eNotes Editors Group at eNotes

Thanks for the great comments. We try to close questions as soon as an...

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:36:38 PST

Thanks for the great comments. We try to close questions as soon as an approved answer has been posted, but because we have to close them manually, multiple editors have sometimes responded before we can do so. If the answers were posted around the same time (i.e., within 30 minutes), we usually allow those multiple answers to remain on the site. We're also working on a better way to identify similar questions that have already been asked and...

I'm curious about this myself...I've seen questions with three very...

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 23:39:31 PST

I'm curious about this myself...I've seen questions with three very detailed responses that are still open for further answers, while others have only one short response, but are closed. I've also seen repetitive answers allowed, that are phrased differently but cover the same material. I'm not sure that another filtering system is the answer, but a clear explanation of criteria would be helpful.

Criteria for closing a question for further answer in enotes.

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 18:35:02 PST

I find that some time questions are closed for further editor answers, even though the answers posted do not cover the question completely. As an example I would like to cite a question asked in the Business Group on June 17, 2009 about "technological environment in business marketing". There is only one answer posted for this question which talks only about "technology of marketing" and not about "business marketing environment". Yet this...

All my writing and teaching assignments have been the Migrant worker...

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 06:44:31 PST

All my writing and teaching assignments have been the Migrant worker type. Mine is perhaps a special case as I prefer it this way. The reason for my preference is primarily my interest in management consulting, which is my main activity. Teaching, designing training programs and preparing course material is an added activity. However I get some additional advantages also. I get to meet and mix with students from different management institute....

To be able to compare abilities of candidates appearing for tests at...

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 06:22:04 PST

To be able to compare abilities of candidates appearing for tests at different times, some type of standardisation in test is absolutely essential. Standasrdisation is also useful in eliminating the subjective bias unavoidable in in non-stndardised assessment. Coming to the question of SAT, we must remember that this test is designed for the specific purpose of testing suitability of candidates for college education, and it covers abilities in...

We do our best to delete the questions that have been posted by students...

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:19:03 PST

We do our best to delete the questions that have been posted by students using multiple user names. We're working on technology which will make this less likely to occur. If you see multiple questions in a row in any group, please flag them to assist us in the process of making sure this service is not abused. Thank you!

I have noticed a similar pattern, in the Literature, as well- Often when...

Mon, 8 Jun 2009 13:54:04 PST

I have noticed a similar pattern, in the Literature, as well- Often when I see 10 questions back to back posted on the same Literary work I wonder if its the same student posing as many OR if the teacher herself said as a research tool "go on websites such as Enotes for more info" When I do notice a string of weird patterns like that, and I understand that the student is cheating, I simply pass the question. We, as teachers, sort of know who's...

Even if there was some kind of bad behavior on a few students parts,' it...

Sat, 6 Jun 2009 18:01:00 PST

Even if there was some kind of bad behavior on a few students parts,' it still doesn't take away from all of the wonderful assistance that people offer. I don't notice names or similar questions because. as a literature teacher, I enjoy answering as many questions as I am able to. I know some of them will be for a quiz or a test, but not only does it help them, I think it helps the editor become more acutely knowledgeable themselves. There...

In reply to #1: It's unfortunate that students may abuse this website;...

Sat, 6 Jun 2009 16:57:06 PST

In reply to #1: It's unfortunate that students may abuse this website; however, it is their right to post questions on here and have them answered. There is no guarantee that all of their questions will be answered, but I believe it is our responsibility as editors to do our best even if they are taken from an exam. I like to think that maybe the questions and answers will help another student in the future.

It boils down to ethics. Students these days do not see anything at...

Sat, 6 Jun 2009 06:25:57 PST

It boils down to ethics. Students these days do not see anything at all wrong with getting answers from their classmates on assignments--in or out of the classroom. If you gave specific directions that the students should work on the take-home exam individually, then these students are definitely cheating. Not only are they not solving the problems on their own, but they are soliciting answers from the experts here at enotes. The...

My dreaded five: 1) In today's society 2)these days 3)in my opinion...

Thu, 4 Jun 2009 17:49:39 PST

My dreaded five: 1) In today's society 2)these days 3)in my opinion or I think or I feel 4) time and time again 5) absolutely positively (and some even add 'undeniably')

In reply to #5: I agree with that. If students can only post one...

Sun, 31 May 2009 20:21:40 PST

In reply to #5: I agree with that. If students can only post one question at a time, it would take collusion between at least half of them to post enough to get the complete exam. And, that would be a serious problem with students at the school.

Nothing wrong in take home exams, but pointing fingers at only some of...

Sun, 31 May 2009 20:09:41 PST

Nothing wrong in take home exams, but pointing fingers at only some of the students who copy, is definitely wrong.

Take home exams are frequently used by schools to improve the character...

Sun, 31 May 2009 18:09:52 PST

Take home exams are frequently used by schools to improve the character of students. I don't see anything wrong with that. I have the feeling that more and more schools are moving to a proctor free test system and take home exams.

I certainly have noticed that the one question per day rule is a joke. ...

Sun, 31 May 2009 10:56:16 PST

I certainly have noticed that the one question per day rule is a joke. In English as well as math we often have a series of questions that are obviously posted by the same person. Really the only way to enforce this would be for someone at eNotes to watch for this sort of pattern and then look at the IP addresses of the nicknames posting the questions.

Yesterday morning a series of very similar math problems was posted,...

Sun, 31 May 2009 08:47:37 PST

Yesterday morning a series of very similar math problems was posted, each a few minutes after the last, by user names that had kind of the same feel to them. It seemed to me that it was a take-home exam, and that concerned me a bit. It is kind like trying to by-pass the eNotes requirement that we don't answer multiple questions in one question post. And the fact that there were so many of them kind of concerned me. I want to be helping...

I am not sure about the concept of take-home exams. What I am familiar...

Sun, 31 May 2009 07:41:51 PST

I am not sure about the concept of take-home exams. What I am familiar with is of take home assignment, where the student is free to consult any available sources of information. I see nothing wrong in principle in a student using enotes as a source of information. If a teacher insists that the assignment should be completed without help, then it should not be given as a home assignment. And if taking help from other sources for information,...

I am not sure if I understand your post. A student posted an exam to...

Sun, 31 May 2009 03:08:43 PST

I am not sure if I understand your post. A student posted an exam to someplace? Was it here? I don't see how anyone can post an exam here. But if it was take-home, doesn't everyone have access to it anyway? Did they post it for people to do the questions for them?

Students posting a whole test....

Sat, 30 May 2009 09:47:06 PST

I tagged this with "Math", because that is where I see this problem this morning. It looks like a student, under various user names, has posted an entire take-home exam, question by question. I was wondering what my eNotes buddies think about this, and thought I'd open up a discussion.

First, I've never been a fan of standardized testing because...

Sat, 16 May 2009 14:13:08 PST

First, I've never been a fan of standardized testing because usually, it doesn't measure the intelligence of a student, but how well he or she can take a standardized test! However, if a testing group such as CollegeBoard wants to measure a student using a multiple-choice test, and that group wants to measure the verbal aptitude of a student, they must create the test with certain restrictions. Sure, vocabulary, grammar, and...