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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2005 * — Students lead cheating seminar By KELLY CAVANAUGH ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR Members of the Bateman Team lectured faculty members Thursday about students newest cheating strategies. Academic integrity and faculty awareness of cheating was the topic at this month’s faculty teaching seminar, “How We Cheat: A Student’s Perspective,” held by the Flagship Communications Bateman Team. “I think it’s important to increase awareness about cheating, because with an increase of knowledge, that allows the faculty to know what is going on in their classrooms,” said Rebecca Dulin, a fourth-year public relations student and member of the Bateman Team. A Bateman Team survey showed 66.9 percent of USC students say they have cheated in some way. A Center for Academic Integrity survey found that 80 percent of students admit cheating. Dulin said she was surprised that “USC is such a strong model of academic integrity,” but what has surprised her most is the trouble to which students will go in order to cheat. The Bateman Team conducted a focus group composed of seven USC students to find the top reasons students cheat and the most common cheating methods. The group found the top reasons, in order, for cheating include: “I think it’s important to increase awareness about cheating, because with an increase of knowledge, that allows the faculty to know what is going on in their classrooms.” REBECCA DULIN FOURTH-YEAR PUBLIC RELATIONS STUDENT laziness, lack of original ideas, to please parents, to keep scholarships and poor time management. All seven participants in the focus group admitted to having cheated at some point in their academic careers. Some of the latest and most popular cheating methods include using graphing calculators to store information, and using the lid of the calculator as a cheat sheet. Buying papers online is also popular among students, as is using cell phones to take pictures of tests and to text message answers to other students. Some students use water bottles and baseball caps to hide cheat sheets. Perhaps the strangest method discussed was that some females put cheat sheets in their pantyhose, pushing their skirts up to read the sheets during tests. ♦ Please see CHEATING, page 3 JON TURNERJTHE GAMECOCK Third-year criminal justice student Phillip Ellis, the first investigator on the scene, labels evidence for his teammates to photograph . USC criminal justice students practice skills for forensic science competition \ COLUMBIA By JON TURNER THE gamecock The corpse lay collapsed in a pool of blood. Crimson footprints congested the landing of Currell College s southern stairwell and left a tracery upstairs like an obscene Morse code. ‘ Don t go in the stairwell,” Phillip Ellis warned his teammates amenably. “There’s a dead guy.” It s a wonder we don’t have ants,” said Julie Buffington, surveying the scene. The setting sun glinted in the corn syrup and food coloring. The practice dummy consisted only of head and torso, but next year USC’s crime scene investigation teams, comprised of students in the criminal justice department, will have a whole dummy, donated by the American Red Cross, Al Brown said. Brown, two-year president of USC’s Criminal Justice Association, said that just a few years ago the organization had been “pretty much extinct,” with only five or six members, but that a dedicated recruiting drive and membership in the American Criminal Justice Association had given the chapter the impetus to expand to almost 100 members. Brown said one of his goals had been “to represent USC on a national level. He and several other students will get their opportunity next month, as USC teams make their first appearance at a national ACJA conference and compete in firearm use, crime scene investigation and law enforcement knowledge. The two crime scene investigation teams practice every week, testing their ability to quickly assess and diagnose various criminal scenarios. Most are concocted on the fly, like Brown and Buffington’s Wednesday homicide. “Does this look good?” Brown asked, arranging an assortment of drug paraphernalia. “Yeah, looks pretty good,” Buffington said. “Do we have a bloody footprint?” he asked. “We have some M&Ms,” she responded. According to national regulations, each team gets 15 minutes to document its crime scene and 45 to determine the nature of the incident, so time can be an issue for less experienced competitors. “We have 15 minutes. But usually we go to 30, then 45,” Ellis joked disparagingly. Kragh Kelling said he had been