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Have you ever had a professor mistrust your work?

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Bia

Ideal_Rock
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This is really long, BUT I need advice. Ordinarily I wouldn't post this but I need objectivity right now.

I received my grade for a research paper I wrote in my STAT/Measurments class. It was an INCOMPLETE. My professor gave me the grade because she felt that my work wasn't really mine. She basically said that the paper was beyond my comprehension level at this point, and that no one in the class did what I did. ::sigh::
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Background:

The professor is also the director of the program--the woman who accepted me into the program. When I applied she told me (in an email) that she was concerned that I didn't have the business experience needed for the program, but that she'd accept me based on my GPA and GRE scores. So off the bat, I felt like I would be proving myself. But whatever...
So, during my first class with her, at the beginning of the semester (last year), she assigned a 15pg research paper. I wrote it and she gave me a B+, saying that I was too biased (it was on healthcare and I had very personal feelings about it, it turns out) and didn't present enough research-based information, BUT that she thought I wrote really well, therefore she'd like to see me dig deeper next time. I took her advice and realized that she was right...the paper was one-sided at times, and could have used more research based information.

Fast forward to a two months ago. Our cohort started another Saturday class. This time it was measurements. Because the class fell on Saturdays, there were a few conflicts, and our class ended up meeting for only 2 and 1/2 classes, versus the 5 we would ordinarily meet for. This was on her. She used one of our classes to have us be the tour guides for an Open House she was hosting for our program. The other class was one full class, and the third class she let us out early because she had some appointment--two classes she just cancelled due to inconvenience. Now she's a smart lady, but she's also very hyper, and get's restless. There was very little opportunity for me, or anyone really, to contribute to the class--to be honest, she spent a lot of time discussing her Open House. Because I barely spoke to her during this class, what she didn't know about me was that because of my undergrad background, I was very comfortable with Measurements (my program required STAT and research methods 1, 2 and 3), not so much the actual math, but more so how to go about understanding the results. When I got my survey results back, I used a program called SPSS, which essentially allowed me to enter all my results from my survey, and then find the mean/standard deviation/correlations/reliability/etc. I was able to do a lot with my paper. I provided tables, charts and I did research on my topic of interest for the survey. Well, apparently, my paper went so far beyond what the others did (she told me even the A+ papers only wrote the Abstract/Methods/Results/Discussions portion of the paper, and did very basic stats--no research/lit review was done) that she didn't believe I could have written it.

When I got my paper back, I literally felt my heart in my stomach. Not only was she accusing me of plagiarism (or just flat out stealing work), but she was also dismissing my abilities, based on hardly knowing me, or my work, at all. So I instantly wrote her an email that I didn't know how this was happening. That I felt assumptions were being made, and that it was my work she was saying must belong to someone else. She right away wrote me back that she apologized if she made the incorrect assumptions, but that no one else did a research paper/lit review, and even those students with a sound understanding of STAT didn't go to the lengths I did. I explained to her what I wrote above, that I was comfortable with STAT, and that maybe because we didn't meet that many times for class, I wasn't able to demonstrate my familiarity with STAT. She wrote back that she now was now "comfortable trusting my work," and that she would read my paper as a legitimate one.

Well, thankfully it semi-allowed me to semi-enjoy my weekend, but truthfully, I am really upset. I am not only insulted, but I'm also angry that she is so quick to judge me, and then accuse me. Is this common among professors? When I wrote her today to tell her I sent her my paper (she wanted it by mail since she would be out of town) I told her that I was glad that it got sorted out, but that it still bothered me that she couldn't trust the authenticity of my work. She wrote me back, "Not a problem Bia. Let's put this behind! Okay?"
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Am I reading this wrong or what? I am so upset, I don't know what to do. A part of me feels like dropping out of the program because she's THE MAJOR PLAYER in the program, AND I will have her again in the summer.

Am I reading too much into this? Should I just drop it? Be honest. Please. I tend to worry things to death, but in this case, I am so upset, I can't tell if I need to let it go.
 
