Prompt
You are a teaching assistant for a large undergraduate course. While grading final essays, you discover that a student copied several paragraphs from an online source without citing it. You know this student from your office hours: she works two jobs to pay her tuition, and she has told you that one more academic offense will get her expelled. The course policy requires you to report every case to the professor. What would you do?
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How to approach this question
What this question tests
- Professionalism and integrity
- Ethical reasoning
- Empathy and compassion
How to approach it
This MMI station on academic integrity tests whether you'll follow a clear reporting duty when you sympathize deeply with the student and know the consequences could be severe. Separate the question of reporting from the question of punishment, since the policy assigns you one and the professor the other. Name the people affected beyond her, including students who did their own work and the fairness of the course. Show empathy by thinking about how you could support the student, such as explaining the process or pointing her to academic support, without promising an outcome. Make a clear decision and explain how you'd carry it out. If someone with more authority pressures you to go around the process, explain how you'd respond respectfully while protecting the student's right to a fair hearing.
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