interested in forensic science for years before he joined the association. “Honestly, it was a stereotype,” he said. “The show ‘CSI’ sparked my interest.” As early as his senior year of high school, Kelling took correspondence courses in crime 4 • scene investigation, and he said he hopes to make a career of it. “I’d like to go federal,” he said. “My hopes are to join the FBI someday.” Brown pointed to forensic science as a growing field. “Forensics has taken off at USC,” he said, “especially since Newberry College got funding for a program.” Brown said he hoped USC would follow suit. “I do believe it’s necessary in order to make USC a more prominent college, especially with new research being done in forensic science,” he said. “I believe it would be an invaluable tool. Forensics is taking on a whole new meaning in the world, in criminal justice, in the courtroom, and it’s becoming a valuable tool for law.” For now, Brown and his teammates will hold their own practice sessions to hone their skills, hiding homicides behind possible drug overdoses and pasting handrails with syrupy fingerprints. “All right, time,” Brown finally called, ending Wednesday’s practice. “God bless America,” Ellis said. “You tricky bastard.” Comments cm this story? E-mail gamecocknetvs@gwm.sc. edu JASON STEELMAN/THE GAMECOCK RHA President Adam Hark and Publicity Chairwoman Karin Gardner work together in the RHA office Thursday night. RHA to reconsider $5 residential fee By TAYLOR SMITH STAFF WRITER Legislation to raise residence activity fees $5 has been tabled by the Residence Hall Association, but the controversy following the proposal remains. RHA President Adam Hark said students’ anger is understandable, which is why the legislation will probably not resurface in a form similar to the current proposal. “No one wants to pay more money to go here anymore,” Hark said. The need to raise fees stems from an act that was passed last week exempting resident advisors from the activity fee. Because RAs are not allowed to vote in RHA elections and have no representation in the organization, Sen. Jonathan Ross sponsored legislation to free them of the financial burden. “Why would they be made to pay resident activity fees if there is no representation by them,” said Ross, a first-year political science student. “No taxation without representation.” Several RAs have protested this legislation in conjunction with legislation passed last week because, Hark said, they feel alienated by the act proposed and tabled Tuesday. RHA Act S05-AC05 proposes that a second account be made available specifically for RAs, residence hall directors and residence hall coordinators. The new account would cost each student living on campus an additional $5. The account used by resident advisors is held by RHA, which Hark said was inappropriate. “Why should we give them money of our own,” Hark said. “We manage the funds of our ♦ Please see RHA, page 3 — DEAN DIALOGUE -- I-WT.-1-- WM\ II I NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK Education Dean Les Sternberg says his college has experienced rapidly increasing enrollment in the last two years. Education college faces tight budget • Sternberg looks to donors for help with finding difficulties By TAYLOR SMITH STAFF WRITER Classroom space and state funding is sparse, but students are pouring into the USC College of Education, a trend dean Les Sternberg is worried about. “Historically, we are in one of the oldest buildings on campus,” Sternberg said. “And we don’t want to put students in sites that don’t match.” Sternberg said the college was not expecting the number of students they have received after starting three new degree programs almost two years ago. “We projected that a certain number of students would be involved in the program, but our projections were wrong,” Sternberg said. “We had 550 and were expecting 350.” Sternberg said the mission of any college of education is to prepare “future leaders,” which could be done only with a balanced school set on classroom instruction and research. “1 would like to see even more research engagements,” Sternberg said. “Aside from us ♦ Please see DEAN, page 3 in mis issue - ♦ SPORTS Gator hunting The USC men’s basketball team prepares to play host to rival Florida in the Colonial Center on Sunday after losing two consecutive games. Page 9 ♦ THE MIX Advice from the ‘Date Doctor’ Will Smith stars as ‘Hitch,’ giving advice to socially . inept guys in love with the vifomen of their dreams. Page 7 INDEX Comics & Crossword..8 Classifieds.11 Horoscopes.8 Letters to the Editor..5 Online Poll..5 Police Report..2 ij .$ .. " tvw9v.dailygamecock.cpm — ■' y ■ ' w