I KNEW something was up with you today!

I''m sorry B... that really does hurt. (((((HUGS)))))

I use SPSS as a Sociology major, and it does do some rather complicated computations, so I can see where she might be surprised by your abilities. It is powerful software!

I really think that you should let it go. If your paper was THAT good, that she had to question it, that is a compliment. You ROCKED that paper. She said she was mistaken, and wants to move on. I think you should too.

IMO...Do NOT drop the program! You worked your butt off on that paper, and even if there was a slight misunderstanding, clearly you belong in the program.
 
Hi Bia,

I''m sorry you are going through this. My brother once had a teacher write on his paper, "Is this your work without any plagerisme". He met with the teacher, they discussed it, and he let it go. It made no difference in the rest of his life, just a funny story he tells people.

I KNOW that you are hurt and angry. I would be too. But I really, really think that if she reads it again and gives you a fair (or even a decent grade) that you should just let it go. As a director of the program, I feel she has a lot clout and power. If you are planning to continue in this program, I would swallow my anger. I don''t see what you have to gain in pursuing this, especially if at the end of the day, the grade on your paper is acceptable. I believe pursuing it, filing a complaint would have made her look bad, but it might have made ME look bad too. I don''t think you want the department to know that you were once accused of plagerisme....It''s an ugly accustion, despite if it was proven untrue, there will still be that stain.
Randomly, I once had a rotation with a doctor that was crazy. Really. She said things to me that I thought were completely unacceptable i.e she didn''t like the way I SAT. That I must be a control-egoist because I wanted to be a surgeon, and that in her opinon, "I should drop out of med school because I wasn''t suitable for the position." This was as a 4th year medical student! What I did was I talked to the dean of my school and said, I don''t want to pursue this, but I want you to know that I believe Dr. X has issues with me. I just want you to be aware of the situation in case she decides to fail me in my final evaluation, I want it on record that I believe there is a personality conflict so I can have some recourse if anything were to happen" Well it turned out fine, she gave me conforms to norms, and although the comments weren''t steller (she said I couldn''t speak french...crazy woman) but I passed. And that''s it. Behind me. The point is, it was annoying, but you have to look at the big picture.

Good luck!
 
Actually, I'm kind of impressed the professor did anything if they suspected plagiarism--too many just let it slide.

I look at it this way. She gave you an incomplete, not an F. By giving the INC, she allowed for you to follow up with her and demonstrate your understanding of the subject matter, which you did to her satisfaction by explaining in your e-mail about your experience and how you had done the paper. She has accepted this and will now have more comprehension of your abilities. Her willingness to listen to and understand your explanation is a hallmark of an academically honest professor. Definitely stay in the program!!! Since this professor is the "major player" in the program and you have her again, she will remember you as a student who is intelligent and dedicated. You might also say something to her about how you appreciated her comments on your first paper--that you had taken that to heart and put more effort into the subsequent assignments. You might be surprised how just your handling of the situation will put this professor on your side in the future.

Had a similar situation with an education professor. He gave a C on one paper, I went in to talk it over with him. After about a 1/2 hour conversation, we both understood the other's viewpoint better, I had an A, and also had a professor that was on my side after that. Just because I cared enough to listen and handle the situation well.

You are going to be in great shape!
 
Hi,
I know how you feel. I had a professor in Sociology (the chairman of Dept) who explained that he liked students to continue research from other papers that the student had done. Each student met with the prof and discussed his or her paper. I explained that I woud use a paper that I had written and would expand on it. Frankly, I was happy because I thought it would be a breeze.
I did the new research, but I got too lazy to retype(no computers in my time) the old paper and so integrated the old pages with the new. I didn''t give it a thought. He had said this was good.

