The Shadow Scholar: The man who writes your students' papers tells his story

Ducimus · 11-15-10, 06:12 PM

http://chronicle.com/article/The-Shadow-Scholar/125329/

Quote:

The request came in by e-mail around 2 in the afternoon. It was from a previous customer, and she had urgent business. I quote her message here verbatim (if I had to put up with it, so should you): "You did me business ethics propsal for me I need propsal got approved pls can you will write me paper?"

I've gotten pretty good at interpreting this kind of correspondence. The client had attached a document from her professor with details about the paper. She needed the first section in a week. Seventy-five pages.

I told her no problem.

It truly was no problem. In the past year, I've written roughly 5,000 pages of scholarly literature, most on very tight deadlines. But you won't find my name on a single paper.

the_tyrant · 11-15-10, 06:18 PM

We have all done this, doing projects for friends
Its only that this guy is doing it on a huge scale

Raptor1 · 11-15-10, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_tyrant

We have all done this, doing projects for friends

I haven't, neither did anybody I know (AFAIK).

Dowly · 11-15-10, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raptor1

I haven't, neither did anybody I know (AFAIK).

Same here.

Platapus · 11-15-10, 06:28 PM

The Frau is an instructor at a Community College. The plagiarism stories she tells me

She had this student who could barely communicate in the written English language. When I read one of her submitted assignments, I truly thought the student had written the assignment in a foreign language and put it through a computer translator. But no, this was how she wrote.

Later in the class, the students had to turn in a term paper. This student turned in a paper that I would have written in my doctorate program.

It took The Frau about 30 minutes to find the website where this student bought the paper.

. I told The Frau, "I guess this student will be expelled?"

Oh no, just some stupid academic probation. IN COLLEGE!!! BUYING A PAPER!! and she is not expelled??? This is not some accidental "forgetting" to cite a source. This was deliberate academic dishonesty.

Then The Frau told me about this other website. You can log into this website; enter the name of your school; enter the name/number of the class; enter the name of your instructor; and then download every single assignment for that class.

I was shocked! It never would have occurred to even attempt to find a website where you can download the assignments.

She tells me that plagiarism is rampant in the college system.

Pretty pathetic.

What is really troubling is the stupidity of the students. With the advent of the Internets Tubes, it is much easier to plagiarize....it is also much easier to catch plagiarizing. Especially when the students are lazy and stupid.

But all they get is some sort of probation. grrrrrr

the_tyrant · 11-15-10, 06:32 PM

Hey, If your a high school student now days and you have Faceboook, The day before an assignment is due, you see tons of students begging for people to do their assignment for them

CCIP · 11-15-10, 06:36 PM

Being on the other (i.e. instructor) side of things here, I'm almost certain none of my students had ever done this. Although I do have the advantage of mostly teaching writing/communication classes where the process of writing itself is a huge focus and always consists of students doing work in stages, with many of those stages happening in class. However parts of that can also really be used in any class - I think as long it's not an overcrowded course (as some are), profs always have an opportunity to see not only student work, but also students working. And that's a pretty good safeguard against this sort of thing...

Would be totally unamused if I caught a student of mine with a paper obtained this way though. Haven't had one in 5 years though. Had some other somewhat iffy stuff happening, but never blatant plagiarism.

tater · 11-15-10, 06:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_tyrant

We have all done this, doing projects for friends
Its only that this guy is doing it on a huge scale

Nope, never did that. Not ever. Nor did anyone I know. I can imagine people that might have, but they're not the type I ever hung out with.

Ducimus · 11-15-10, 06:41 PM

Although my spelling is absolute sh*t without a spell checker, I've always written my own papers. I was one of those A-holes who could show up to English late, be the first one done writing, toss my paper at the professor on my way out the door, and usually score an A with an occasional B.

Unfortunately my self percieved literary talent, did not extend to mathematics.

edit:
@ Platapus,

Just think man, that's the future of America just skating by, not earning their way.

tater · 11-15-10, 06:43 PM

I did typeset, layout, and copy edit my wife's PhD dissertation (did the art, too).

Does that count? (not like layout is hard when those idiots still insist on double spacing, etc (making the whole thing nearly impossible to read)). I did a proper job so we could have a legible copy bound

.

Platapus · 11-15-10, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tater

I did typeset, layout, and copy edit my wife's PhD dissertation (did the art, too).

Does that count? (not like layout is hard when those idiots still insist on double spacing, etc (making the whole thing nearly impossible to read)). I did a proper job so we could have a legible copy bound

.

As long as you were declared to the Dissertation Committee and were listed on the Dissertation as support, there should be no problem.

Platapus · 11-15-10, 06:48 PM

My supervisor used to be a college instructor a bunch of years back. He also said that plagiarism was rampant back then.

His school had this stupid rule that any class that a Freshman failed, was not put on their record and they could take it over with no penalty.

