i must be VERY naive! i had no idea that people cheat the way that they do in school. there are two groups of people in my chemistry class who i found out are cheating their way through our class, and it makes me so angry :angryfire -- partly because they talk throughout the class, try to copy my group's labs, show up late or not at all.
in our exams we are able to bring in our periodic tables as a reference. we've colored in certain things, drawn arrows, etc. -- but, no words. our teacher looks at our tables and calculators as we enter the exam to make sure there are no words or numbers. however, one group was plotting how to cheat on that. they were going to write formulas and such in white crayon so that she couldn't view it when making a quick glance. another person who speaks a foreign language asked one of my lab partners who speaks that language to keep her answers uncovered on her test so that she copy that day. of course she asked in their shared language, not english. my lab partner was PISSED! like me, she puts in the necessary work to do well.
on one hand i feel like the cheating doesn't directly affect me, so why be a snitch. on the other hand, i just don't think it's fair. i show up daily, and put in the work inside and outside of class. i have no problems helping people who try, but i can't stand to look out of the corner of my eye and see someone looking at my paper, and copying my lab results almost every lab.
what would you do in my situation? would you give your teacher an anonymous note to be a little more aware on test days? would you tell her blatantly what's going on? or would you just focus on yourself and trust that karma will run its course with your classmates?
looking forward to your feedback!
ActNowNrsL8r
p.s... i went emoticon happy -- forgive me, it's a new discovery !
Specializes in ICU, Med-Surg, Post-op, Same-Day Surgery.
In my micro class we actually had a guy that took out a CAMERA and took FLASH pictures of the test (which had had carefully laid on the floor for the purpose). I was sitting behind him, dumbfounded, while the students around him seemingly ignored him. As he pocketed the camera and got up to turn the test in, I jumped up, ran to the teacher, and reported his sorry butt. The kid had to turnover his memory card, right there in class, embarassed as all get out.
In another class, two girls that sat across from me just started whispering the answers to a test to each other. I signaled the teacher and turned them in. Not sure what happened to them, but they were nursing majors.
Why should I sit around and let someone get it for free when I work so hard to be the best I can be?!? No way! REPORT THEM!
Here's the $100 question: if you let the cheaters go, and don't turn them in, would you want them caring for you in your time of need?!?
I would tell--in a heartbeat! I would probably ask to make an appointment to see them during office hours. That way you have privacy and can just say what you have to say. I would probably get there and start by telling him/her that you wanted to talk to them about something you have witnessed that makes you very uncomfortable and that you are there to talk to them about it.
and i wouldn't think twice about it. it's wrong and they deserve to get kicked out. and they'll have no one to blame but themselves--they know it is wrong and that they could get into bigtime trouble if they get caught.
Check your academic honor statement. In most, not reporting cheating is seen just the same as cheating.
Report it. Cheating gets them a better GPA that would steal a spot from a deserving nursing student. It is theft and fraud.
:yeahthat: Tell the instructor, and follow up if it doesn't stop. It's your responsibility to report it. The other students don't need to know it was you.
Ugh...the scary thing is, these people are going to be in the real world one day and if that is Nursing, I wouldn't want them to be my Nurse!!! I could go either way on this...just depends on my mood that day:lol2:!! I may or may not tell the instructor. But I agree with you 100% - it is not fair to those of us who actually go to class to learn something and work so hard at passing that some students can skate through class on others coat-tails. In the future, refuse to share your lab results with them (and tell your group that as well). They need to do it themselves and if they are having issues, ask for help from the instructor. I don't think you are obligated in the least to share that with them and if the instructor has told you to share results, then I would certainly bring to his/her attention that you are not comfortable sharing lab results with someone who refuses to do the work!
All in all, I don't think we can answer for you whether or not you should go to the teacher with this information. Usually if you are caught cheating, there are consequences. I certainly am not the type to be a tattle tale, but in certain situations, I may go to the teacher if they are not doing a thing!!! And it sounds like that is the case here...but like some of the other posters stated as well, I believe in Karma and what goes around comes around.
Edited to Add: Reading the last few responses, I think I agree about turning them in...never thought of it that way "not reporting it is just like cheating yourself". And the fact that they could take a spot away from you in the Nursing program. I say turn them in. If they are absolutely not doing a thing, turn them in.
While I agree we cannot tell you what to do, I will say if it was me I would feel obligated to report the behavior. It is suppose to be a profesional environment and cheating is as unproffesional as it gets. Let me just tell that a previous job a coworker did something she against the rules. I was on the same shift same department and she told me what she had done. I didnt really think about it because it didnt seem like a big deal but she got in trouble for it and then told the boss that I knew all about it and guess what I got reprimanded for not reporting her. After that experience I will never again not report something that I know to be wrong whether it affects me or not.
Again just like whether you report it or not, how you tell is up to you. Whatever you feel most comfortable with.
Good luck with your decision, I know its a complicated one.
i show up daily, and put in the work inside and outside of class. i have no problems helping people who try, but i can't stand to look out of the corner of my eye and see someone looking at my paper, and copying my lab results almost every lab. 
would you give your teacher an anonymous note to be a little more aware on test days? would you tell her blatantly what's going on? or would you just focus on yourself and trust that karma will run its course with your classmates?
!
coolpeach
1,051 Posts
Just be careful...You don't want to get caught up in a big stressful situation. It would take time, and attention away from your studies.