When he returned my paper, he asked to see me after class. I still shudder to think of it. He called me a cheat, he was going to fail me. He though I got the other paper from someone. He said it was so clear that it came feom somewhere else. He would not believe me. "If you don''t do good on the final, Ill fail you"
I wanted to quit. I called my friends, said I can''t go back and remained scared to death until my grade came in.
i think I memorized books for his final. I was insane. I didn''t think i would make it through.
Well the upshot was he graded my final an A+ and gave me an A for the course. But I wouldn''t go through that again.

Don''t quit. She will rethink what she said. Give yourself some time to settle down. She may end up really liking you. After all. you are her best student.
It was my work, its your work. Don''t be inhibited.

Thanks,
Annette
 
Date: 5/26/2009 4:06:36 PM
Author:Bia
This is really long, BUT I need advice. Ordinarily I wouldn''t post this but I need objectivity right now.


I received my grade for a research paper I wrote in my STAT/Measurments class. It was an INCOMPLETE. My professor gave me the grade because she felt that my work wasn''t really mine. She basically said that the paper was beyond my comprehension level at this point, and that no one in the class did what I did. ::sigh::
39.gif
14.gif



Background:


The professor is also the director of the program--the woman who accepted me into the program. When I applied she told me (in an email) that she was concerned that I didn''t have the business experience needed for the program, but that she''d accept me based on my GPA and GRE scores. So off the bat, I felt like I would be proving myself. But whatever...

So, during my first class with her, at the beginning of the semester (last year), she assigned a 15pg research paper. I wrote it and she gave me a B+, saying that I was too biased (it was on healthcare and I had very personal feelings about it, it turns out) and didn''t present enough research-based information, BUT that she thought I wrote really well, therefore she''d like to see me dig deeper next time. I took her advice and realized that she was right...the paper was one-sided at times, and could have used more research based information.


Fast forward to a two months ago. Our cohort started another Saturday class. This time it was measurements. Because the class fell on Saturdays, there were a few conflicts, and our class ended up meeting for only 2 and 1/2 classes, versus the 5 we would ordinarily meet for. This was on her. She used one of our classes to have us be the tour guides for an Open House she was hosting for our program. The other class was one full class, and the third class she let us out early because she had some appointment--two classes she just cancelled due to inconvenience. Now she''s a smart lady, but she''s also very hyper, and get''s restless. There was very little opportunity for me, or anyone really, to contribute to the class--to be honest, she spent a lot of time discussing her Open House. Because I barely spoke to her during this class, what she didn''t know about me was that because of my undergrad background, I was very comfortable with Measurements (my program required STAT and research methods 1, 2 and 3), not so much the actual math, but more so how to go about understanding the results. When I got my survey results back, I used a program called SPSS, which essentially allowed me to enter all my results from my survey, and then find the mean/standard deviation/correlations/reliability/etc. I was able to do a lot with my paper. I provided tables, charts and I did research on my topic of interest for the survey. Well, apparently, my paper went so far beyond what the others did (she told me even the A+ papers only wrote the Abstract/Methods/Results/Discussions portion of the paper, and did very basic stats--no research/lit review was done) that she didn''t believe I could have written it.


When I got my paper back, I literally felt my heart in my stomach. Not only was she accusing me of plagiarism (or just flat out stealing work), but she was also dismissing my abilities, based on hardly knowing me, or my work, at all. So I instantly wrote her an email that I didn''t know how this was happening. That I felt assumptions were being made, and that it was my work she was saying must belong to someone else. She right away wrote me back that she apologized if she made the incorrect assumptions, but that no one else did a research paper/lit review, and even those students with a sound understanding of STAT didn''t go to the lengths I did. I explained to her what I wrote above, that I was comfortable with STAT, and that maybe because we didn''t meet that many times for class, I wasn''t able to demonstrate my familiarity with STAT. She wrote back that she now was now ''comfortable trusting my work,'' and that she would read my paper as a legitimate one.


