Tuesday 20 November 2012

IntPiPoMo - On Ethics


In a good raid group everyone is expected to pull their weight. Part of a raid leaders job is to identify and solve potential problems, which has just as much to do with roster as it does actual encounters. This, is why I'm not a raid leader. Typically, I would describe myself as non-confrontational. In fact, that's probably putting it lightly.

Much like raids, in real life, one team member cannot, or rather, should not get a free pass, and leave the work to the other members.

I apologize in advance, this will be mostly non-WoW related. It's just something that has been bothering me.


For context you will need to know that one of my classes had a group project assigned. We've been working, in a group of four, for the last month to prepare a 20 page research report. We finished the report yesterday, handed it in this morning. Great right? Well...

Half, or nearly half of our mark comes from our group members.

I'm not concerned about my mark. I'm confident that I contributed my portion. I carried my own weight. The problem is that not all of my group members did so. In fact two of us did 90 percent  of the project and what the others did had to be completely edited and revised to be usable. I know that this is unfair, and that their marks should reflect it and I guess that is where my ethical dilemma comes in.

My group leader contacted me, and he wants me to fail one of our members. His reasoning is valid. X, the member he wants to fail did not pull his weight. He left group meetings early, did not provide any input and did not complete tasks assigned to him in a timely or acceptable manner. By all means he deserves a failing grade.

I know I shouldn't let the fact that we are good friends, or my personal feelings get into my marking but I have a lot of difficulty doing so. I'd hate to fail anyone... much less my friend, even if he deserves it.

Also, I feel pressured by my group leader to assign marks the way he wants me to.

I'm just not sure what to do. Do I fail my friend because it is the right, and honest thing to do and not because my group leader is upset with him? Do I give him a pass because I will feel bad failing him?

Either way he will never see the mark I assign him.


Pictures are completely unrelated, they just make me happy.
 39/50



2 comments:

  1. Eek! I imagine I would give him a failing grade simply because regardless of how much I like him as a person, that's all the work he's done deserves. In my book allowing your friends to carry you on group projects is essentially cheating by another name and as such deserves to be "punished". However it's a nasty situation to be in.

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    1. Thank you for the advice. I've decided to see how I feel on evaluation day, and fill out the marking scheme as honestly as I can.

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