The final exam for the first semester of my U.S. Government class senior year of high school was not what you would call a typical exam. It was not multiple choice, it was not short answer - in fact, it really had nothing to do with U.S. Government. It consisted of one question: "Which is more important, success or personal integrity?"
We were to write an entire essay based solely on that question. I will admit that I was one of many students who complained about how ridiculous I thought the assignment was. But as I wrote the essay, I realized I was getting really into it - and not just because it was a final. I ended up as a finalist in the contest and then proceeded to win first place in the debate. Looking back, I realize that the entire experience gave me more than just a trophy, local publicity and gift certificates to some local establishments.
Though it sounds obvious, I have found that the more difficult things get, the harder it is to be honest. Not that I am a perfect saint. Since I have been at Tufts, I will even own up to using the solutions guide for Math 6 homework. But that is just homework. After all, copying answers to homework problems is a far less serious offense than copying answers to a quiz, test or really anything that counts for more than, say, 15 percent of a final grade.
I am pretty sure everyone is aware of this distinction. In fact, at a school like Tufts, I would think that people would not even dare to pull such a stunt. So as I was perusing the Daily last week, the headline "One Jumbo relies on 'cutting corners' to pass" (April 21) caught my eye.
Initially, I was shocked that someone was actually admitting to cheating at a school that makes the freshman orientation panel on academic honesty an attendance-required event. But I was also intrigued. And even though I knew I was most likely going to be appalled by this student's behavior, I felt compelled to read on.
'Gertrude,' I realize that you are a senior and I am just a lowly freshman who probably has not learned all the tricks of success at Tufts. I am sure you are a very intelligent person - you do have a 3.75 GPA, after all.
Though I am a firm believer that grades are in no way telling of true intelligence, you do go to Tufts, so you must be smart. I do not want to rebuke you or tell you that you are wrong; I don't even know you, so who am I to judge you?
No matter how many corners you have cut, you must have attained a vast amount of knowledge in your college career. But there is something about your corner-cutting policy that I just do not agree with.
You are right - every single person has indeed "cut a corner" at some point during his career here. But I am pretty sure that entails busting out the solutions guide in a fit of frustration while doing math homework or frantically logging onto Blackboard to get the answers to the assigned workbook pages before a language exam.
Call me naive, or just plain ignorant, but I doubt anyone has the audacity to obtain an old test, which he knows will be used again, and blatantly use it to his advantage.
You say that you would never steal a test, but isn't that act essentially ... stealing a test? Maybe the professor is at fault for not changing his tests and making them so available. Do you remember that "Saved by the Bell: The College Years" episode where Zack's ethics professor leaves the final exam in plain sight around campus, tempting people to cheat? In the end, this entire act turned out to be the real test: the test to see who would or would not cheat, the test to see who had actually taken something from Ethics class and applied it to real life.
I am not trying to revere a situation from an early '90s sitcom as something of deep moral value - but as ridiculous as it sounds, I think we could all learn a little something from Zack, Slater, Screech, Kelli, Leslie and Alex.
I guess I just do not see things the way you do. What you would call a resourceful move is something I would dub as plain dishonesty. Even though you insist that you are not cheating but simply using every resource at hand, I beg to differ with you. You are still cheating. You are cheating yourself.
I do not know much about the real world and probably won't for another few years, but I do know that your best friend and class valedictorian will not be there to give you the answers. The seemingly careless professors who do not change their exams every year are not always going to be around. Last semester's problem sets will most likely not be floating about. You are going to have to fend for yourself, and even though you have worked hard and learned a lot, you clearly have not learned much about one of life's most important lessons: honesty.
Niccolo Machiavelli once said that the ends justify the means. One can interpret his words as legitimizing whatever means necessary to attain one's ultimate goal. Perhaps some people strive for that 4.0, sitting at the top of one's graduating class, having a great job and copious amounts of money. I will not deny that those dreams outline my very own.
But even if I do not get there, I want people to be able to look back and still celebrate my accomplishments. I may not be driving a BMW to my job as a CEO of a Fortune 500 company. However, at least I will know that I got somewhere because I combined my talent with my morals, not with cut corners.
Courtney Chua is a freshman who has not yet declared a major.