Well, thankfully it semi-allowed me to semi-enjoy my weekend, but truthfully, I am really upset. I am not only insulted, but I''m also angry that she is so quick to judge me, and then accuse me. Is this common among professors? When I wrote her today to tell her I sent her my paper (she wanted it by mail since she would be out of town) I told her that I was glad that it got sorted out, but that it still bothered me that she couldn''t trust the authenticity of my work. She wrote me back, ''Not a problem Bia. Let''s put this behind! Okay?''
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Am I reading this wrong or what? I am so upset, I don''t know what to do. A part of me feels like dropping out of the program because she''s THE MAJOR PLAYER in the program, AND I will have her again in the summer.


Am I reading too much into this? Should I just drop it? Be honest. Please. I tend to worry things to death, but in this case, I am so upset, I can''t tell if I need to let it go.

Don''t drop out of the program!!!

Professors are human beings who make mistakes, and who are also learning from their students. It''s a good idea to correct them if you feel they''re being unfair, but don''t take things too personal (believe it or not, there are a lot of university students who commit plagiarism, either intentionally or unintentionally, and get caught because their work doesn''t fit their academic level; so a lot of professors get suspicious of research papers that are exceedingly extraordinary and uncommon).

I''d do as your professor said and put this behind you. Good luck!
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It sounds like she is a little bit batty - not uncommon in academia but annoying as heck. I''m glad you stood up for yourself...as long as she gives you a solid grade, you should probably be as gracious as possible towards her. And then avoid taking future classes with her, if you can.

Don''t drop the program. In every job, academic program, school, whatever -- there are going to be weird people you have to deal with. Figuring out the best way to work with folks who may not be 100% logical or reasonable is an invaluable life skill.
 
Bia, speaking from the flip side, unfortunately I''ve had to accuse students of plagiarism several times. I hate doing it, because it doesn''t make me feel good as a teacher, and I know (from experience) that it doesn''t feel good as a student. When I was in college, I had a prof tell me to "have my sources ready" since she didn''t believe I could complete a research paper in less than 24 hours. I was extremely hurt by that comment, especially since the teacher hadn''t even read my paper at that point. That''s why, when I do have to confront students, I make sure it''s not an empty accusation - I find the specific instances/proof of plagiarism. If I suspect something''s up, but I find nothing, I don''t accuse - I simply watch the students'' work more closely, because they''re likely to do it again. I also NEVER discuss student grades via e-mail or accuse a student of plagiarism over e-mail. It''s alwayus a face-to-face, sit-down meeting, where I first ask the student about his or her writing/research process and then show the student the places in the paper that are problematic and bring forward the proof that I''ve found. Then we talk about how to avoid plagiarism in the future. The paper is always graded as an F. If it happens again, it''s an F for the course (though thankfully I''ve never had that happen).

I''m going to be blunt - it sounds like your instructor doesn''t know what she''s doing. From what you described, she was extremely casual about this and didn''t seem to have any sort of protocol in place for addressing plagiarism. It also sounds like didn''t have a clear course plan. My guess is that your instructor has more experience in administration than classroom teaching and is therefore pretty green as an instructor - being quick to call plagiarism is somewhat common with new instructors or instructors who don''t have a background in higher ed teaching (ie, come from a professional background and are teaching based on what they remember from their experience as a student, not based on what they learned about teaching in graduate school). Judging from her reaction and even her initial contact with you, she sounds very unsure of herself as a classroom instructor.

Unfortunately, this is par for the course - profs, like people in general, have different strengths. Maybe this prof is a great admin, maybe she''s wonderful one-on-one, and someone a student can relate with, but her pedagogy clearly needs some work. I wouldn''t spend my time being hurt or angry, and given her situation in your program, I certainly wouldn''t make waves by reporting her behavior (an immature admin is someone you want on your side, not against you), but I would try to do a little research by asking around to your classmates about future professors so you have better classroom instructors in your upcoming semester.

I''m sorry this happened to you - but you''re certainly not alone. Every semester, when I discuss research with my students, I ask my students to write about situations where they''ve been accused of plagiarism/or been afraid of plagiarism. I''m always floored by how much my students will open up during this exercise, and they generally describe the same feelings you did. Keep your chin up!!
 
Hey all. Thanks for the input.

