Less support from parents in college can really change things....

Parents Forum
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<p>The level of support a student can rely on in college differs widely.
Some profs or TS will encourage students to send in outline and/or first drafts, others won’t. Some colleges provide help locating library resources (as well as librarians who give tours to the library and explain how to do searches) and others don’t. This varies from college to college and from prof to prof.
As a result, I would not want to criticize the amount of support parents give to their students without knowing all the details even though I realize that some overstep their boundaries.</p>

22

<p>I wouldn’t feel bad about not giving that kind of extra support. Isn’t writing papers for someone else considered plagiarism, even if the sources are properly cited?</p>

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<p>Of course, submitting papers written by someone else is plagiarism. However, between brainstorming and writing, there are many different steps and how much feedback a student gets from others, whether prof, TA, roommate, friends, or parents can vary enormously.</p>

24

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<p>I know! I had one set of parents tell me how they wrote Junior’s papers in college with a straight face. The only thing that gave them any pause at all was the shocked look on my face when I heard them say that!</p>

25

<p>My laywer friend mom was ticked off when her son got an F on a paper she wrote! :)</p>

<p>sweet!</p>

26

<p>I’ll never forget the year the kids did these invention projects for science. My D comes in with something (unmemorable) she had clearly invented and built herself. It really didn’t work very well, but it was a pretty good idea. Then, there were a couple of really great projects which def. looked like the kid had done it, but still they were really amazing and they worked. I was impressed. Then, and I’m not even making this up, there was this one project about electricity where the “kid” had “invented” and built a bicycle which powered something or other. I’ve never seen such a proud father. The charts and the boards were just stunningly done. </p>

<p>the kids were in fifth grade. It was hillarious.</p>