Teen Student Jumps to Her Death After Caught Cheating on Test

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Blondie in Spokane

Blondie in Spokane

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http://nypost.com/2014/05/30/teen-student-jumps-to-death-after-shes-caught-cheating/

A bright student at a top city high school was humiliated in front of her classmates for cheating on a test — and was so ashamed that she jumped to her death in the Hudson River Thursday, sources told The Post.

Omotayo Adeoye, 17, of The Bronx, wrote a suicide note right on her German-language exam that read, “I just want to go away forever on the bottom of the river,” law-enforcement sources said.

Divers were still searching Friday night for the biology whiz in the waters off Washington Heights, where she jumped in Thursday afternoon.
 
From above link:

“She snatched it (cell phone) away from her and started screaming at her, ‘Oh, you shouldn’t be cheating! You guys shouldn’t be cheating! You guys are lying to yourselves!’ ”

Adeoye burst into tears, sobbing, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“Oh, you are not really sorry,” Malikova allegedly snapped back. “That’s not a sincere apology!”

Law-enforcement sources confirmed the classroom exchange.

At around 2:15 p.m., a teary-eyed Adeoye scrawled her desperate note on the test, then asked to use the bathroom.

She never returned — instead walking from the West 140th Street school to the Hudson River’s edge at West 165th Street.

Shocked fishermen watched helplessly as she placed her ID on a rock, then jumped in the water.
 
How heartbreaking!




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I hope this is not blamed on the teacher,her reaction to cheating was not that severe.I would bet there is more going on with the girl ot there is some knd of cultural stigma.
 
cuffem said:
I hope this is not blamed on the teacher,her reaction to cheating was not that severe.I would bet there is more going on with the girl ot there is some knd of cultural stigma.
Click to expand...


I have a problem with the teachers reaction. snatching the phone out of her hand and screaming at her. It's totally uncalled for.

Some children are placed under huge amounts of pressure to get all A's by their parents. (Tiger Mom) I suspect that in this case.

We need to teach our kids that their very best is good enough. If that means getting a "c" or even an "f" so be it.






Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
sad but the teacher can't be blamed

if only Omotayo had given it one day ... one day to be embarrassed and afraid to face her parents ... one day to cry and feel sad ... one day to realize that it's not the end of the world and it will get better ...
 
I agree with others that the teacher bears no blame for this. We absolutely cannot prevent teachers from voicing strong disapproval of academic dishonesty, IMO. There is no reasonable imperative to shield the dignity of students who cheat, and handle them with kid gloves. I think her reaction was swift and appropriate. I'm not convinced her reaction was inappropriate at all, and she clearly cared for this student. It sounds like she was devastated when she heard what Omotayo did.

This is profoundly sad. I agree that there may be a family social or cultural imperative at work to where Omotayo felt so ashamed and in despair that she could see no other option in the immediate hours. And that is really even more sad than the teacher's reaction to the cheating, IMO. And we also know teens are impulsive, the ability to connect actions to consequences is still maturing, etc.

I'm reminded of the college drop out 2 weeks ago that called in 2 bomb threats to prevent her family from finding out she wasn't graduating. Arguably another extreme response to probable shame and embarrassment and disappointment. She is undoubtedly going to do some jail or prison time for that.-- further shame, and now with a history she will forever have to explain when eventually looking for a job. A brash moment of pure impulsive stupidity that she will not overcome in a lifetime, IMO.

http://nypost.com/2014/05/19/dropout-calls-in-graduation-bomb-threat-to-hide-from-parents/
 
Linda7NJ said:
I have a problem with the teachers reaction. snatching the phone out of her hand and screaming at her. It's totally uncalled for.

Some children are placed under huge amounts of pressure to get all A's by their parents. (Tiger Mom) I suspect that in this case.

We need to teach our kids that their very best is good enough. If that means getting a "c" or even an "f" so be it.






Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

The teacher was probably a bit miffed about the phone,perhaps she had told them not to use them.Grabbing the phone from a student is not severe,she did not lay a hand on her.It was not the reaction of the teacher that caused the suicide,it was that she was caught disobeying rules and would be in trouble with school and parents.Even if the teacher did not react the student most likely still would have jumped.More going on with this child,very sad.
 
My daughter is really intelligent. I mean, smart as a whip -- but she hates school and is not achieving well at all. Though I also had a high IQ/extremely spotty grades in my own schooling, it's hard not to feel ashamed for the fact my child is not academically inclined -at all- and likely will not go to college, she'll be lucky to finish high school.

