Can I win this dispute with my teacher?

[vinapn]

This may seem insignificant compared to the other situations posted on this forum but it is very serious to me. I am a sophomore in high school.

I was caught cheating on a final back in May. I put a program on my calculator to help me save time on the test. Another student turned me in a couple days after the test. I was called down to the Dean's Office and the information I gave them was:
-I had the program for one month
-names of 5 people I shared it with
The consequences were:
-a zero on the final + recalculation of the month's tests
-suspension (which is recorded on my transcript as "Cheating")

One week later I wrote a letter and personally read it to the Dean expressing myself and begging him just to not record it on my transcript, as that would ruin any hope of a respectable college. Surprisingly he was kind enough to do just that and I thought I had peace of mind until I saw the final grades posted a few days after that. I had gone from an A- to a C+.

Now I had looked back at May's tests and there was only one other than the final. There is no possible way I could have used the program on that test. Even the teacher agrees with me on that. But she still gave me a zero for it since I said I had the program for one month. This is not a satisfactory answer because...

My school accepts 3 types of calculators. TI-83, TI-84, TI-84 Silver. Now the Silver comes preloaded with programs that can be used on any of the tests in that class. The TI-84 does not come preloaded with those but includes a cable for manual installation from the computer. The TI-83 requires a separately purchased cable. I use the 84 and I manually downloaded programs onto it. I asked my teacher, why using the Silver Edition is not considered cheating since it gives students an unfair advantage over the other 2 calculators just as I had a unfair advantage when I put a program onto my calculator. She replied "as long as they don't use it"

Therefore I would like to argue that I admitted to using the program on my final so that is a zero. However I only admitted to having the program for a month and there is no way to prove I used it on the other test.

Any suggestions on how to approach this are much appreciated. Thank you.

**I realize that if only I wasn't honest and told them I used it, I could have avoided this whole situation since they had no evidence whatsoever.

 

[irish223]

I think you have a good argument there. However, be prepared for the teacher to go back to the dean and request that your transcripts show the reason for your suspension if you are successful in convincing her to change your grade. You were already given a great gift, and the outcome seems fair.

 

[vinapn]

At the moment the teacher does not know the dean removed the record. Furthermore he is retiring and I will be dealing with 2 new deans in the fall semester.

One more question, if my teacher argues that I admitted to using the program for one month, which I didn't but in case there was a misunderstanding, would the best route be to firmly maintain what I said? At this point there is no more evidence that can be used and it comes down to who said what.

 

[irish223]

Actually, it comes down to the teacher's discretion and his policies. You were caught cheating. They had proof because there was witness. You are so very lucky that the ONLY consequence was a drop in your grade.

How do you know the teacher doesn't know about the transcript? I would be very surprised if he didn't. Regardless, I doubt that the teacher will get into any arguments with you about your grade.

You made a serious error in judgment. Consider this a learning experience, because if you get caught cheating in college, it will be much worse. Do you think the fact that you were truthful when confronted negates the cheating? It doesn't. You did something that you know is wrong, and there are consequences.