My school is really strict about kids leaving class without signing out. Well, recently I was in physics class and yet angain got a bad grade on a test. I left class and took a walk to calm down but I ended being gone for 15 minutes without telling my teacher and I took my test with me and I wasn’t there when we handed them back. I did end up giving it back at the end of the period though. Because I took the test with me, administration accused me of cheating and said I could have made a copy of the test so that lacked academic integrity, blah blah. Well that earned me a one day suspension. I am beyond pissed with my physics teacher and the school because I don’t feel the punishment fits the crime and I have never even gotten a detention before so it’s quite a shock but there is nothing I can do about it now and it’s my own fault.
Anyway, my question is will colleges find out about this?? I have my applications in, but I don’t hear back until April 1st and I’m not sure if my high school is going to tell the colleges because it is technically of “academic nature”. I am terrified this could hurt my chances of getting into my schools…
So we should know what they will do an an un-named HS, even though you (an actual student at said school) don’t know?
It really is a question for your GC; none of us know the policies of your HS.
High schools are supposed to report disciplinary issues, but the above posters are correct that not all high schools have the same policies.
The bigger question is how you will handle getting a poor mark in college. Your reaction worries me.
Forget it, I guess I need to talk to my gc. Thanks.
I’m sorry, you WALKED OUT OF A CLASS, WITH A TEST IN YOUR HAND, and YOU’RE annoyed???
They should have called your parents and told them you were MIA-- they had no idea where you were and whether you were safe.
That test was invalid the moment you left the room.Leaving the room was absolutely NOT the right thing to do, and I suspect that anyone bright enough to take Physics probably knows that.
Why is this so? The “cheating” would be taking a picture of the test (since the school likely re-uses old tests). The test was graded and handed back to the students for them to see what they missed, right? Taking the test out of the environment and looking it over is not totally crazy. The student should have notified someone or gone to be with some adult- not just bolted out of the class.
I doubt that this single incident will change an admit decision, even if it is reported.
@ItsJustSchool I don’t know if it’s necessarily “invalidated”, but there’s no accounting for what a student will do with the test once it’s outside of the classroom. No one knows if they’ll take pictures of it & send it to others. They have a legitimate reason to be suspicious of OP - they bolted out of the classroom in a rage w/out saying anything to the teacher, and they took their test with them (?).
If the test was really that horrendous that they couldn’t stay in the classroom with everyone else, then they should’ve spoken to the teacher privately and asked to look over it at another time, or in a separate room, etc.
I know that some schools allow the student to LOOK at the test to check over questions, but that’s it. They must return the test when the teacher tells them to or before class is over - they can’t take it outside of the classroom. I’m assuming that this is the case with OP’s school b/c they said “I wasn’t there when we handed them back” and “I did end up giving it back at the end of the period though.”
Anyways, OP, all you can do is speak to your counselor about how this will be handled.
Hello,
You sound like a stressed out young person in need of some counseling. You obviously realize you acted out of character as you have never received a detention before. Physics is difficult, senior year is incredibly stressful and it sounds like you are not in a position to discuss this with family. My son is extremely anxious over a slight decline in an AP Biology grade. He is fearful if he gets a bad grade that the colleges will retract his acceptances. It sounds like you are under the same stress and I personally think it is not warranted. If you are a good student and this is truly your first mistake then perhaps the people around you are missing the real problem. If you were my child I would intervene. My advice to you is ask to speak to a guidance counselor or a counsler regarding your obvious anxiety. Apologize for your uncharacteristic behavior. Explain your frustration with the class, your grade and more importantly emphasize your fear with failing to be accepted. Perhaps if you can show them you need help and are personally devastated ( not pissed) you can then request a review of the suspension. Ask how they have to handle it. If there is a mental health professional on campus ask to speak with them. Apologize to the professor and request an opportunity to provide extra credit work and express your fear of failure. Most importantly, everyone messes up. Schools will choose you and they will look at the body of work that defines you. The application is out. They will only ask for your final grade and short of pure failure across the board everything can be corrected by sharing the story above with the accepting college (not pissed). If your school has to send something then you must be allowed to add an addendum to your application explaining your side. There was a place to do so in the original application. Honesty and apology goes a long way. Try not to come across angry and just let them know you’re scared. Reach out and you’ll get into college like everyone else! Good luck you will be fine.
I’m not sure it’s helpful to perform armchair psychoanalysis. You are not the poster’s analyst and you don’t appear to have any qualifications to perform a mental health diagnosis.
Sorry, I wasn’t clear. The grade the student had received was valid, but the test itself could no longer be used by the teacher. I never reuse a test, not even from period 02 to 08 (And my kids are free to take the tests home and to use them as study sheets in the future.). But apparently this teacher does reuse tests, and by March the students all know that. Whether you agree with the policy or not, the fact that the test left the room renders it useless for the future. The moment it leaves the room, it must be assumed that it was taken for a reason, and that the integrity of the test has been compromised. So this little tantrum adds to the work for the teacher for next year.
As a teacher, would not be at all concerned over the grade. Not everyone does well all the time. Not everyone is good at all subjects. And that’s OK.
But as both a teacher and a parent, I would have a HUGE problem with not knowing where one of my students was during the time he was assigned to be in my class. During the time they’re in my class, I am responsible for their behavior and well being… Should the fire alarm go off, should we go into lockdown, should there be vandalism in the bathroom, I need to know where my kids are. Leaving a classroom because you’re unhappy with a grade is simply NOT the correct approach. To be “beyond pissed” with the teacher is not reasonable.
Last week I had a kid ask to go to the bathroom, and I said yes. When he hadn’t returned after a while, I emailed the dean to ask him to check… was the kid passed out in a bathroom somewhere???(As it turns out, he apparently had a bloody nose and went to the nurse.)
It’s my JOB to ensure that the kids under my care are safe. A kid who leaves class and takes a walk to calm down makes it impossible for me to do the most basic function of my job: to ensure the safety of the kids in my care.
At the end of the day, I can’t imagine this having any effect on college admissions. But I do think the OP needs to take a serious look at what happened, and who is to blame. Being annoyed with the teacher is not reasonable; he did not precipitate this situation. He responded to the actions of the OP. Actions have consequences. And next year in college, you’ll have a lot more freedom. That’s great, but it also leaves a lot more room for actions with far greater consequences than a day of suspension.
Ah, brings back old memories. Foreign language is a class everyone bound for college needs to take, but, like most Americans, nobody in my HS actually learned to speak well enough to even order a meal. We had a Spanish teacher that made passing the class easier by giving the same multiple choice question all day long. Kids would walk in to take the test later in the day with funny strings of letters scrawled in their palm or muttering “a c c b …” Worked fine until the day one genius started putting down the correct answers on the scantron card; the correct answers, before the teacher had passed out the test.
My all time favorite comment on a test is “Right answers, wrong test.”
My kids KNOW that every class gets a different version. Coming in with the answers memorized is always a waste of time.
If your scared you can contact your REGIONAL admissions officers. I personally wouldn’t report it, if your school is normal it will not show on your transcript.
@bjkmom This is weird to me as we are allowed to take all of our tests home with us. (in AP classes, too).