did hurt my feelings. I think it wouldn't have bothered me so much if they hadn't kept going on with it and if I hadn't been sick.

By the time Spring Break is over, I will be well again and better able to ignore those two. It's really sad tho, because I've only tried to be helpful to them.

Again, thanks for your encouragement and support. It's nice to have a place to come and share. You all are great!:)

Hugs!

MaryRose

This happened this week and I am pretty upset over it all.

I am sooooo hoping by the time we go back after break, these two will have stopped. If not, I guess I need to do something.... I am worried that someone who doesn't know me might believe this garbage. :o

Thanks for letting me vent...... sigh...... I need a vacation! lol

Hugs!

MaryRose

Hi MaryRose,

There are always going to be people that are jealous of you and will stop at nothing to sabotage your reputation. As long as the prof knows you are not cheating, I would ignore this woman's slanderous remarks. She knows she can pull your chain by spreading these rumors. Do not stoop to her level!

When I was a kid in elementary school, there were a couple of kids that used to tease me because I was smaller, wore glasses and happened to be Asian. (Oh yes, I was also very smart.) You can imagine the taunts. I was miserable because the teachers were not around to witness this. But in retrospect, it made me a stronger person.

When I graduated from 6th grade and attended junior high, there were older kids that tried to make fun of me because I was different. I ignored their teasing and guess what? They stopped because they found they could not make me upset or angry! So the lesson is: rise above this hurtful gossip and concentrate on doing your best. Hopefully, these women will not be in your classes next semester. People will see the truth about them and you.

You don't need to help them or bend over backwards toward them. They are not worth it. Concentrate on your own goals and you'll shine!

Smile123

Specializes in Junior Year of BSN.

Don't stoop to their level. I would honestly just IGNORE them. I wouldn't say hi or bye I wouldn't say one word period. As the saying goes if you have nothing nice to say don't say anything at all (and knowing me if I had to say one word to someone like that I would not be saying nice things LOL!) Just ignore them, don't talk to them, if they need help they can ask the professor that's why they have open door policies at their office. Just concentrate on your work and forget about those knuckleheads.

Well at least your professor believed You .I had something similar happened in bio class and the teacher wrote a big fat fail on my test The guy next to me a jock was copying off my test so I kept trying to hide it with my arm.

I had been studying hard and new everything forwards and backwards on the test material because I could not afford to get another D on a test . .So when I got my paper back I had a fail .I looked at it in disbelief .

When I spoke to the professor he just was not going to believe me . I finally said ask me anything on that test and I will give you and answer word it different if you have too. The professor gave me an oral test all out of order on the spot. I got every question right ,even the one I had missed on the test.I explained the jock next to me was cheating the professor was still was having a hard time believing that as the jock always seemed to do well on the test But the thing was the jock always sat next to the smart students This time the jock was late to class and had to set next to me. So he copied me verbatim on the test. Even the wrong answers. That's why I the teacher failed me.Had to laugh though the Jock was invited to set in front of the professor desk the rest of the year. Guess who failed Bio. I got a B . :roll

If any thing does come up I would go to the professor and ask him you can give me an oral test at any time .Hopefully the lady will be in ear shot when you say it.

Specializes in Case Management, Home Health, UM.

When I was a Junior in nursing school and had completed my major care plan for Med-Surg II, a classmate and I were both accused of cheating on it. An instructor had rifled through our paperwork which was on a table and turned us in to the Department Chair. Where or how she got that outrageous notion was beyond both of us, and it was only after my classmate threatened legal action against the school that they dropped the accusation. We were invited back to class, but the instructor who instigated the charge wasn't. :yeah:

I would have expected this type of stuff from teens, but these women are in their 40's and I am 45!

Welcome to school. Just because people are older, doesn't mean they've grown up.

The school yard is alive and well, unfortunately, whether they're age 5 or 45.

:rolleyes:

Specializes in Ortho, Med surg and L&D.
This happened this week and I am pretty upset over it all.

Hugs!

MaryRose

Hello MryRose,

I have encountered this before. Sigh, It has taken me longer than I wish to figure it out.

There comes a point between righteous indignation and stooping down to their level of misery and taking their bait.

When you feel this upset it may be a signal that you've crossed over.

They are called manipulators and the really like the power that only YOU, (or I) can give them. They are everywhere and of all ages.

Good luck with your professor and good riddance to giving manipulating liers any credence.

As I read another poster end her reply someplace in these forums...Taking things personally only makes you prey for preditors who can then feed you any poison they want to....don't take their poison.

Gen

Specializes in Med/Surge.

I can so relate to this. I refer to those who do it in my class the "Romper Room" bunch. And yes, they are in there mid-to late 30's and 40's. So far I have had a weeks break from them and then I will have another week break from them coming up with spring break this week so I am hoping things will be a little better when we get back to class.

I have been thinking that when I get back I am going to continue to ignore them and take the higher ground but once we are done with graduation and nclex review course that I am gonna tell them "how the cow ate the cabbage" :rotfl: if nothing else to just let them know how idiotic they have been this last semester.

Good Luck

Thank you everyone! You are all absolutely right about ignoring it. That is what I usually do when anyone says anything mean about my good grades.

That is what I will do if they continue when break is over. One of the reasons that I got so upset is that I was battling asthma at the time ( 4 weeks, 3rd round of antibiotics and almost hospitalized). When I am weak physically I am weak emotionally. I actually cried in class because I was so mad and didn't know what to do. My classmates rallied behind me with hugs and lots' of "hang in there's". They know me and care very much about me.

Now that I my asthma issues have cleared up coinsiderably, I am much stronger and will not succumb to their tactics. I have too many FUN things to do instead!

I will be my "happy helpy self" :chuckle to everyone else when we return. I love school and I love to help others so being in class is a joy for me. I think that is one of the things that bugs them.... I am a happy person 99% of the time. I don't do whining! lol They are whiners...:rolleyes:

I had to ask myself what lesson was I supposed to learn from this..... and it was to trust my instincts. Lesson Learned!

Thanks for all the replys everyone..... I feel so much better knowing that I am not alone. It helps to hear your stories. I just wish everyone could have had a great Prof like mine tho.

HUGS!!!:)

MaryRose

+ Add a Comment