On Cheating

This topic has come up several times in our classes this semester. It is certainly prevalent in all of our class to a degree and gradually becoming more popular. We mentioned Sange theories in connection with cheating that the spread is thanks to reinforcement. As more students cheat and get away scotch free, other student see and follow their example. This is certainly a problem that could be solved by designing for effective change. (Perhaps it could serve as the problem to solve in the next section of our class in the future.)

From the perspective of a student I can see it happening all around me. People are copying homework assignments at the last minute. Large portions of papers are plagiarized. Students are even cheating on exams. I remember once during my sophomore year when I walked into my professor's office hours just to ask a question when I found him, questioning a student who had cheated on his exam. I have heard other stories where due to the large size of the class, students are seated side by side. One just has to peak a little bit to see his neighbor's paper. Moreover, there are stories where the professor just sits at the front reading a newspaper or listening to his ipod.

To put is simply, there isn't an effective system in place which is a deterrence to cheating. Students feel safe enough that they will not get caught. The penalties are harsh if you happen to get caught, however the odds are very low. A few TAs find it too bothersome to check every homework assignment and then question the student to check to see if they had copied it or not. A professor of mine this semester started giving out group homework assignments. Since we are working together anyways, we might as turn in one assignment as a group rather than having someone copy it off others.

When I take an exam, there is one huge deterrence to me cheating. Other than the fact that cheating is wrong, I feel a deep fear from the pit of my stomach from the chance of being caught. This is true of many students. Every time, you raise you head from your paper, there is always a proctor watching you. His eyes seem to penetrate you and read your thoughts. However, there are students who do not feel this fear, or simply do not listen to their conscience. The most the proctor can do is to maintain the tension of an exam and keep everyone aware of the risks of being caught.

I recently had the chance to proctor an exam for a freshman class. I was advised by the professor to constantly be on the watch and pacing around for the entire length of the exam. This was the first time for me to be in this position and to monitor students. I came in with the idea that I will be sharp and immediately be able to spot cheaters with my student perspective. Yet, for the first time, I felt the challenges faced by the proctors. In a huge classroom, with around a hundred students spread around, it was impossible to keep an eye on all of them. I kept walking around the classroom, and realized that the most I could do was to keep the students aware of my presence. If they felt that I was always watching them, they might be deterred from cheating.

Apart from the idea proposed by professor in class, which was to change the questions on every examination, there isn't much more that the faculty can do. It is within each and every student whether to cheat or not to cheat. For someone very determined to cheat, there is nothing to stop them.