Help! Academic probation for using test bank.

<p>TTPARENT…the problem is that I had example questions for all the classes I am taking this semester, that’s why the school is failing me all those classes. However, my previous classes were all good. My sister are in two of these classes with me. So they failed her those two as well.</p>

<p>OK, I see. That is a little worse than I thought. Every single one or maybe most of the classes you take use these test banks, and you have no idea that they are all doing this?</p>

<p>I didn’t even know what test bank was, I thought they were just practice exams like the one for SAT, I was told by the school after this incidence that some professors uses Test bank, but I don’t know who that is and how much of test bank they use. They just said because you have test bank questions for all these classes, it means that you cheated or attempted to cheat in all these classes, so you get “F” for them.</p>

<p>How about your friends and classmates? Does everyone in these classes generally know that test banks are being used and prohibited?</p>

<p>Money, I think whenever you purchase an exam, your skating on thin ice. Purchasing study materials with sample questions to self-test your knowledge is a different situation.<br>
But, there is a lot of “gray” area and can understand why it looks like I’m splitting hairs. </p>

<p>But, primarily it seems a major waste of time and money to buy a practice exam or even supplementary materials. Professors will test for the knowledge they want you to know, not what some other random test on the internet wants you to know. There is not nationally standardized material that you should master like there is on AP exams. Even for such things as math and science. For example, my D is taking multi-variable calculus. It would make sense to go on the internet to help her figure out how to do a certain type of problem. But, it would make no sense to purchase practice tests to help her with an exam. Her professor is an expert on knots and probably has a different perspective on the material than another math PHD.</p>

<p>"I must be way behind the time too because this is the first I heard also about test bank that specifically made for professors to use to give to students as an exam. "</p>

<p>I’ve been a college professor, and never have before heard of test banks. I would not have used such a thing because I took pride in creating my own tests – and never giving the same test twice – even for make-up exams. I didn’t want to make it easy for students to cheat or have an unfair advantage.</p>

<p>I must be out of the loop too. I’ve never heard of test banks, and wouldn’t have dreameed that buying practice tests (even from the book publisher) counted as academic dishonesty.</p>

<p>(In my view, being too lazy to make up your own tests counts as academic malpractice.)</p>

<p>

Ahhh. You purchased tests from a test bank for ALL of your classes. Theses are tests, mind you, not the purchase of supplemental study materials. And your sister is in two of the classes with you. You and your sister have a serious problem. You can hire an attorney and appeal the sanctions. While you have F’s now, if you appeal you might be able to get them changed to W’s for withdrawal or you might get them removed from your record. You can’t salvage this term, but you can fight for what is on your permanent record.</p>

<p>I am a dentist, and to get my license I had to pass the “National Boards.” It was over twenty years ago, but I think I remember that everyone had old exams that you could study from, and no one thought it was wrong. I also think I remember reading in the ACT website that you can buy old ACT tests, and other publishers sell them as well. If what the OP is saying is the truth and the whole truth, the school is indeed overreacting, and it is being unfair (maybe even illegally unfair,) especially to the sister.
Someone mentioned the school officials would “get their hackles up” if an attorney were hired, but I think the hackles are unreasonably up anyway, the OP has already been flunked without a trial, and now all that is left is to appeal, and even sue.</p>

<p>Sorry. This doesn’t wash with me. A previous poster quoted a test bank warning that if you bought tests and weren’t a professor you could be sanctioned. If the OP bought tests to all the subjects there is only a miniscule chance he didn’t see a warning like that.</p>

<p>There’s a major due process issue here when it comes to the sister – and either the OP is leaving something out, or there is also a huge problem with the way this is handled. The Dean should not have been calling up the profs and instructing them to fail the student (and her sister) without notice to the student. All schools haves some sort of process for handing accusations, and it does not involve unilateral action on the part of one Dean.</p>

<p>I do think consultation with a lawyer is the way to go, because there really may be some legal liability here. To the OP: if your family can afford it, have them hire a <em>separate</em> lawyer for your sister. The first lawyer you find who handles this sort of thing will probably be able to give you referrals to other lawyers in the field. Your sister has a legal conflict of interest with you, so it is in her interest to have her own lawyer, who will then be free to defend her by laying all the blame on you. Meanwhile, your own lawyer can focus on whatever defense you might have, without thinking about how to protect your sister. </p>

<p>I know that is complicated but right now I am focused on the process. Every college is different – but here’s an analogy. If a college student steals an iphone from another student, that is a crime. But if the campus police come into the college student’s dorm room on a whim, without a warrant, and search all over the room, and find the iphone – the student, who was wrong to steal, still may have a claim against the police, who are not allowed to enter and search rooms without a warrant based on probable cause.</p>

<p>So the part that stand out to me at this point is that the process is way off base in terms of how these complaints are typically handled.</p>

<p>Don’t feed the ■■■■■.</p>

<p>This person is a JUNIOR taking classes at her college in her major.</p>

<p>EVERY SINGLE ONE of her professors uses on-line test-bank tests. <a href=“Resisting%20the%20urge%20to%20ask%20if%20it%20is%20High%20Point.”>i</a>*</p>

<p>The college gave her SISTER the F’s.</p>

<p>Come on now.</p>

<p>^^^lol… The truth finally came out.</p>

<p>When I sit back read the first post, I just don’t feel right in the first place. I just don;t think the ■■■■■ is honest to being with and try to lead everyone think the University is the villan. I just cannot belive any reputable U will do things like that, anywhere.
:)</p>

<p>Aww shucks. Good call. Perfect English except for the token “brought”.</p>

<p>I don’t think he is a ■■■■■, and I don’t think it could possibly help anybody to accuse him of being one. Furthermore, it could be very hurtful if you are wrong. Please be respectful. The whole point of this board is to help each other. Please remember that.</p>

<p>The identical twin sister (at the same college, taking the same classes) is a little unusual.</p>

<p>So what’s the downside of just believing the guy and trying to help him.</p>

<p>Did the professor publish the course policy that forbids students from using test materials outside of classroom? Some professors allow collaboration among students but don’t allow students to use previous tests.</p>

<p>I cannot imagine a school’s academic dean commanding two of his professors to give F’s to one of their students because of something the student’s sister did. And then - part 2 - Both of those professors saying, “Okey doke, Dean, happy to flunk Sis. Anything you say.”</p>

<p>If this really did happen, I apologize.</p>

<p>Implausible. I just can’t imagine this happening at any college in this dimension, in this reality.</p>

<p>Why is the default assumption usually that a student poster is male – the OP said that she had an indentical twin SISTER, therefore the OP is a woman.</p>