<p>Hard to imagine anyone would be surprised by this. We’ve long known that schools are merely microcosms of the societies within which they exist. Can anyone name any segment of our society that’s not plagued by recurring issues of cheating and unethical behavior? Why would anyone think the halls of academia are immune?</p>
<p>IF his story is to be believed…5,000 papers including 12 graduate theses would make one think he’s put in extensive effort beyond the freshman level. I’m simply saying perhaps all this effort would have been better spent on his own education. Yes, some people would love to work from home…
I was simply stating he’s been spinning his wheels for quite a while, has been on the murky edge of education, but is possibly the one reaping the least benefit. Just a thought to be considered.</p>
<p>Our schools no longer fail children. They don’t fail them a year and they seldom even fail them a class. No, teachers curve, they lower the point totals for any assignments too many students botched or didn’t do, they throw out bad grades completely, they grade differentially (smart kids get graded harder than the less able within the same class), and they give tons of bogus extra credit opportunities. I’ve seen all of the above methods employed this year at my D’s middle school and its sickening. So when these kids who have slid through grade school finally get to college, how do they cope? This is how.</p>
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Kids who slide through middle and high school rarely make the requisite SAT/ACT cuts needed to enter top tier schools. I think the problem highlighted in this article goes far beyond the scope of kids who merely “slid through.”</p>
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<p>I was just thinking this. So much work and effort for $66K and a job that commands no respect and in, fact, invites scorn. He could have done much better if he had just concentrated on his own education.</p>
<p>I teach in a graduate school program (at a not very prestigious university). I occasionally get students where I wonder how they made it through a four year undergraduate degree. </p>
<p>I have been curious enough that I now frequently have our admin guys look up some basic info for me (where they went to college, how long ago, whether they completed it at one shot or took multiple attempts, whether it was a for profit school, etc.) – and we’ve actually started compiling it. (I refer to it as “the list of schools my kids aren’t allowed to apply to.”)</p>
<p>We were actually wondering what the pattern was – Are there certain types of universities where we consistently get large numbers of students whose writing is incoherent, poorly organized, a mix of fact and opinion presented as fact, who don’t understand the different between a scholarly and a mainstream source like USA Today, who use slang in academic writing and so forth. </p>
<p>If there is a pattern, it seems to be that these were guys who got C’s in soft subjects (English, history, sociology, etc.) in large state universities where they were probably graded almost entirely by TA’s with minimal contact with a professor. In other words, no one really caught them as lousy writers in high school, nor did anybody take the time to address the problem. They then went on to Humungous State University where they sat in a lecture hall with 500 kids, had a TA grade most their work and the TA probably didn’t know how to fix their writing nor did he have any strong incentive for doing so. So instead he gave them a C. Now they’re my problem . . . </p>
<p>I worry about the fact that most these guys still owe large sums of money for the undergrad education they clearly didn’t get, that they’ll end up owing more money for graduate school (if they pass, which is doubtful) and that their employment prospects will be affected down the line. I’m terrified that these guys will end up teaching in a public school somewhere as well. </p>
<p>My preferred solution would be to have some kind of written BA exit exam that everyone has to take, which is then graded by some randomly selected group of people who have never met the students. And maybe the university should have to give you some percent of your money back if you fail – and let you stay another year for free, or something.</p>
<p>There is a live chat on that site with the mystery man himself at noon (now).</p>
<p>Interesting, roshke. Where is that located?? How does one follow along?</p>
<p>re: writing competency for a Bachelor’s degree – my southern flagship required a writing competency exam at the end of freshman year. If you hadn’t passed it by the time you had 60 quarter hours of credit, you had to take remedial English courses til you passed.</p>
<p>Just looked up the current requirements online and it’s university system-wide. They now have pretty generous exemptions based on SAT Writing, AP, IB, etc. scores. When I was in school, even the Honors students had to take the exam. No exemptions.</p>
<p>everybody should be fingerprinted, just like for MCAT.
On the other note, why anybody cares? People cheat themselves out of being educated and they kid themselves that it will never catch up with them. I am sorry for them but not to the extend of worrying about them. None of mine business, all their choice. I am glad my child is doing everything and beyond by herself, no connections to get in, no special status. Her accomplishments are the result of hard work and that alone gives her huge confidence that is taking her higher to the next step, while cheatters stay behind.</p>
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Because the problem exists and it stands to affect our society as a whole and every individual within it.</p>
<p>A transcript of the chat:</p>
<p>[Live</a> Chat With an Academic Mercenary - Home - The Chronicle of Higher Education](<a href=“http://chronicle.com/article/Live-Chat-With-an-Academic/125342/]Live”>http://chronicle.com/article/Live-Chat-With-an-Academic/125342/)</p>
<p>One reason I care is because opportunities and resources are not infinite. Someone cheating to get somewhere is very liable to mean someone honest losing that opportunity.</p>
<p>I also care because incompetent people in places of responsibility negatively affect society as a whole and individuals in particular.</p>
<p>interestingly the magnet programs in our county now have kids schedule a time and come in and write their essays online in a proctored room…</p>
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Hmm. Seems to speak to how pervasive the problem is at a very early stage, doesn’t it?</p>
<p>Thank you, lovelday2 and garland.</p>
<p>Momzie gives a profile of the bad writers among her students:</p>
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<p>Are these students who actually have a degree in something other than the English/history/sociology/etc. that they are so poor at? In other words, are they students who have gained nothing from their undergraduate career, or do you think they are otherwise capable students who can’t write?</p>
<p>The idea that all non-quantitative subjects are “soft” is one that I have objected to many times. They are not “soft” at good schools.</p>
<p>On the other hand, if the typical class situation in the typical university is that described by Momzie, I can see where people get that impression. </p>
<p>IMHO, a significant percentage of students in college right now should not be pursuing a degree that purports to be academic–and moreover, would be mightily relieved to drop the pretense–and a significant number of “colleges” should close their doors. Instead of faux degrees and faux academics, students and society would benefit from far more–and more rigorous–vocational schooling, starting at an earlier age. Something closer to the European model.</p>
<p>Try asking your child, “Why wouldn’t you buy a paper for a class assignment?”
His/her answer might be cause for worry.</p>
<p>Thanks, roshke, for posting the URL to the chat.</p>
<p>It is very interesting that Dante attributes the motivation to use his services to grade pressures. In that sense, one can almost conclude that grade inflation in the humanities and qualitative social sciences (he does not seem to sell math, physics or econ problem set solutions) is a desirable outcome, and is in fact widely observed.</p>
<p>There are situations he mentions that do not fit this theory, however. Certainly buying a description for a dating site does not come from grade pressures. More seriously, he mentions he has clients from nursing schools, education schools; he even writes for teachers and principals seeking promotions. Are we prepared to inflate grades and lower thresholds in those situations?</p>