My son is finishing his first semester of college. He only has two more weeks of school.
He took a test last week in class while his notebook was sitting on his table (I guess they have tables not desks). He had pulled out an assignment to turn in before the test and forgot to put the notebook away. He never touched it or opened it during the test. He took the test, put his notebook in his backpack and left.
The teacher called him in 2 days later and asked if he had sat the notebook at his table and he said yes only to get out his assignment but forgot to put it away.
The teacher then told him that she didn’t think he used the notebook but she had to give him a zero on the test because he had “access to material others did not have during an exam” and it didn’t matter if he used those materials or not - just that he had access to them.
She then told him she was going to change his test grade to a zero and in order to do so it would have to be justified to the college so she was reporting him to ethics for cheating. My son went to his advisor and was told that he would be given a hearing with ethics with the accusation of cheating. This is a state college.
Yes this was a stupid mistake on his part. But really cheating? He might end up a mark on his academic record and he would LOSE his scholarship which would mean he would have to quit school. He is an A student going after a pre-med degree and has never been in trouble. He is very stressed out now.
After reading posts online I see some people advise the parents to get involved while others say this will reflect badly on the student during the hearing. Some say if a hearing with ethics is involved to talk to a lawyer right away. I have no experience with this so I am not sure what I should do or how to advise him.
I wondered if anyone has any experince with this sort of thing?
I am sorry you are having to deal with this. It sure sounds like the professor overreacted. Let’s face it - while the student bears some responsibility here, if the proctor was also doing their job s/he would have watched out for him opening the notebook thus confirming he cheated OR reminded him to put it away the moment s/he noticed it was still out. Calling him two days later sounds odd. It sounds like another student may have turned him in after the fact. If that’s the case, there may be another side to this story - and a witness.
I think hiring a lawyer is overkill at this point, mostly from a financial rather than an image standpoint. Of course he could ask his advisor if hiring a lawyer is commonly done. I think it could go in his favor IF the professor does not, in fact, have a witness and/or can’t provide proof he was cheating. The fact that she said she believed he didn’t open the notebook is a point for him. A good compromise would be him agreeing to retake the test under close proctoring.
Support your son, but make sure you have the full story.
Is this a fairly new teacher or a seasoned veteran? It really does not seem like the kind of thing a long-time professor would bother with, unless of course there was some other report to the professor about the student ACTUALLY using the notebook. As someone who has taught for 20+ years, I can say that there is no way I would bother with something this utterly trivial.
Agree with Groundwork2022, make sure you have the full story.
You need to check the university catalogue or policies for ethics violations. Sometimes there is a committee with a lawyer allowed for the student. Or there is a process for requesting probation or expungement so his GPA isn’t hit or so it doesn’t stay on his transcript. Don’t want to be in dark about ways to protect his rights. The university will not volunteer info. Consultation with lawyer is often free.
He needs advice from someone who knows the Code of Conduct and navigating the process for presenting his case or negotiating a retest or other way to get cheating charge dropped or reduced to a lesser charge.
Plus he may be able to present testimony from other students, if no one saw him cheating.
I recommend talking with a lawyer; perhaps there is not yet a need to have a lawyer present at the hearing with your son, but your son needs to know his legal rights before that hearing. I would assume that the University is NOT going to be fair to your son.
There at least two sides to every story. If the teacher/professor really believes that the student did not use the notebook, then that belief should be included in the report.
With so much at risk, you should consult with an attorney who has handled such matters before at this state university. Plus, your son may be more forthcoming with an attorney in a one-on-one conversation than with his parents.
At first read, it seems like a violation of the rules to me. Imagine a foreign language exam in which a student had an English to German dictionary on his or her desk while taking the exam.
Also, I am a bit sceptical about the proffered excuse of pulling out an assignment to turn in before the test and forgetting to put the notebook away.
I think your son’s story is very plausible. My own kid left a school after an unfair accusation (which was immediately resolved since it was absurd), because she could never feel safe there again. These false accusations can ruin (or redirect) lives.
Please please please consult a lawyer who is experienced in this kind of thing. This is probably the proctor’s fault. Your son has an excellent record, which will help.
Perhaps they videotape tests and review them later-?
I sincerely hope that with the proper help, this can be resolved.
