On the question
2. If the Code were adopted and you observed another student violating
the Code, would you report the violation?
The vote was
80 Yes, 14 No, with another 14 saying it depended on
the circumstances.
The Honor System is therefore adopted. Instead of having ID checks
and roving proctors, you will simply be asked to sign a statement on
each exam:
All work presented here is my own. I have neither
given nor received, and will neither give nor receive, any
unauthorized assistance in this exam.
I am confident that your conscience and your pride will prove to be far stronger deterrents to dishonesty than my policing could ever be.
1. I will neither give nor receive any unauthorized aid in any quiz or exam, nor represent another's work as my own.
2. I will report any violations of this Code to the Professor and to the TA.
Almost 60 years ago, a young man came to this country from Italy, fleeing the oppression of Mussolini and the Fascist Party. He had little money, knew little English and knew few people here, but he had high hopes of finding a home where he could live in freedom and dignity.
On his first day in New York, a friend took him to a boarding house, where he presented his identification papers to the clerk. The clerk said ``What do I want these for? You pay your money and you get your room.'' The man asked his friend to translate, but he already understood. He was in a land where even a stranger was trusted. He had found the first brick of his home.
Back in Italy the man had always taken shortcuts and looked for ways to beat the system. He felt no sense of guilt, as it was an accepted part of the game. In this country, he paid every penny of his taxes, returned extra change, and always strove to be worthy of the trust he received. Not only did this country give him a home, it made him a better man.
The mutual trust and honor that characterized the country my father found in 1939 has eroded. We no longer trust strangers - we demand Social Security numbers and photo IDs. ``Better safe than sorry'' has replaced ``innocent until proven guilty'' as the national slogan. We also no longer view dishonesty with horror, merely with annoyance.
This is wrong, and I am delighted that you have chosen to do something about it, making this class a place where personal responsibility and mutual trust once again prevail.