Cheating

High achievers and low achievers alike are turning more and more to cheating to get an edge and boost their grades. This is an age-old problem but one that is getting worse in almost every aspect of school life. Athletes try to get the advantage by grabbing an opponents jersey, or pushing the other player out of the way. Students still create "cheat-sheets" or copy a friends homework to have an advantage. High tech as made it even easier for students to cheat. Increasing numbers of students are plagiarizing information found on the internet. Some students have been found with "cheat-sheets" so small that they almost go unnoticed by the teacher. These students are using their computer and a small font to create these miniature "cribs."

Just how extensive is the cheating problem in schools today? In a national survey of 356 high school teachers conducted in 1998 by The American School Board Journal, nine out of ten said that cheating is a problem in their schools, and half said they encounter students cheating in most of their classes. A nationwide poll of 20,000 middle and high school students released last year by the Josephson Institute of Ethics in Marina del Rey, California, illustrates the magnitude of the problem: Seven out of ten high schoolers admitted to having cheated on an exam. Most believe that if the stakes are high enough students will cheat.

Some of the worst offenders of cheating are the high achievers. According to a 1998 survey of 3,123 teenagers by Who's Who among American High School Students, found that 80 percent of the nation's best students admit to cheating on an exam. This is a 10-point increase since the question was first asked some 15 years ago. The survey also found that the most common reason for this group's cheating is "competition for good grades." Worse yet, one of every two students said cheating "didn't seem like a big deal." Many are disturbed that students seem to have a different perspective on cheating today. Twenty years ago students might cheat out of necessity but feel guilty about it. But today that doesn't seem to be the case.

Fingers point in many directions when placing blame. A general erosion of ethics in a self-absorbed society is cited by many educators. Some teachers claim that cheating has increased because students are so use to working together in groups, i.e., cooperative learning, that they rely on someone else to do the work and get the answers. Others say that parents deserve part of the blame with their over-indulging ways with their children and their eagerness to defend their kids at all costs. Still others blame fellow teachers, saying there are teachers who make it easy for students to cheat and don't want to deal with the hassle of disciplining them.

What schools can do to curb student cheating:

• Survey parents, students, and teachers to find out how serious the problem is in your school.
• Tell teachers not to give the same tests year after year. Some teachers go so far as having two different versions of the same test for just one class.
• Have a policy on cheating that clearly states the consequences. For example, a student caught cheating on a test gets a zero on the exam with no make-up or re-take provisions.
• Teachers must not only be consistent in disciplining students caught cheating but more aggressive in catching cheaters. We address this problem in our Suspension Discipline Learning Packets by having students read about why it is wrong to be dishonest, read stories and anecdotes to demonstrate the inappropriate behavior and set goals so they won't repeat the offense.
• Ellicit parent help. For example, parents can talk with their kids about why cheating is wrong and monitor them to make sure they are doing their own homework and putting in the time to study for tests.
• Ellicit student help. Have teachers talk with students about the value of honest and integrity. There are many good character education programs on the market today, like Character Counts.

Cheating has become an epidemic in many American schools. Don't let it become an outbreak in yours. You can help curb the cheating problem in your school by working with students, staff, and parents and stressing the importance of honesty and developing clear policy on consequences for those who choose to be dishonest. Take a pro-active stance against cheating in your school and you are sure to see positive results.