I think your involvement is fine given the stakes, but much better to have a lawyer there rather than parent. You need to be willing to fight this to the max for as long as it takes.
“This is probably the proctor’s fault.” ??? = Please, do not rely on this defense.
Also, @compmom, there is no “false accusation” in OP’s son’s case. The son does not disagree with the allegation that he had his notebook on the exam desk or table during the exam.
P.S. This appears to be a case with a cystal clear, uncontested ethics violation–“access to materials others did not have during the exam”. The real issue is about the penalty. In essence, the hearing is little more than a sentencing hearing since the violation has been admitted & remains uncontested.
I’ve proctors tests. More than once. I give a verbal reminder about things that are important (like removing other items from the table top). And I’ve walked the aisles to be sure everyone has been compliant.
I’m not saying it’s the proctor’s fault. I’m just wondering what the proctor DID. If the proctor gave these warnings, or the notebook was taken out after the warnings given, that’s another story.
The student absolutely should not blame the proctor.
Students should know that nothing can be out…unless it’s an open book exam, and even then, the items used are limited.
Unless the university ethics code/rules place a responsibility on a protor, then the proctor’s action or inaction is not relevant. Plus, there is no charge against the proctor (which might be the case if the proctor failed to properly time a test & allowed too much or too little time).
I would not rely on Ombuds Service to provide advice to protect son’s transcript or reputation. Many Ombuds provide basic information about a college’s disciplinary process, but will not assist a student in a disciplinary hearing. They do not make decisions for student about what to do. They might suggest a meeting with professor but then would be neutral arbiter between the professor and student.
There may be an Office of Student Conduct or even Legal Aid, but again, they are employed by the state college.
Your son still has to attend classes. He needs assistance to prepare for a hearing or negotiate some alternative penalty to keep his scholarship.
Hire an experienced attorney ASAP while there is still time to work things out in a settlement type manner.
P.S. Even without touching or opening the notebook on the desk, cheating could have occurred if information, such as a formula, was written on the cover of the notebook. This is another reason why it would be best to hire an attorney experienced in this area–to avoid compounding the seriousness of the situation.
I think Publisher has probably assessed the situation correctly. There was a policy violation (notebook out during test), which the student admitted to, and now the process has to go forward to justify the professor giving the student a grade of zero. Based on the information in the OP, I think the consequence (grade of “0” on the test) has already been determined. Not sure things would go much beyond that if the prof is convinced he didn’t use the notebook. The ombudsman would be a good place to start as there would be a explanation of policy. Is a prof required to justify every grade of “0,” for instance? And would something like this appear on a transcript that the student may need to submit for professional school? (I think the likely answer is no, it won’t). Depending on answers to questions like that, you may or may not decide to bring in outside legal counsel.
Even if doesn’t appear on the transcript, the student–is he is found guilty-- will have to report the incident on his AMCAS/AACOMAS application for medical school.
i should have written that part of a proctors’s responsibility would seem to be to remind students not to have anything on the desk, and do a visual check. It was careless of me to write it was the proctor’s “fault.”
@compmom: Actually, you raised an interesting point with respect to the proctor’s responsibilities prior to & during the exam.
If there are written guidelines for test proctors, and if one duty of a test proctor is to make sure that all desks & tables used by students during an exam are free of extraneous materials, then OP’s son could assert that his notebook was implicitly approved by the proctor as he was not told to remove it.
Furthermore, if one of the proctor’s duties was to make sure that no “other materials” were on any student’s testing area, then OP’s son could assert that he may not have been the only one with additional desktop materials present during the exam as clearly the proctor’s performance of his or her duties was inadequate.
Also, several other issues could arise depending upon the presence or lack of proctor instructions or guidance whether written or not. For example, was this proctor given proper training ? Were exam takers instructed to clear all extraneous materials off of their table or desk ? Lots of fairness, due process type issues could be raised by an experienced attorney. Just need facts before deciding upon an approach.
P.S. A mitigating factor for OP’s son was/is his honesty two days after the exam in stating truthfully that he left his notebook on the table throughout the exam when questioned. He could have lied or he could have stated that he doesn’t remember. But he didn’t; he responded as if he had nothing to hide.
Raises the question as to whether exam takers were instructed to remove all extra materials from their tables or desks.