"FD" is the new "F"
What would you do if your child came home from school with an exam grade worst than “F”? That might be the case someday.
Already, some college students in Canada face the prospect of such a grade -- and getting it would be their own fault.
The big talk in academia these days is a new low in grading standards recently introduced by Simon Fraser University in British Columbia.
According to the Calgary Herald newspaper, the low grade is called “FD”, which means “failure with academic dishonesty.”
The grade is designed to address those who cheat, and is said to be in response to students who copy data from the Internet instead of turning in original work.
Only department heads, not teachers, can issue “FD” grades, and students can appeal to have the grade changed.
But get this: If the school determines that the grade is valid, the “FD” stays on a student’s transcript not only during his or her entire college tenure but for two additional years after graduation.
Try getting into graduate school or landing a job with an employer that asks for transcripts with an “FD” on your record.
There’s no wonder why U.S. educators are now paying close attention to our neighbors up North (the University of Alberta has a similar “F” grade, but it stays on a transcript for three years). If “FD” grades catch on with American colleges -- let alone high schools -- expect a firestorm of controversy and a landslide of lawsuits.
Cheating is cheating, yet one could argue that, as adults, our willingness to stress Internet discretion among young people has lagged behind our society’s willingness to make the Web popular and accessible.
That’s why I’m glad that my 12-year-old daughter’s middle school frowns on essays and research papers that reference Wikipedia as a source. It doesn’t prevent all cheating episodes, but if “FD” comes their way, it won’t catch them off guard.
Photo by pbwier @ Flickr
Comments
Uh, hate to break this to you Joe, but this isn't exactly novel. Many universities, through actions of ethics boards and procedures, will reward a convicted cheater with a statement on the transcript that a reduced or failing grade was assigned as a result of an ethics violation. I am surprised that the 'FD' grade can convert to an F in two or three years ---- to my knowledge, most notations are permanent. But I doubt you'll see many lawsuits or much controversy ----- cutting and pasting from wikipedia is like copying from any other source, and plagiarism is generally not accepted in academic circles. If a teacher takes the time to define cheating and plagiarism, like a responsible teacher should, there shouldn't be any more controversy about this than about any other rule. And you can bet that the first question any department head is going to ask is whether the syllabus contained a statement on cheating.
Posted by: bawlmerbeav | August 19, 2009 9:35 PM