Originally Posted by FutureMedic

I only know how to erase and replace things.

You are just about admitting to plagiarism.

Originally Posted by tomtom22

You are just about admitting to plagiarism.

In a sense.....

Your teacher wanted you to write a draft letter, not to take an actual one and just stick your character's name and information into it. This is plagiarism.

I hope you won't actually submit that. Try to write your own letter, I'm sure you're more than capable of writing an excellent one. You can use that one for inspiration, but I doubt editing an image is what your teacher had in mind.

Heck no wonder it had no personality on it. Shame on you!
Now get cracking.

Originally Posted by chronoserpent

Your teacher wanted you to write a draft letter, not to take an actual one and just stick your character's name and information into it. This is plagiarism.

I hope you won't actually submit that. Try to write your own letter, I'm sure you're more than capable of writing an excellent one. You can use that one for inspiration, but I doubt editing an image is what your teacher had in mind.

It's not plagiarism, especially as it's a US Government work. She asked for a draft letter, and that's exactly what she's getting. It's...authentic.

However, more importantly, it's not in the spirit of the assignment. I also recommend a rewrite. Break out the Bravo Sierra and write that essay

It IS plagiarism. Any work turned in representing your own when it's not is plagiarism.

I tutor many college courses, including Composition I and Comp II. This is blatant cheating and would get you seated in front of the review board for expulsion as one of my students. You were told to write (read: Compose and construct) a draft letter, not provide an example of one existing and omit or change the personal information. This is English class, not Research. While one does research for English, turning in YOUR work, versus the work of another, is the goal of the grading curve to determine your ability to author a properly constructed document.

Why are you a member of a military board if you haven't learned honor yet?

He'll learn.
No one knows honor or anything right off the bat. A nice boot in the @$$ and he'll know reality.

Nowhere did I say that it wasn't unethical. "Blatant cheating", probably. It's not in the spirit of the assignment. If I were futuremedic I would turn in both - one essay-letter that he'd written himself, and one example of an unedited draft letter and a paragraph or two explaining it, and citing the source. Possibly score some brownie points with the teacher for the perception that he'd done extra research.

You both need to keep in mind that the concept of honor is not black and white. I originally misunderstood what he had done - I thought he would retype instead of photoshopping in the modified details - which is pretty close to, if not completely, "black". Retyping it would be slightly more gray. Doing the given assignment, and then adding more, is very clearly in the white. Please don't lecture me on honor codes.

Originally Posted by FutureMedic

I don't know if you're being sarcastic or not, but thanks.

I'm not....

Originally Posted by c/Commander

Nowhere did I say that it wasn't unethical. "Blatant cheating", probably. It's not in the spirit of the assignment. If I were futuremedic I would turn in both - one essay-letter that he'd written himself, and one example of an unedited draft letter and a paragraph or two explaining it, and citing the source. Possibly score some brownie points with the teacher for the perception that he'd done extra research.

You both need to keep in mind that the concept of honor is not black and white. I originally misunderstood what he had done - I thought he would retype instead of photoshopping in the modified details - which is pretty close to, if not completely, "black". Retyping it would be slightly more gray. Doing the given assignment, and then adding more, is very clearly in the white. Please don't lecture me on honor codes.

I never said you referred to it as ethical - or unethical, for that matter.

I was disagreeing with your (flawed) understanding of what constitutes plagiarism in an academic setting. You stated outright that is was NOT plagiarism, and I took you to task for that. And I did it in a rude and condescending manner, and for that I apologize. I should have phrased it in a nicer tone.

If you're willing to forgive me for the way I came across in my disagreement and accept my apology, thank you and we can move on.

I do agree with your idea, RE: Turning in both with a proper cite for the original, unedited, unchanged government draft letter. That would impress me.

And I wasn't calling into question your honor, my friend.

FutureMedic is a good kid. I've read his posts here, I know his goals for a military career, and I slammed him with a hard truth: That honor begins with self.

What is honor? It's doing the right thing, even if that right thing is not acknowledged or even ever known. It's doing the right thing regardless of who is looking. It's a commitment to SELF, not to others.

And if you (not YOU, but the generic anyone you) want to serve successfully, you have to have honor. Like 13th said, it'll come in with a swift boot in the butt... but why let it come to that? Prevention always trumps correction.

So, yeah, I busted his chops on it. But I did so because I like him. If I didn't, I'd have not wasted my time on him. I want the best for him, I think he's a great kid, and like my own kids, I'll correct him with hard truths when I see him screwing up. He wants to be a soldier. He came here, a public board, mostly populated by veterans, and ignored all of us that told him he was committing plagiarism - he wants the easy way out. I care enough about this anonymous person on the Internet that I gave him the hard truth: Honor starts with self. If that makes me an a@@hole, so be it.

But I didn't question YOUR honesty, integrity, or honor.

Again, I do apologize for the way I phrased my post to you.