This is entirely true, on almost all of my homework I have been specifically instructed to not communicate on more than a ideal level with any code that I write

This is entirely true, on almost all of my homework I have been specifically instructed to not communicate on more than a ideal level with any code that I write. They could just be missing a semicolon somewhere but I am not supposed to even look at people's code. This leads into group sessions basically everyone being silent and just asking for syntax help. It's dystopian.