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June 08, 2006
If you can't tell by the quotation, I'm feeling very upbeat today. I had my dreaded meeting with The Cheater, and it went well. Really well.
Yesterday morning I received a surprising phone call from my boss at the college. She had finally gotten around to looking at the evidence I had accumulated, and finally understood what I meant when I said that the student didn't have a leg to stand on. That's how blatant the cheating was. Anyway, because she finally realized that I wasn't 1) crazy, 2) making it up, or 3) lying about how extensive the cheating was, she was calling to let me know that the plan was changing for the meeting. She was going to lead the discussion rather than have me lead it. The main goal of the meeting was to impart one piece of knowledge to the student (plagiarism is bad) and to inform her that she would be failing the class. She could either accept it or challenge, but because of the evidence I could provide she didn't have a challenge that would be successful.
The meeting itself was bizarre. The student was given the opportunity to give her view on the matter, and her explanation took me completely by surprise. While I fully expected her to bring up the fact that English is not her native language (which she did), I thought she would say that she misunderstood the instructions or at the very least say that she thought what she doing was allowed. Instead, she flat out denied copying and pasting from the Internet. She said because she wishes to be a better writer in English, she spent many hours reading reviews of all the books so that she could eventually "match" what they said. But she didn't copy and paste.
The first time she said this my brain sort of went (in it's best Krafty voice) "What, what, WHAT?" But then my boss started talking and I snapped back to the present. The second time she insisted that she had absolutely not copied anything from the Internet, I jumped into the conversation. I pulled out her assignments and started doing a side by side comparison. Everything was highligthed and color coded. A 4-year-old could have followed the chain of evidence. I showed her not only a big chunk of information that had been copied verbatim from Wikipedia, but I showed her that I knew the websites she had only taken a sentence or two from. As her face had started to look like that of a kicked puppy, I only showed her one assignment. But I had more. Lots more.
In the end the student capitulated and received a failing grade for the class. She will not challenge it. She did try to make a last ditch effort to say that she had worked hard compiling those assignments and didn't think she should receive an F, but it was explained to her that the time she spent cheating did not matter. It was not her own work she submitted.
After the meeting my boss just shook her head at me. She wondered why the girl tried to claim that she had written the assignments. I've had some time to consider this, and the only theory I can come up with is that she didn't think I knew where she had taken the information from. I'm sure didn't realize that I would be able to track it down so easily. My guess is that when she got that first email from me saying that I didn't think the work she submitted was her own she thought I was suspicious because it was so well written. Hence her emulate argument.
So that whole mess is over, and I feel like celebrating. Any suggestions? :-)
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June 05, 2006
Over the weekend I decided to do something I haven't done in a while as far as my reading rotation goes (yes, I'm still vainly attempting to keep myself to a genre rotation). I treated myself to a double dose of the same author: Ally Carter. First up was Cheating at Solitaire. Because I'm feeling lazy, here's the publisher's blurb:
Self-help guru Julia James is so good at being single that she's become famous for it-advising women that they don't need a man to be happy. Then the unthinkable happens. Just when her newest book, 101 Ways to Cheat at Solitaire, is about to hit stores, a trumped-up piece of gossip linking her to a gorgeous actor hits the papers. Their pictures are splashed all over the tabloids, and now Julia's credibility is about to hit rock bottom. But she isn't going down without a fight. Unless, that is, the actor is going down with her. This book had everything I love about Chick Lit: humor, great characters (both main and secondary), fun plot, and an instant relatabilty to the main character. What makes this book extraordinary to me, however, is that Julia is one of the few heroines in recent memory that is fine with who she is. She doesn't spend the entire book bemoaning the fact that she doesn't have a boyfriend, her job sucks, her family doesn't understand her, etc. Instead Julia serves as a role model to the women in her world, an ideal of being comfortable in your own skin. It was so refreshing and enjoyable. Each chapter of the book begins with a piece of wisdom from Julia's 101 Ways to Cheat at Solitaire, and I found myself looking forward to reading those bits of advice just as much as I looked forward to seeing the story unfold. I would recommend Cheating at Solitaire to anyone who enjoys reading Chick Lit, as well as anyone who has heard of the Chick Lit genre and wondered what the fuss was all about. According to Amazon the follow up, Learning to Play Gin, is scheduled for release on November 7. I am so there.
After finishing the greatness that was Cheating at Solitaire, I read Ally Carter's YA novel, I'd Tell You I Love You, but Then I'd Have to Kill You. Here's the publisher's blurb:
The Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women is a fairly typical all-girls school – that is, if every school teaches advanced martial arts in PE, chemistry always consists of the latest in chemical warfare, and everyone breaks CIA codes for extra credit in computer class. So in truth, Gallagher Academy might position itself as a school for geniuses but what they really mean is spies. But what happens when a Gallagher girl falls for a boy who doesn't have a code name? Cammie Morgan may be fluent in fourteen languages and capable of killing a man in seven different ways (three of which involve a piece of uncooked spaghetti), but the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women hasn't prepared her for what to do when she meets an ordinary boy who thinks she's an ordinary girl. Sure, she can tap his phone, hack into his computer, and track him through a mall without him ever being the wiser, but can she have a regular relationship with a regular boy who can never know the truth about her school (it's really not a last resort place for snooty heiresses with nowhere else to go), her family (her mother is a retired spy and headmistress of the school for goodness sake) or her life (daughter of spy royalty and destined for great things)? Cammie Morgan may be the next generation of an elite sisterhood of female spies, but in her sophomore year, she's doing something riskier than any Gallagher Girl has ever done before – she's falling in love. This book is the first of Carter's Gallagher Girl books, and it is just as smart, fun, and unique as Cheating at Solitaire. While reading it I couldn't help but think what a lovely alternative it made to books like Gossip Girl (for those of you who have parents coming in and schnarring at you about that series and others like it). It's just as cool as the Gossip Girl books, only smarter.
