Is "Practice What you preach" A Dead Concept?

We all know about plagiarism, cheating, stealing or fraud among students in high schools and institutions of higher learning. America’s school children have had this word shoved down their throats for years. College graduates have had their bright futures ripped away at a moment’s notice because of indiscretions on the computer, buying papers, failure to cite sources and paying others to take tests for them. Many high schools, colleges and universities have plagiarism policies that are explained to students by each teacher at the beginning of each year. A lot of effort is put into making students aware of the consequences of passing off another’s work as their own. Since the age of computers and the act of googling, plagiarism has become much easier. Finding a work to pirate is as simple as inputting the keywords. So what happens when the guilty person is actually the leader in the educational community? What does that say to students who are warned not to copy, not to bully, not to steal and certainly not to cheat or commit fraud?

On January 11, 2012, I made a blog post that basically asked a simple question of our board of education. I wanted to know if the district and the Superintendent had sat down and come up with the required goals and objectives mandated by the state of New Jersey. I had no idea that one of my most loyal readers quickly set about constructing the goals and objectives for our district by Googling the objectives of other districts. I have no problem with a person looking at the format in which another district presents the information and publishing it in the same format. That is probably just plain old good thinking. This was not the case. The actual goals and objectives of 2 districts that have absolutely nothing in common with ours were copied verbatim. The following is the definition of plagiarism in our district’s middle school parent handbook.

To plagiarize is to steal and use (the ideas or writings of another) as one’s own (American Heritage Dictionary, 1973:1001). Legally, plagiarism has been defined as the act of appropriating the literacy composition of another, or parts or passages of his/her writings, or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one’s own mind (O = Rourke v. RKO Radio Pictures: 483). The student should note that neither of these definitions includes intention or motivation – it is the act itself which constitutes plagiarism. Ignorance, naiveté or sloppiness is no excuse.

That is a very no nonsense approach to a serious academic offense. After the second offense a formal record of the infraction is placed in the student’s permanent record. Page 12 of the high school Student Handbook gives the same definition and warns teachers that students cannot be punished without proof that they were taught or informed about what constitutes the act of plagiarism. It goes without saying that punitive measures become more severe as the student ages through the system.

The Superintendent probably did not even consider that he was plagiarizing. The thought may not even have crossed his mind that someone might recognize the wording as familiar. His Public Relations Office may have even been given the task of cutting and pasting the data. Our district demographic is quite different from the ones copied. The students in both districts are over 95% white with less than 3% African American or Latin American. The goals and objectives are over 5 years old in each case. The low performing students in all grades in these districts do not go over the single digit mark. They are communities filled with affluent families. We have a community made up largely of African American and Latin American students. More than 70% of our students qualify for free and reduced lunch. We are an academically struggling district for many reasons. The Achievement GAP that is the subject of so many educational journals and reforms is widest in our town. Our district has absolutely nothing in common with those copied. It was very easy to find the theft. The question is…What does one do with a Superintendent that plagiarizes in this way? Is embarrassment enough? Chances are nothing will be done about the problems in achievement, because they are being ignored. How can teachers and administrators honestly punish students for doing what the Superintendent is doing himself? Not only did he cheat and commit fraud, he is being paid handsomely for producing a document that he pieced together with ideas not his own. The Superintendent and the Board of Education are mandated by law to go into retreat or to participate in workshop meetings in order to develop goals for the district based on the needs evidenced in student achievement or lack thereof. Why is he not held to the same punitive measures as the students he is entrusted to nurture? The goals and objectives were supposed to have been created January of 2011, and accepted by board resolution in front of the public. They were cut and pasted into the website in January of 2012. The Board and the Superintendent were questioned about the non-existent goals at every single board meeting. The pirated goals appeared after a blog post with a citation of the Law. It would be funny if not for the seriousness of the act. The children of this town deserve the same consideration as those in any other town. They deserve to be judged on their own strengths and weaknesses. They deserve to be seen.

"We know that business is booming, facilities are beautiful, and profits are high, but how are the children?"

Lucy Walker

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September 2011 Lenworth Nelson Sarah Pritchard Barbara Delgiudice Christina A. 312TH POTW 311TH POTW 310th POTW 309TH POTW My name is Lenworth Nelson. I am a professional and successful network marketer for the last 18 years. I live in Toronto Canada. Michael Lemm of Best MLM Resources... I am English. I was born in Sittingbourne, Kent, the third child of four. I won’t bore you with all the details, but I went to grammar school,... Hello Everyone. I have been a member of Adlandpro for over 5 years now. I am 58 years old and live with my 2 little cockatiels (little parrots)... I feel honored to be the 309th POTW. I thank and appreciate everyone who voted for me. I am a wife, mother of a beautiful daughter...

