YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating • Hacker News Board

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#51

Post by sithadmin » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:46 PM UTC

wpietri wrote: post #27

sithadmin wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

Oh, really? By that logic, since you're eventually going to die, probably horribly, then you'll be ok with me coming by and taking out one of your kidneys. Or, as in The Big Lebowski, lopping off a toe. Those are as nothing to a death from a brain tumor, after all.

No, it's really quite different. You take my kidney? That's going to have a direct impact on my quality of life. It'll hurt for a while. I won't be able to drink as much and I'll have to be careful about my diet.

I write a paper for someone else to turn in as their own? In a situation where I know more or less nothing about the client? The outcomes are both unknowable and in most cases impossible to tie to my act directly.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#52

Post by reaperducer » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:46 PM UTC

sithadmin wrote: post #4

baldfat wrote: post #2

As a former University Librarian and Residents Director A) Cheating happens more then it doesn't. In a Philosophy Class which had a dozen seniors all cheated in Spring Semester. Professor flunked them all by giving them an F and told them they were lucky they weren't expelled. President Graduated the students and fired the professor. Then on appeal the President was fired and the Professor rehired with a raise. B) Sh…

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

> it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US.

The ship is sinking already, so it's OK if I set fire to it.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#53

Post by jrhurst » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:47 PM UTC

s17n wrote: post #46

misterbowfinger wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Morally this is wrong since cheating hurts everyone in education. Going to slap a big "NOPE" to this bit. It's the school's responsibility to educate and assess students, and therefore it's their job to reduce cheating. IMHO, if it's really easy to cheat on a test (mostly rote memorization), then students SHOULD cheat. It's a bad test and and insanely huge waste of everyone's time and money.

That's like saying "stealing isn't morally wrong - inventory control is retailers' responsibility and therefore it's their job to reduce loss".

I have a feeling that people who make misterbowlfingers argument would say that your analogy is also valid.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#54

Post by sithadmin » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:47 PM UTC

lr4444lr wrote: post #40

sithadmin wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

You're a lesser purveyor of counterfeit goods, but you're still a counterfeiter.

Counterfeit implies a copy of something that has a defined market value. Academic papers don't. What I did is closer to a tailor creating a suit for someone from scratch, rather than someone operating a sweatshop to produce fake suits from some known brand.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#55

Post by snambi » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:48 PM UTC

Ha... people find another way to do the same thing. Fundamentally the education industry is failing to inspire students to study.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#56

Post by sithadmin » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:48 PM UTC

ulrikrasmussen wrote: post #20

sithadmin wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

Your argument seems similar to somebody saying that it is okay to litter because the environment is screwed anyway. You may be correct in your criticism of the educational system, but how does that justify you making the situation worse?

I worked with less than 100 clients over the course of two years. My impact was statistically insignificant.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#57

Post by sithadmin » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:50 PM UTC

baldfat wrote: post #6

sithadmin wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

A) Cheating hurts everyone. > is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US B) Because student at top universities (For the most part) have higher GPA in high school and a higher SAT scores already. Unless your morals require a strict bell curve of 10% F, 10% A, 40% C and 40% B?

Cheating is a constant that must be controlled for. It doesn't stop when you graduate.

Further, grade inflation at top-tier US schools has nothing to do with the stats on incoming students. I don't even understand why you think that would be relevant.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#58

Post by ttoinou » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:52 PM UTC

openasocket wrote: post #50

ttoinou wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He acted morally right to me. Lowering value of shitty diplomas you can cheat easily is useful to society, and brings future competition to this industry

Is stealing from stores that don't have good security also useful to society, by bringing future competition to the industry? And if so, does that make stealing moral?

My second sentence was not a justification to the first one, just one of the intended consequences on society of what he did.

How did his action compares to stealing ?

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#59

Post by sithadmin » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:52 PM UTC

ocdtrekkie wrote: post #18

sithadmin wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

It's always intriguing to see how people justify grossly unethical behavior to themselves. I don't think the issue is your disservice to higher education in general or grade systems as a whole, but to your customers, who never receive the education they were meant to, and that they paid for.

Many of my customers could barely compose a cogent e-mail. In most cases I was left wondering how they could possibly be admitted at whatever school they were at. Sure, my assessment of my customers was limited to a few back-and-forth e-mail exchanges, but I was usually left with the impression that they were enrolled at a school they didn't 'deserve' to be at.

Further, you're just completely discounting the agency of my customers here. They knew what they were doing, and how it devalued their education experience.

Re: YouTube Stars Being Paid to Sell Academic Cheating

#60

Post by sithadmin » Tue, May 01, 2018, 6:53 PM UTC

gruez wrote: post #11

sithadmin wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone that used to write papers for cheaters: it doesn't bother me much, because higher education is already eating itself alive in the US. The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US.

>The impact of a few students paying others to author papers on their behalf is nothing compared to the massive grade inflation one sees at top universities in the US. grade inflation is real, but at least it effects everyone equally. cheating allows dishonest students to get ahead by paying $$$. moreover, you can adjust for grade inflation, but you can't adjust for cheating.

Grade inflation at top US schools happens through $$$ as well. Having a parent that is a major donor matters. I've seen it firsthand.