I recently looked over my list of reviews for 'suggested edits'. I found a fair number of cases where the majority vote was to approve the addition of the self-study
tag. I was under the impression that our policy was to reject these edits, so I took a look at meta and found that this has been addressed here multiple times:
Should we tag questions that smell like homework?
Top answer at +16 begins: "I think it's fine to retag (without comment) as long as it is perfectly clear that the problem is homework"
Should I add the self-study tag to a question that is copy-pasted from a book?
Answers focus on a different aspect of the question (copy-pasting), but the comments show disagreement about whether tagging is acceptable.
Is it okay to add the [self-study] tag through an edit instead of asking OP to do it?
No answer, but top comment at +9 begins: "I am one of the people who approved that edit. I don't have a problem w/ people editing questions to add the [self-study] tag"
If rejecting an edit that adds the [self-study] tag, what reason should be given?
Top answer is one which does not reject such edits, and also states: "I usually type a custom message for the editor telling them to leave a comment for the OP". But comments under the question show disagreement.
Overall, the responses suggest a majority favour approving these edits, though there's a fair bit of disagreement. However, this is sharply at odds with the tag wiki info, which explicitly states:
The self-study tag should only be added by the one asking the question. If there's any room for doubt at all, it's best to leave it as is. Instead, always add a comment first requesting that the asker clarify the situation.
(Arguably, the second sentence walks back the first a bit, so ambiguity remains).
Whatever we decide as a community is fine with me, but I think the present situation is needlessly confusing. If the majority prefers to allow the addition of self-study
through edits, should we just change the tag info to reflect this? Or should we stick to the letter of the present law and reject these edits consistently?