<p>Ok. I will just get to the point and leave out the details. Last Saturday I handed in a plagiarized (from teachers answer key) chemistry lab report. On Wednesday I asked my AP Chemistry teacher to write a recommendation for Embry-Riddle. Now Thursday (yesterday) night, he read my "plagiarized" lab report. Then Friday (today), he spoke about plagiarism and stuff. Then after class I went up to him and told him I did it. During this conversation, he told me I did the right thing (for coming foward) and that I can redo the lab report because he wants this to be a learning experience.</p>
<p>Now I am scared about the recommendation. When I asked him on Wednesday, he said he'll need 2 weeks to write it because he's very busy. So here's my plan. I get my plagiarized lab report back tomorrow and redo it over the holiday weekend. I will hand it in on Tuesday when we come back to school. Then I wait until the following Monday to ask him if he wrote my recommendation letter, because I don't want the plagiarizing situtation to be on his mind. Is this a good idea? What happens if I just get an "average" recommendation from him but a good one from my math teacher for Embry-Riddle?</p>
<p>I do not think he is going to forget about it but if he was serious about this being a "learning experience" for you perhaps he will not be too harsh. On the other hand, maybe he finished it and sent it in already. Why do you think you need to remind him?</p>
<p>Expect the fact that you plagiarized to affect your recommendation letters. Every form that I have seen asks about a student's character, and that's where your plagiarism would be reflected. I doubt that the teacher will forget that you plagiarized. I also imagine that the teacher figured out that the main reason that you confessed was that you had realized the teacher was on to you due to the teacher's lectures about plagiarism. It's not as if you confessed simply because you felt guilty. You confessed because it was clear that the teacher had caught you.</p>
<p>He said it would take him 2 weeks to do the letter. It would be courteous to follow up a day or 2 before 2 weeks is over. Even if the plagiarism hadn't happened, your plan to follow-up with him the Mon. after next would be appropriate. Earlier would be hounding him, which wouldn't likely help you get a good recommendation.</p>
<p>You have to assume that the most likely event will take place: he will mention your plagiarism. Two things you must do going forward:
(1) Apply to back up colleges & get recs from other teachers
(2) Vow to never again cheat, whether there is a chance of being caught or not. (That is what the teacher meant by learning experience.)</p>
<p>My DH is a high-school teacher and I asked him what he would do in this situation. He said he would tell the kid that he could not write a letter of recommendation for him. </p>
<p>You may want to discuss this with your gc. In some schools the guidance department asks teachers not to write recommendations for students they know have cheated in some way.</p>
<p>If you really want to show the teacher that you "learned something", go directly to him and be absolutely upfront. When you hand in your re-done lab report, say something like, "Mr. Smith, given my plagiarism, do you still agree to write the recommendation for me? If not, I certainly understand. In either event, I want to thank you for everything you've done for me."</p>
<p>The worst thing you can do is ignore it and hope he "forgets" about it, or that it's not "on his mind" when he writes the letter.</p>
<p>"why on earth would u ask a teacher for a rec, knowing that you had plagerized in his/her class..."</p>
<p>Because the student assumed that s/he would never get caught.</p>
<p>Probably a student who assumes that "everyone cheats," and also assumes that the teachers know that "everyone cheats," and the teachers don't think it's a big deal.</p>
<p>Big lesson here: Everyone does NOT cheat. Teachers do NOT write supportive recommendations for students who do cheat. Your teacher's hoping you've learned a lesson by being caught cheating doesn't mean that your teacher is excusing you from cheating or will give you an excellent recommendation.</p>
<p>You'd be better off asking for another teacher to write your recommendation, and you also should hope that the other teacher hasn't heard about how you got caught cheating. Teachers do talk to each other, and teachers get ticked off big time by cheaters.</p>
<p>Indeed, the teacher whom you originally asked for a recommendation may be assuming that after being caught cheating in that class, you no longer want a recommedation from that teacher. I used to be a professor, and I can't imagine a student expecting me to write a recommendation after being caught cheating in my class. If the student still expected a recommendation, I'd assume that the student had not learned any lessons by being caught, and clearly thought that cheating is no big deal.</p>
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Do you get to see the recommendation letter before you send it to college?
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I'm not sure. My teacher said I can pick up the recommendation in 2 weeks. Does that imply that it will be in my hand? </p>
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If you really want to show the teacher that you "learned something", go directly to him and be absolutely upfront. When you hand in your re-done lab report, say something like, "Mr. Smith, given my plagiarism, do you still agree to write the recommendation for me? If not, I certainly understand. In either event, I want to thank you for everything you've done for me."</p>
<p>The worst thing you can do is ignore it and hope he "forgets" about it, or that it's not "on his mind" when he writes the letter.
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Can I say something like, "Mr. Smith, I redid the lab report. Uhm, can you still write me the recommendation letter?"</p>
<p>Is he just writing a letter about you or did you give him the Embry Riddle Recommendation form? You were supposed to fill out the top part, give it to the teacher, and it clearly states he is supposed to send it to the campus you are applying to. (You also should have given him a stamped addressed -to Embry Riddle - envelope to mail it in, so he does not have to pay the postage.) It also states that you will not have access to what he wrote unless you are actually admitted.</p>
<p>Hmm, if what rlm919 says is true (which I assume it is) then I think it might be a good idea to ask him if he still wants to write the recommendation given the trouble. I would also talk to your Guidence Counselor.</p>
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Is he just writing a letter about you or did you give him the Embry Riddle Recommendation form? You were supposed to fill out the top part, give it to the teacher, and it clearly states he is supposed to send it to the campus you are applying to. (You also should have given him a stamped addressed -to Embry Riddle - envelope to mail it in, so he does not have to pay the postage.) It also states that you will not have access to what he wrote unless you are actually admitted.</p>
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Yes. I gave him the Embry-Riddle recommendation form. The way our school does the applications is that the college advisor in our school sends in the trascripts, recs, school profile, etc. We supply our college advisor with stamped and addressed envelopes and a processing form to indicate what must be sent in those envelopes. The teacher recs are given to the college advisor when finished, so they can be sent along with the other stuff requested. I guess I'll have to ask my chem teacher if he can still write the recommendation, after I give him the redone lab.</p>
<p>"I guess I'll have to ask my chem teacher if he can still write the recommendation, after I give him the redone lab."</p>
<p>Keep in mind that the teacher may be still willing to write your recommendation: It just may not be a recommendation that's likely to get you into colleges. I'm sure that the form asks about your character and ethics. Given your plagiarism, the teacher can't give you the highest rating in terms of your ethics. People with the highest ratings haven't been caught plagiarizing or cheating and haven't had to turn themselves in for doing somenthing like that.</p>
<p>I'm curious. On another thread, you say that your CR v is a 380 yet you're in the top 10% of your class and also are a native English speaker. The disparity between your high grades and (according to the testing) extraordinarily weak verbal skills makes me wonder whether you've been cheating your way through high school. How can you explain your high grades/class rank and weak verbal score? Even though your 700+ math SAT score indicates you have good skills in that area, your math skills couldn't be totally responsible for your high class rank.</p>