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INTERESTING - BUSY - CONTROVERSY COMMUNITY FORUMS   ** Forum Informum - Feedback for Adland Communityand..   ** Attitude is Everything   ** Humor, Friendship, Romance and Inspiration   ** Everything is Open for Discussion - Let's Talk in the...   ** Cosmic Religion and the New Age** Congratulations to Mary Evelyn Simpson our 2011 Person of the Year!  Mary Evelyn Simpson has been an Adlander since April 2006. She has been extremely helpful and supporting with our members in the community.   The 2011 Adland Person of the Year vote was conducted from January 3 to January 12, 2012. There were five nominees in total, Mark Dewey, Mary Evelyn Simpson, Amanda Martin-Shaver, Phil Black and Myrna Ferguson all very worthy candidates. Mary Evelyn won this year's award with approximately 60% of the vote. Congratulations to all nominees! Click on this link to the visit the forum to Congratulate Mary Evelyn on winning the 2011 Person of the Year (Back to to Top) Share Your Thoughts Let us know what you think? The Gazette is your Community News! Think Small! How To Focus Your Business Strategy by Meridith Powell Drastic times call for drastic measures! It used to be that strategic planning sessions took three days and strategic plans lasted five years. Well, gone are the days of a predictable economy and gone are long-term strategic plans that went with them. If you want to grow your business, if you want to expand in this economy, then you need to think small, get focused and strategize often. Face it: no one knows what is going to happen in this economy. One day we hear things are improving, the next we hear the bottom is about to fall out. The only thing certain in this economy is uncertainty. Markets are volatile, times are changing and customers are more demanding than ever. So how do we position ourselves for success? How do we get above the turmoil? How do we make this ever-changing economy work for us? We think small, we get focused and we shorten our strategic plans. In a fast-paced world, you need to be ready to change on a dime, to jump at opportunity and be strong enough to overcome the obstacles that will be thrown in your way. You can't do that if your goals are numerous, your decision-making process is complicated, and your "change committee" meets one time per year. You need to turn your business on its head, and you need a radical approach to the traditional strategic planning process. First, Narrow your scope! Yes, you need goals, but who says they need to big, hairy and audacious? Save that for your vision. In a fast-paced economy, your goals need to be designed to keep you moving forward, but not so cumbersome and involved that you can't expand or change them if new opportunities should arise. In a fast-moving economy, goals that are small in number and narrow in scope keep your team moving forward while still leaving plenty of room for flexibility. Second, Commit To Action -- Once you know what you want to accomplish, you need to decide how you are going to accomplish it. The value of a strategic plan is that it establishes direction; the power of the strategic plan is in the steps you design to take action. You need specific, detailed steps that lay the path of exactly what actions you are going to take to accomplish your goals. Steps that you can measure and steps that you can hold yourself accountable to achieving. It is through action that new ideas and opportunities will arise. This is the best way to keep your strategic plan on track, your team moving forward, and your company prepared and ready for opportunity. Then, Get Out Of The Weeds -- Yes, there is more to building and implementing a strategic plan than making sure it takes hold in your company. You need to get out of the weeds, take your head out of the day-to-day, and see what is going on in the rest of the world. What happens outside your business has just as much, if not more, impact than what happens inside your business. Every other month you need to take a breather. You need to slow down, set aside some time, round up your team and some outside advisors, and brainstorm about what is happening outside the walls of your business. What is going on with the economy? How have our customers changed?What trends are we seeing in society? How will the changes in our political world impact our business? And the list goes on. If you want to stay ahead of the game, if you want to drive change instead of having it drive you, then you'll need to get your head out of the weeds and get ready for what's coming. Lastly, Change Your Plan -- If every three months your plan is not changing then you're not paying attention. You designed this plan to be flexible, and this economy will make sure you have plenty of opportunity to bend, shape and redesign it. If your strategic plan is working, if you're taking action, if you're getting out of the weeds, then you'll have no choice but to revisit your plan and consistently make small adjustments that allow your team to jump at opportunity and sidestep pending obstacles. In a shifting economy, a strategic plan needs to be anything but static. It needs to be a "living" document that is actively used, regularly updated and easily adjusted. Yes, if you want to grow big in this economy then you need to think small. "High energy, high impact and highly motivating"-- that is Meridith Elliott Powell, founder and owner of MotionFirst. A certified coach, speaker, author and business development expert, Meridith is known in the industry as a catalyst and woman who makes things happen! Work with Meridith to build your network and change your life. Learn more at http://www.motionfirstnow.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Meridith_Powell   (Back to to Top)