Course Hero makes it even more difficult. The line between getting assistance to study and cheating is sometimes hard to see.
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The thing to worry about now, is how to address these websites. They’ve introduced an innovative product that will not stop here, but grow in the future. Like it or not, Course Hero and similar websites are probably here to stay. This means that it’s harder to punish those who are blatantly cheating or difficult to tell if the resources available can really be trusted. Often, notes are posted anonymously, so the individual who posted them cannot be tracked down. You also can’t track who is using Course Hero. It provides a temptation to students who are looking for exam answers and want to cheat in class. One of the big problems with Course Hero is that if a student wants to cheat, the website offers all the tools they need to do so. When working in groups, students often share answers, methods, notes and their understanding-all things that would be shared on Course Hero. But where is the line? Working in groups often facilitates learning in students, and contributes to the cohesiveness of a class.
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Many teachers define it in their syllabi and it is common knowledge that copying answers and plagiarizing are violations of the Honor Code and considered “unauthorized” assistance. The key word is “unauthorized.” How do you define it? These websites leave it up to professors and universities to define in their honor code what cheating is, and to give that information to the student.ĬU’s honor code states “On my honor as a University of Colorado at Boulder student, I have neither given nor received unauthorized assistance on this work.” There are courses of action professor can take if they find their copyrighted information online. Most of the websites have safeguards against what they consider cheating. The answer they all come up with is, of course, No. The more people Course Hero and similar websites connect, the more students and faculty there could be learning, growing and sharing.ĭespite the good things Course Hero claims to offer, the most glaring question is this: Is using Course Hero cheating?Įach of the websites offering these services overtly addresses this question. In this way, Course Hero allows you to make connections with others who you can help, and who can help you. You can choose to study through the internet, or meet at a physical table and chairs on campus. You can join a study group and meet students in your class you otherwise might not have worked with. These websites also promote social development. You can get ideas, know which tests and homework problems were most difficult and gather tools to better teach your classes. If they didn’t understand a concept in class, had problems on a homework assignment, or missed a lecture, these websites are a chance for redemption and learning.įor faculty, Course Hero gives you the chance to see how students are sharing the information you teach them, and to look at the different ways other professors are teaching similar subjects. Course Hero and similar websites put everything on the table for everyone, leveling the playing field.īy providing class notes, old exams and more, Course Hero gives students an additional chance to learn material that they didn’t understand the first time a professor taught it. Student groups, clubs, fraternities, and sororities have collected test files for decades, giving members of those groups a distinct advantage over others.