Dvita Kapadia – 2015 Synthesis Essay
The Misadventures of Pinocchio
If Pinocchio had simply signed his name at the end of a pledge rather than had his nose grow each time he lied, his adventures would be stories of victorious deceit rather than moral learning. The Honor Code is an unnecessary pledge inflicted on students since it is ineffectual, promotes a hostile school environment and hinders students from further success.
As students, we have set standards: get good grades in every subject possible. In reality, this is highly tiresome and stressful; we must cope with our teachers, impress our parents, win over our peers and as the seasoning on top of the salad of stress, we must maintain a social life. To do all these things in the twelve hours we are given in the day renders us into a frenzied state blinded with the wall of stress. We blindly get through the day, take a couple of tests, cheat on the subjects we hate. Stress warps our sense of judgment and pushes us into doing things we’d never do if
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This also means that if one doesn’t tell on her friends, one will be punished. This indirect punishment could affect students’ futures, “Some students (that violated the honor code) who had already graduated lost their diplomas” (Source D). Loosing one’s diploma after graduating high school and being in the midst of college not only affects one’s personal life but also affect one’s future career, income and family life. The Honor Code allows for the futures of violators to be severely hindered and hence is not a fair judgment for punishment. While cheating should have repercussions, those who don’t tell on cheaters should not be punished. Instead of imposing an honor code onto the students, schools must build severe rules for the cheaters only. These rules could scare the cheaters into not cheating as well as save those who did not cheat but were simply associated with the