I guess I am just still in shock. BUT, you''re all right, I need to let it go. I just felt like her last comment, about putting it behind, was...snarky? LOL.

ahhhhhh...I''m going to try to let it go, but I can''t lie, I am really bothered.
 
This sounds like a test or a game there is no way she would be that casual about it if she really thought something was up.
You will get this crud in the real world all the time.

I think it comes back to this:
"When I applied she told me (in an email) that she was concerned that I didn''t have the business experience needed for the program, but that she''d accept me based on my GPA and GRE scores."

So she threw you a curve ball to see how you handled it.

So watch it and keep your approach professional and business appropriate.
 
Date: 5/26/2009 5:31:19 PM
Author: Bia
Hey all. Thanks for the input.

I guess I am just still in shock. BUT, you''re all right, I need to let it go. I just felt like her last comment, about putting it behind, was...snarky? LOL.

ahhhhhh...I''m going to try to let it go, but I can''t lie, I am really bothered.
I would be REALLY bothered by it too but I think you need to just let it go. Talk to your friends about it, your family, post about it here....but don''t bring it up with the prof again.

I know it''s probably eating you up right now but give it time.
 
Sadly, plagerism has been on the rise considerably in the current generation. It''s so common now that surveys have indicated that students no longer think it''s cheating or even wrong
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I totally disagree with HOW she handled it, and I think she''s sort of a dingbat, but I don''t want you to feel she somehow singled you out. It''s on the rise, and I suspect all college and high school teachers are hyper sensitive.

Put it behind and go forth and wow her
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Date: 5/26/2009 8:40:57 PM
Author: purrfectpear
Sadly, plagerism has been on the rise considerably in the current generation. It''s so common now that surveys have indicated that students no longer think it''s cheating or even wrong
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I totally disagree with HOW she handled it, and I think she''s sort of a dingbat, but I don''t want you to feel she somehow singled you out. It''s on the rise, and I suspect all college and high school teachers are hyper sensitive.

Put it behind and go forth and wow her
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Oh my, that is so terribly disappointing
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As a semi-recent college grad, I consider myself to be part of the plagiarist generation. Most of the kids I went to school with had done it to some degree, and weren''t afraid to admit it (though usually a bit ashamed). I got scared off in early high school when they did a seminar on plagiarism - I had no idea what seemingly harmless things could be considered to be under that umbrella - so I was always extremely careful to avoid even paraphrasing a source.

Bia, unfortunately I have nothing constructive to add, I''m just sorry that you''re dealing with this. What a terrible position you''ve been put in.
 
Don''t drop out of the program! Clearly you have a lot to offer- an outstanding GPA, GRE scores, not to mention this recent paper. And I think that while it must be IMMENSELY frustrating that this teacher would have the nerve to suggest you plagerized...that''s all she seems to have done. Suggest, and then accept that this was not the case. She obviously made a mistake, and then admitted that it was the case, so, consider it a pat on the back. You did so well that you out-shined everyone else! Congrats!
 
Oh man. What FI wouldn''t give for students who actually KNOW how to use programs like SPSS and STATA. He taught this one class where it would introduce undergrads to SPSS specifically and his frustration level was through the ROOF.

Bia, she did a sucky sucky thing (to kind of quote Lauren Conrad) and she owned up to it. You know you need to let it go, but as these things go, easier said than done. I''d hold onto it for weeks, honestly. I just have that kind of personality.

(Speaking of, I got a 99.7% in a class and only got an A. That has caused a lot of nasty emails between my prof and myself, as well as a meeting with the chair of the department. Yeah it''s an A vs. A+, but when you have 100% on everything except for one 98%, you kind of expect that + tacked onto the end. This has been going on for almost two weeks, and I''m still POed about it.)

Anyway. Want me to kick her booty?
 
Date: 5/27/2009 4:36:55 AM
Author: FrekeChild


Anyway. Want me to kick her booty?
I''ll help!
 