In my youth, that wasn't a problem. Girls did apprenticeships, worked in local industry, went on to own businesses, or they just became full-time mums and that was *nothing* to be ashamed about!!! My family were the issue there - high expectations, so I did college, though I did nothing much *with* it.

Now, it's all about career paths chosen by age 14 (for goodness' sake), college education and being 'competitive', making your parents proud of your grades. So much pressure!!! And pressure on parents, too, to make sure their child is up there with the A-students.

I keep telling my girl, she's smart and all her limbs work, which is more than some folks with good jobs have, so I do not fear for her future. I have faith she'll make a good path for herself in the world, and to hell with people who tell her she's doomed for not wanting to go to college. I must add, I tell her these things, because I believe them, but also because she gets a very hard time from other people about having no plans for college and that makes her feel bad about herself.

Poor girl. I agree, not the teacher's fault, I'd be disappointed in a teacher who did not reprimand my child or her classmates for cheating.
 
Blondie in Spokane said:
http://nypost.com/2014/05/30/teen-student-jumps-to-death-after-shes-caught-cheating/

A bright student at a top city high school was humiliated in front of her classmates for cheating on a test — and was so ashamed that she jumped to her death in the Hudson River Thursday, sources told The Post.

Omotayo Adeoye, 17, of The Bronx, wrote a suicide note right on her German-language exam that read, “I just want to go away forever on the bottom of the river,” law-enforcement sources said.

Divers were still searching Friday night for the biology whiz in the waters off Washington Heights, where she jumped in Thursday afternoon.
Click to expand...

From the link.

Malikova could not be reached for comment, but several students said they heard her screaming in anguish at the school this morning.

She did not teach any classes.

If it is confirmed that Adeoye killed herself, it would bring the total number of public-school student suicides to 14 so far this year, the DOE said.

The teacher is clearly very distraught about her death.
 
I lived in Japan for about 5 years, so I have personally seen a lot of cultural imperatives around academic achievement in that part of the world. The pressure placed on kids there to achieve academically is insane. From early elementary school kids are enrolled in expensive and prestigious "cram schools" after regular school hours-- as compared to U.S. kids who play soccer or other sports and hobbies after school.

The cultural pressures surrounding academics are so extreme in Japan, that during standardized exams, we had to literally shut down the flight line-- no aircraft taking off or landing without high level approval. No noise pollution of any kind is allowed. Our medical airevac flights were charged a huge "fine" for the noise pollution during exams.
 
Reminds me of this article from last year, KZ:

School Issues Reminder To Students Not To Kill Themselves

The main purpose of the handout appeared to be a reminder to students that the leading cause of death in high-school students was suicide, and that they should talk things over with a teacher if anything was worrying them.

http://www.japancrush.com/2013/stor...inder-to-students-not-to-kill-themselves.html
 
I'm not blaming the teacher for the suicide, but I'm surprised she felt allowed to take the phone and reprimand the student on the spot.

When I taught at UCLA, if I discovered cheating, I wasn't allowed to confiscate a test or say anything to the offender. After the work was turned in, I had to take it and write a report as to why I believed the student's effort was illegitimate. Then the file went to the department chair who met with the student and got his side of the story (without further consultation with me).

THEN the results went to the university chancellor's office where someone decided what punishment, if any, would be inflicted (again with no further consultation with me or the Chair).

I have to say the one time I had a problem, I agreed with the Chancellor's "sentencing" of the three students involved. But it was a lengthy and complicated process.

The above may be unique to UCLA. A foreign language professor had previously had a problem with widespread cheating on an exam by members of a particular ethnic group. The cheaters' parents formed a collective, hired a lawyer and sued for racial discrimination. Perhaps it was decided to send everything to the Chancellor's office to avoid legal problems, but it certainly kept students from being embarrassed in class.

Whatever NYC's policy, I do feel for the teacher, even if she was just having a bad moment. I don't know I would have ever recovered if one of my students hurt herself because of something I said, however justified.
 
Ausgirl said:
My daughter is really intelligent. I mean, smart as a whip -- but she hates school and is not achieving well at all. Though I also had a high IQ/extremely spotty grades in my own schooling, it's hard not to feel ashamed for the fact my child is not academically inclined -at all- and likely will not go to college, she'll be lucky to finish high school.

In my youth, that wasn't a problem. Girls did apprenticeships, worked in local industry, went on to own businesses, or they just became full-time mums and that was *nothing* to be ashamed about!!! My family were the issue there - high expectations, so I did college, though I did nothing much *with* it.

