The Observer, November 2, 2007
Volume XL, Issue 9
Academic Integrity Board seeks student input on ethical issues
The Academic Integrity Board may cause a stir among students with a student poll in the next few weeks. The survey will ask students about two of the major issues facing the Academic Integrity Board: Greek Housing test stores and the option to withdraw from classes after being caught cheating.
For students caught cheating and given a failing grade in the course, students still have the option to withdraw from the courses – erasing the Fs for Ws.
"If someone's sanction is to fail the course, and that person subsequently withdraws, it negates the effect that sanction is supposed to have," said Joe Gigliotti, chair of the Public Relations Committee. "What we hope to achieve by bringing the issue to the student body is awareness that this issue comes into play in classes that members of the community have likely been in. We ask: Is this situation OK to you? What do you envision as fair, and why?"
But the most hotly debated issue concerns the old tests most fraternities and sororities house.
Although there have been no formal complaints about the fairness of the test stores within sororities and fraternities, the Academic Board, as well as students campus- wide, are aware they exist, and they have attracted considerable attention.
"This issue has come up every year either in general discussion with board members or in specific instances," said Stephanie Ash, president of the Academic Integrity Board, about the popularity of the issue.
The foremost concern seems to be whether or not the stores of tests are fair to other students who have no such resource.
"There will always be complaints from people no matter what the issue is. But our job is to help 'level the playing field,'" said Perry Evangelista, chair of the Development Committee.
"I think the main concern with these 'test banks' is, does it create an unfair advantage? Is it fair that only certain members of a class have access to materials that the rest of the class does not?" said Ash.
Ash also commented that the Greek test stores are similar to the test prep courses offered by Kaplan and Princeton Review. Students must pay for the courses and old practice tests much like Case students must pay to become members of Greek Life.
However, other students argue that the Greek test stores are completely within the Academic Integrity Code unless professors specifically prohibit past years' material.
"If the professors make test banks unauthorized, then possessing those materials is prohibited and the matter can be enforced," said Evangelista.
"I think it's a fine thing as long as they're used responsibly; teachers should make it clear in the syllabus whether or not they can be used," said senior fraternity member Jim Adolf.
Many also feel that the tests professors hand back to students then become property of the students who can choose to donate the tests to sororities or fraternities if they wish.
Professors often avoid this issue by scanning and posting old tests to Blackboard. "In all the classes I've been in, the professor provides old tests," said Adolf. "They're around campus if you ask."
"Is this an adequate response or enough to outweigh the years of tests stored by these fraternities and sororities? These are all questions we would like to get the university community talking about because we believe that discussion and awareness about these issues are vital to the university," said Ash.
Since the Academic Integrity Board was founded with the mission to improve the campus with respect to academic policies, the board has seen it fit to finally involve the student body in this and other touchy subjects in a student poll.
"Given that the board is to promote the interests of the campus community on issues regarding ethics and policy, we think it is our responsibility to see what the student body thinks," said Gigliotti.
"I think it is about time that the issue was brought to the forefront so that everyone can voice their opinions and discuss the issues raised by these 'test banks.' Whether Greek or not, every student is affected by this issue and thus the Academic Integrity Board thought we would open it up to the entire community," said Ash.
But the board also hopes to generate more student interest in academic integrity. As Gigliotti summarized, "It may also instill the idea that integrity is an active process, like any other, that requires discussion and analysis."