So lucky me. Two days, two books, two great reads.
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June 04, 2006
I was looking at my calendar just now, and I realized that I have a busy week looming, one that is filled with mostly good things and one possibly ugly thing.
On Wednesday I will finally have the opportunity to meet with The Cheater, and at this point I have no idea how that meeting will go. It would be nice if the student could just admit that she cheated, but life is never that easy. Actually, I should be looking forward to hearing the lame-o excuses she comes up with. Hmmmm. How bad of me would it be to try and tape the conversation so I can have an accurate transcript to share with you all? I'm awfully tempted... Given the fact that my boss at the college still hasn't read through the evidence I provided for her almost a month ago, my suspicion that The Cheater will get away with cheating looks to be almost a certainty at this point.
On a happier note, once I'm through with that ugliness I will be attending the Sherrilyn Kenyon signing that is being held at my local Borders. Depending on how my meeting with The Cheater goes, I will be either 1) treating myself to some new books in celebration of a hard fought victory or 2) drowning my sorrows in some new books. Either way, I'm getting some new books. Woo hoo!
And since I probably won't get my fill of books on Wednesday, on Thursday I will be going to another author signing, this time for MaryJanice Davidson. The location for this one will be a bit of a drive for me, but I'm suppose to be going with a friend so that will be fun. And who knows, maybe I'll buy a couple more new books (don't tell!).
What about you? Anything fun coming your way this week?
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June 02, 2006
June at a library can mean many things. For some libraries it is the start of their summer reading program. For others June might mean switching to summer hours. For my library, however, June means one thing: the end of the budget year. And the end of the budget year means it is time for my annual review, or as I sometimes jokingly refer to it: why are we still paying for you?
No matter what profession you choose to go into, the review process is something you will encounter at some point or another. Over the years I have heard many things from friends (both librarian and non-librarian) about their workplace’s review process, and I am completely fascinated by the differences in each organization’s process. Some of my friends’ reviews have been all about numbers, with them being asked to fill out questionnaires assessing their performance using a numeric scale (usually 1-10). Others have told me that instead of a numeric scale their questionnaires include choices of words like excellent, good, fair, poor, meets expectations, exceeds expectations, etc. One friend of mine actually has two reviews every year, both within weeks of each other. One is a performance review while the other is a salary review. Some processes are uglier than others. Another friend’s workplace does a 360° review, meaning not only does your boss review you, but you review your boss too. Ick!
The review process at my library isn’t horrible by any means, but it is enough to set my stomach churning. Instead of a set of skill assessing questions where I select the proper number/word, I have five prompts to respond to:
- List performance characteristics and personal aptitudes which appear to be the key strengths of your performance and personality.
- List performance characteristics and personal aptitudes which could be improved to meet library standards of performance.
- Summarize performance and specific accomplishments during the past year.
- (OPTIONAL) Describe any aspects of your job which you feel might be changed to improve your performance. Include any suggestions for improving library services.
- Identify job goals and objectives to be pursued during the coming year.
While prompts 2-5 aren’t too bad (as long as I can remember what projects I worked on throughout the year that is), the first prompt is incredibly difficult. How do you talk about your strengths without sounding like an arrogant buttmunch? My favorite word to use at review time is competent. Not amazing, not extraordinary, not ass-kicking. Competent. It’s not that I don’t think I’m good at my job, because I do. But I’m not the best at my library, and nowhere near the best among the people I know. And to imply that I am just seems really wrong.
What do you guys think? Is it better to undersell or oversell yourself at review time? Don’t hold out on me! I know you’ve had to review yourself before. :-)
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June 01, 2006
The Krafty Librarian has an interesting post up today about leadership in the library field. If you are a newbie librarian or even an old one like me, you should definitely check it out.
Krafty's post got me thinking about my own library career and the advice (largely unrequested) I have received over the years about it. I've been at my current position seven years now, and I am well past the point where most librarians would have moved on to a new position that pays a little more and has more responsibility. I have been told countless times that I need to find a new position with more responsibility and the possibility for advancement by people that I like (at least when they aren't telling me to find a new job). So why haven't I moved on?
I think I am a bit of an anomaly in that I have absolutely no desire to move into any type of management position, regardless of whether it is as a department head, an assistant director, or even a director. I don't want the headaches, the responsibility, and if I'm being honest, the work that goes along with that kind of position. Yes, I'm the Lazy Lima Bean Librarian and proud of it.
Anyone else feel the same way?
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