Now, it's all about career paths chosen by age 14 (for goodness' sake), college education and being 'competitive', making your parents proud of your grades. So much pressure!!! And pressure on parents, too, to make sure their child is up there with the A-students.

I keep telling my girl, she's smart and all her limbs work, which is more than some folks with good jobs have, so I do not fear for her future. I have faith she'll make a good path for herself in the world, and to hell with people who tell her she's doomed for not wanting to go to college. I must add, I tell her these things, because I believe them, but also because she gets a very hard time from other people about having no plans for college and that makes her feel bad about herself.

Poor girl. I agree, not the teacher's fault, I'd be disappointed in a teacher who did not reprimand my child or her classmates for cheating.
Click to expand...



My daughter struggled with the same issues. Her school, a really small country school, really pushes the students in the same way your daughter was pushed. She was put in the honors classes, in the honor society, graduated with honors. We were very proud of her.

However, she really struggled with this. All her friends knew exactly what they wanted to do after graduation. Careers, college, etc. DD Didn't want to do this. She wanted to work and just get on with life. But it caused some real problems as she felt like she had failed in some way because she was the only one of her friends that did not not want a career or degree.

We had so many talks where we were constantly reassuring her she was not a failure and there was nothing wrong with wanting to work , then get married and be a wife and mom.

She married at 21. Her DH makes enough money that she is able to do exactly what she wanted to do. At 25 she has an infant son and works two days a week just to get out a bit as her DH is offshore 28 days at a time. We keep the baby so she can get out those two days. She is doing exactly what she always wanted to do. In the eyes of the world she might be seen as a failure, but not in her eyes or ours. It has taken her all this time to come to terms with being ok not having a degree or career outside the home. She is very happy knowing she will raise her children and thankful she can, as many woman have to work.

We put way too much pressure on young girls these days.
 
killarney rose said:
My daughter struggled with the same issues. Her school, a really small country school, really pushes the students in the same way your daughter was pushed. She was put in the honors classes, in the honor society, graduated with honors. We were very proud of her.

However, she really struggled with this. All her friends knew exactly what they wanted to do after graduation. Careers, college, etc. DD Didn't want to do this. She wanted to work and just get on with life. But it caused some real problems as she felt like she had failed in some way because she was the only one of her friends that did not not want a career or degree.

We had so many talks where we were constantly reassuring her she was not a failure and there was nothing wrong with wanting to work , then get married and be a wife and mom.

She married at 21. Her DH makes enough money that she is able to do exactly what she wanted to do. At 25 she has an infant son and works two days a week just to get out a bit as her DH is offshore 28 days at a time. We keep the baby so she can get out those two days. She is doing exactly what she always wanted to do. In the eyes of the world she might be seen as a failure, but not in her eyes or ours. It has taken her all this time to come to terms with being ok not having a degree or career outside the home. She is very happy knowing she will raise her children and thankful she can, as many woman have to work.

We put way too much pressure on young girls these days.
Click to expand...

Isn't it odd how the tide has turned. It wasn't all that many years ago (2 generations?) that the opposite was true. You were expected to graduate high school, maybe go to college or get a little office job, but just until you managed to land a husband. Then it was all about raising babies and keeping house. If you were a working mother, YOU were the odd one out.

Now if you stay home with your kids, you get flack about it. You're lazy. I mean, really? Why do people care so much what other people do? Why put pressure on your kids/friends/people you don't even know, to live the way YOU want them to live? If someone does or doesn't want to go to college, how is that anyone else's business? As long as someone is not sponging off society, leave them alone.
 
While I feel no blame can fall on the teacher legally, she is responsible due to the way she handled it. Did it have to be in front of the whole class? Could she not have spoke to her privately? Did she have to snatch the phone and yell drawing attention to her? Was it anyone else's business?


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Why are students allowed to use phones during a test? Or are they? Students will cheat if they have access to their phone IMO. That's why I demand that all students place their phone on my desk or they don't get their test. I think the student was afraid that her parents were going to be notified about the cheating and was fearful of the reprimand at home. The reaction of the teacher could have been more discrete IMO. I would have taken the phone away immediately and spoken to the student afterwards about what should be done. If she was a stellar student, why flip out in front of her peers? The teacher would know if she was an authentic A+ student or not. Such a waste. It's horrible that more young people are turning to suicide.
 
I don't think the students were allowed to use phones during text. That's why the student was accused of cheating, because she was using her phone.
Tragic situation, but I am sure teacher didn't expect that the student was going to kill herself over something so trivial as this.
 
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