And there was no mention of that.

It is theft pure and simple and whether a writer or a host just is wrong and damaging for our national brand.

Good luck – if not in the short term I hope you prevail in the long term against such scurrilous behaviour masquerading as academic integrity. Certainly saw and questioned some dodgy dealings by lecturers myself in my university days.

My question is, is there anyway to make the Dean explain why she has taken the position she has with a) both PBG and WH cases (why UAE as parties outside the employment relationship were able to interfere and influence the outcome of that relationship, and what is university policy for staff cheating?), and b) how she might now deal with any students who offer up Witi Ihimaera and the failure to punish his admission of guilt, as a precedent when they are caught for the same behaviour in future?

Good to see CK Stead taking a firm stand against Witi Ihimaera’s behaviour today, and calling attention to UA’s egregious degrading of its pedagogical standards. The Dean is a transient member of staff in the sense she will at some stage find a new position at a different insititution or retire. The University of Auckland will however be left with a permanent scar that will leave the integrity of the institution itself and future students achievements open to question and doubt. Is the Dean prepared to wear this heavy burden or is her conscience clear?

Bottom line: in some disciplines at some NZ universities the degrees are no longer worth the paper they are written on.

I have shared your experiences. Heck, I have had my own marks retroactively raised without consultation by department managers after I handed them for final entry! My protests just became part of the dossier used to fire me–for being “uncollegial” and “difficult”.

MikeNZ: Indeed.

Would it concern anyone if I told them that I have observed senior Academics make up rules and regulations on the spot, so as not to incur an appeal by a student on a failed assignment? Told to find “1 more mark” in an already marked assignment so as to not fail the student?

Anyone?

Brown gay whatever, He cheated.
The Dean in not sanctioning him, condones his cheating and therefore takes part in his cheating.
simple.
What is the penalty for a student who condones cheating and does nothing about it?

The University undoubtably felt the dismissal was justified because the email was sent to a foreign fees-paying Arab female postgraduate student, one of those who was admitted under the student visa scheme signed with the UAE that I mentioned with regard to the WMD issue. No matter that she was hopelessly unqualified and her excuse was never validated, or that I apologised to her and the Dean a month before the email was leaked to the press and I got fired. What matters is the gravy train of foreign fee-paying bums in seats, and given that there is strong evident that UAE authorities got involved in the dismissal, the University saw my continued presence as injurious to that revenue stream. That is also why I am blacklisted in NZ, because all of the university managers do not want to upset that particular cart and my very vocal opposition to it makes me persona non grata in the NZ academe.

Witi, of course, did no such thing. He is not a boat-rocker when it comes to petty matters such as teaching quality and the like.

As it turns out the student dropped out and now is apparently at Massey, while I am out of academia except for a part-time visitorship at an Asian university–not my cup of tea, to be honest.

Who would one complain to about a Dean or a professor if you’re not an alumina of that college?

Like HoniH he has cheated and therefore cheated those who pay the money as there is an expectation of honesty and integrity.

Usually a withdrawn book would be pulped. If Imihaera is offering to buy it from the publisher it may be a cheaper option to avoid meeting other costs the publisher incurred in addition to editing and printing — promotional, and now legal and research etc.

What a mess. It is astonishing that Ihimaera should receive an award in the wake of this scandal. Perhaps he can show a glimmer of decency by declining the prize and especially the money that goes with it.

In the light of the Ihimaera plagiarism and the apparent applause it has drawn from our artistic leaders, what an injustice has been done to both Paul G. Buchanan (1.45 post) and the Logans (2.18 post). Shame on our lefty academia, and in the Logans’ case, on the MSM which hounded them.

The link on Ihimaera’s buyback offer:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10610118

I don’t think so. Copyright will be held by his publisher, which has pulped the whole print run of the work containing plagiarism. This will have cost it thousands, perhaps tens of thousands.

Copyright lasts for a period after the author’s death. Some lawyer might tell us whether its 50 years or 75 years. The publisher in effect buys the right to publish the work in return for a royalty payment. If the work is out of copyright, it is then in the public domain and the publisher need not pay royalty.

TVB says Ihimaera wants to “buy back the book”. That would entail paying for the cost of the pulped edition, including publisher’s legal and research fees. Never mind, plenty of arts and other handout money to cover this.