The instructor, a graduate student at the University of Oklahoma, gave a zero to a student who wrote an essay arguing in ...

The paper by Samantha Fulnecky, published earlier by The Oklahoman and also posted online, received a zero by the instructor and has stirred a debate about academic freedom.

Fulnecky appealed her grade on the assignment, which was worth 3% of the final grade in the class, and the university said the assignment would not count. It also placed Curth on leave, and Oklahoma’s ...