My boss, being rather cruel, when he caught one of his students plagiarizing, he gave them a D-

Stays on their record and no retakes.

tater · 11-15-10, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Platapus

As long as you were declared to the Dissertation Committee and were listed on the Dissertation as support, there should be no problem.

I was listed someplace. At her defense I was in the "thanks you" explicitly as putting it all on the computer, scanning stuff, etc.

Platapus · 11-15-10, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ducimus

@ Platapus,

Just think man, that's the future of America just skating by, not earning their way.

I cringe at the thought of this.

But I do agree that the schools need to start treating this as a real problem.

I can see some young kid plagiarizing on some paper in a CC. But at the Master's and Doctorate level??? One strike and you are expelled and other universities should be informed so you can't transfer.

Unfortunately an expelled student no longer pays tuition.
Therefore students don't get expelled.

Higher education is all about the money it seems.

11-15-10, 06:28 PM	#5
Platapus Fleet Admiral Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 19,360 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 0	The Frau is an instructor at a Community College. The plagiarism stories she tells me She had this student who could barely communicate in the written English language. When I read one of her submitted assignments, I truly thought the student had written the assignment in a foreign language and put it through a computer translator. But no, this was how she wrote. Later in the class, the students had to turn in a term paper. This student turned in a paper that I would have written in my doctorate program. It took The Frau about 30 minutes to find the website where this student bought the paper. . I told The Frau, "I guess this student will be expelled?" Oh no, just some stupid academic probation. IN COLLEGE!!! BUYING A PAPER!! and she is not expelled??? This is not some accidental "forgetting" to cite a source. This was deliberate academic dishonesty. Then The Frau told me about this other website. You can log into this website; enter the name of your school; enter the name/number of the class; enter the name of your instructor; and then download every single assignment for that class. I was shocked! It never would have occurred to even attempt to find a website where you can download the assignments. She tells me that plagiarism is rampant in the college system. Pretty pathetic. What is really troubling is the stupidity of the students. With the advent of the Internets Tubes, it is much easier to plagiarize....it is also much easier to catch plagiarizing. Especially when the students are lazy and stupid. But all they get is some sort of probation. grrrrrr __________________ abusus non tollit usum - A right should NOT be withheld from people on the basis that some tend to abuse that right.

11-15-10, 06:36 PM	#7
CCIP Navy Seal Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Waterloo, Canada Posts: 8,700 Downloads: 29 Uploads: 2	Being on the other (i.e. instructor) side of things here, I'm almost certain none of my students had ever done this. Although I do have the advantage of mostly teaching writing/communication classes where the process of writing itself is a huge focus and always consists of students doing work in stages, with many of those stages happening in class. However parts of that can also really be used in any class - I think as long it's not an overcrowded course (as some are), profs always have an opportunity to see not only student work, but also students working. And that's a pretty good safeguard against this sort of thing... Would be totally unamused if I caught a student of mine with a paper obtained this way though. Haven't had one in 5 years though. Had some other somewhat iffy stuff happening, but never blatant plagiarism. __________________ There are only forty people in the world and five of them are hamburgers. -Don Van Vliet (aka Captain Beefheart)

11-15-10, 06:48 PM	#12
Platapus Fleet Admiral Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 19,360 Downloads: 63 Uploads: 0	My supervisor used to be a college instructor a bunch of years back. He also said that plagiarism was rampant back then. His school had this stupid rule that any class that a Freshman failed, was not put on their record and they could take it over with no penalty. My boss, being rather cruel, when he caught one of his students plagiarizing, he gave them a D- Stays on their record and no retakes. __________________ abusus non tollit usum - A right should NOT be withheld from people on the basis that some tend to abuse that right.

11-15-10, 06:18 PM	#2
the_tyrant Admiral Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Canada Posts: 2,272 Downloads: 58 Uploads: 0	We have all done this, doing projects for friends Its only that this guy is doing it on a huge scale

11-15-10, 06:32 PM	#6
the_tyrant Admiral Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Canada Posts: 2,272 Downloads: 58 Uploads: 0	Hey, If your a high school student now days and you have Faceboook, The day before an assignment is due, you see tons of students begging for people to do their assignment for them

11-15-10, 06:41 PM	#9
Ducimus Rear Admiral Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 12,987 Downloads: 67 Uploads: 2	Although my spelling is absolute sh*t without a spell checker, I've always written my own papers. I was one of those A-holes who could show up to English late, be the first one done writing, toss my paper at the professor on my way out the door, and usually score an A with an occasional B. Unfortunately my self percieved literary talent, did not extend to mathematics. edit: @ Platapus, Just think man, that's the future of America just skating by, not earning their way.

11-15-10, 06:43 PM	#10
tater Navy Seal Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: New Mexico, USA Posts: 9,023 Downloads: 8 Uploads: 2	I did typeset, layout, and copy edit my wife's PhD dissertation (did the art, too). Does that count? (not like layout is hard when those idiots still insist on double spacing, etc (making the whole thing nearly impossible to read)). I did a proper job so we could have a legible copy bound .