Smart & Good High Schools - The Flippen Group

CHAPTER 3: The Ethical Learning Communityers as a signature practice that helped to create the strongsolidarity, work ethic, and spirit of hope pervading thissuccessful urban school.Another urban school we visited told of one of its definingtraditions: A start-of-the-year welcoming ritual forfreshmen, hosted by seniors. In the box on page 38, theprincipal describes this signature practice, one he believeshas had a transformative impact on the climate of thewhole school.ELC 1: Develop Shared Purpose.Promising Practice 5:1.5 Make a character compactELCwith parents.A school’s sense of purpose must be sharedby families. If it is not, its impact on students is significantlyweakened. These days, many teachers and schoolleaders feel that creating an ethical learning communityis an increasingly difficult task because parents do notsupport the school in its efforts. A freshman Englishteacher recounted the following experience:This semester I had a girl turn in a paper on Hamlet thatshe purchased from a web site, www.schoolsucks.com. Idetermined this by using another site, www.turnitin.com thatfinds all the papers on the schoolsucks site containing aparticular phrase—in this case, “Shakespeare’s comic purpose.”The next day I called this girl over to a computer,downloaded her paper from the site, told her she wouldreceive a zero for the assignment, and made an appointmentto meet with her the next day. But the followingmorning her mother called the head to complain that I hadunfairly humiliated her daughter, who, the mother claimed,had interpreted the assignment as research and thereforeDear Parents,A CHARACTER COMPACT WITH PARENTSLincoln High School, as you know, takes pride in itscommitment to fostering both intellectual and moralexcellence in our students. A central part of our commitmentto character is our Honor Code (copy enclosed).When students sign the Code, they pledge not to lie,cheat, or steal, or to tolerate such behavior in their presence.They give their solemn word to practice and standup for integrity as a core ethical virtue.Each year we review with our students why we considerthe Honor Code to be so important and the variousforms of academic dishonesty covered by it. Theseinclude: (1) copying answers on a test, (2) using cribnotes on a test, (3) giving another person the answers toa test, (4) copying someone else’s homework, (5) plagiarismof language (failing to cite a source when directlyquoting), and (6) plagiarism of ideas (failing to cite asource when using another person’s ideas). We make itclear that Internet sources must be cited in the same wayas other sources. We ask all faculty to send home a listof their writing assignments for the semester, so youknow clearly what it expected of your child.The penalty for a first instance of academic dishonesty isa zero on that test or assignment, along with a report ofthe incident to my office. The penalty for a secondoffense is more serious and may vary according to thecircumstances, ranging up to suspension or expulsion.Please discuss the Honor Code and its academic honestyrequirements with your son or daughter to make surethey understand it. Please encourage their faithful adherenceto it. Help them see it as a way of creating aschool of character and a personal character of whichthey can be proud.If a student is charged with an offense against theHonor Code, we will follow the procedures outlined inthe School Handbook (please review these). If a studentis guilty of the charge, it will be crucial to help the studenttake responsibility for his or her actions. Our experienceis that students’ willingness to do this—and togrow stronger in their character from the experience—isgreatly influenced by the disposition of their parents.If you are willing to work with the school and your childto make our Honor Code succeed, kindly indicate that bysigning and returning the form below. If you have anyquestions you would like to discuss with me, please callto set up a time when we can talk. Thank you.Maureen Wellman, Principal- - - Parents: Please sign & return. - - -I have read the Honor Code and discussed it with mychild. I support the school’s efforts to promote academicintegrity and to hold students accountable to that standard.Signed:_______________________________________39Smart & Good High Schools