Moral Dilemma: Do/should we answer questions here that are CLEARLY homework questions presented in Mahalo?

I've struggled with the same dilemma and have decided (usually) to answer these questions. However, I try to include in my answers all the steps, sources for further reading, cautions on what pitfalls to avoid, etc. Whenever I can. I also try to avoid answering when the student seems to be dishonest about what s/he is doing and why.

My hope is that from reading my answers, the student will learn how to solve problems of the type in their question, which is what doing HW is all about. After all, they will still need to know how to do this themselves on their test. Getting high grades for HW under false pretenses will not get them a good grade on the final or the class without learning from their interactions with us.

One last thing I try to avoid, is solving multiple HW-type problems from the same user on the same day, in the hope that the student, getting help on only one problem, will use the guidance to figure out on their own how to solve the rest of the problem set. This is similar to what I'd be willing to do as a tutor or as a parent helping my own kids with their HW.

It is a bit of a dilemma but I find myself answering some of them, the ones that seem a little bit more than just homework or are tough to research or are intrinsically difficult to understand. For example I'm not great at math but I've seen some incredible answers here for math questions that could only come from an assignment. I think the answer is probably better than their teacher :) and if I had help like that I might actually have been a better math person.

I am a tutor so my job is to help students - I do leave some but others will take my interest and I'll give a 100% response..... What I really dislike is people answering them with false information or crib notes from another site without thought or knowledge.....but that's what happens sometimes......

Yeah, I've noticed that, too, and think it's hilarious. At least the students are looking for answers instead of blowing off their homework completely. I supppose that if Mahaloans supplied answers to these questions, the students might actually read them, hopefully rewrite them, and maybe retain some of the knowledge.

A small purpose might be served if they didn't copy and paste. Personally, I think the best way to handle these would be to give a few basic facts and point the poster toward some useful links so he can finish his research.

I've always found it amusing that students aren't allowed to use modern problem solving tools. In their adult lives, these tools will always be available to them. If it were up to me, every test would be taken beside a laptop with an internet connection.

Besides, paying people to do work you need completed is the cornerstone of capitalism. :-).

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