This is terribly unprofessional on her end. I am sure your college has a committee specifically responsible for hearing claims of misconduct. It is her responsibility, if she expects this, to bring charges against you before this committee to allow you to prove your case.

I know I am a stickler for rules, to my detriment, but there has to be university policy for how to handle misconduct that she is not following. For instance, at our uni, you must have someone else present when you confront the student. The confrontation itself must be verbal and not in writing (you have to grade the work as if it is not violating any rules), but you must also provide the student with written proof showing exactly why and where the misconduct was suspected and let the student know of the date of the university hearing and what they need to prepare for it.

Her flippant comment, to me, sounds like she is being lazy about this. I would at least schedule a meeting with her to show her how you came to your results. I know she is probably terribly busy and just trying to dismiss you, but given the charge, you have every right to argue your case. I cannot believe she just made some smug comment on your paper--and then only took off 3 points! Plagiarism is a HUGE deal and worthy way more than three points demerit. I am not sure why she is acting this way, but it is unfortunate and I am sorry you have to deal with it. My advice is do whatever you can to stay as professional as possible through this (which includes protecting your reputation and work).
 
Date: 5/26/2009 4:06:36 PM
Author:Bia

She right away wrote me back that she apologized if she made the incorrect assumptions, but that no one else did a research paper/lit review, and even those students with a sound understanding of STAT didn''t go to the lengths I did. I explained to her what I wrote above, that I was comfortable with STAT, and that maybe because we didn''t meet that many times for class, I wasn''t able to demonstrate my familiarity with STAT. She wrote back that she now was now ''comfortable trusting my work,'' and that she would read my paper as a legitimate one.

None of your other classmates did a research paper or lit review? Or write anything resembling a statistical analysis? Man, I would think she''d be a little bit more concerned about all of them instead of you! I just gotta wonder...if you did something that was unexpected by (what it sounds) writing a thorough report with good analysis, just what are your classmates turning in? I''d be genuinely curious to see what they got grades for when you did way more work and actually turned in something concrete and complete!
 
Hey everyone. Thanks for all the helpful advice.
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I''m feeling much better today.

I have decided to not say anything else. It seems to me that she may have had her doubts, and tried to call me out. I have a feeling she didn''t read my paper thoroughly. She might have skimmed it, saw that it was 1/2 research/lit review, and 1/2 my results. I assume when she got down to the tables, where I discussed correlations, means, reliability, alphas (which we never discussed in class) she must have thought it was too advanced based on what she taught in class. The reality is this, she didn''t really cover measurements the way she should have, or at least not the way I remember my professors doing in undergrad. In fact, my psych professors would have likely been appalled to see a fellow licensed psychologist teaching measurements in just two sessions (research methods is very important to the field of psych). A few people in my class were complaining about the lesson being so basic, and that the only thing they had to go on was a crazy formula to find mean/standard deviation--which she said was to use as though it were a recipe...''follow the recipe and you''ll be fine'' in her words. I didn''t care because I knew I had my handy dandy SPSS to play with. So, maybe because others did basic stats, she just couldn''t figure out how I could know to do all that. Maybe the easier explanation was to decide that I must have paid someone to write my paper for me--a STAT expert maybe? Who the hell knows?
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The bottom line is, she accused, and then retracted. Maybe she was testing me. Maybe she has diarrhea of the mouth (which she does) and just got annoyed when she read my paper (annoyed that I was trying to outsmart her—BIG egos in academia, we all know this), so her first instinct was to accuse me. Again, who the hell knows? All I do know is that I worked on that paper, so I hope she grades me fairly when she re-reads it today. I also hope that she doesn’t treat me differently from here on out—a part of me feels like she may be doing this already.

Can''t you tell I''m still steaming because I keep repeating myself LOL. I''ll let you know how she grades me in a few days.

Also, I think Katamari said that she''s being lazy. I agree that that might have something to do with it. She''s 70-something. She''s a little spitfire but still, you can tell she''s getting worn out. Rumors are circulating that we''ll be her last cohort.
 
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