Cheating In Schools: What Can Be Done?

In last year’s college admissions scandal, Rick Singer was accused of receiving twenty-five million dollars from rich parents to bribe coaches, create false athletic records, and doctor SAT scores (Westfall). The story underscores the win-at-all-costs measures taken by parents and students to get into highly competitive colleges at the expense of academic integrity regardless of the students’ qualifications. In recent years, there have been increasing numbers of cheating scandals. Approximately 75% of college students surveyed each year have admitted to having cheated at some point during their academic careers (Frank). This supports the notion that academic success is more important to students than learning the material. The question is why? Ideally, academic success is aligned to mastery of the material. However, when the pressure is on, students prioritize performing well even to the point of cheating over learning the material. This issue can be resolved if the education system changed to focus more on teaching for the sake of learning instead of teaching to the test.

With dropping acceptance rates and higher SAT scores, students are pressured to perform well both in school and on their SATs. Not only are there now more high school graduates than ever, but there are also a greater percentage of these students applying for college. The number of high school graduates jumped from 2.5 million in 2011 to 3.6 million in 2006. Thirty years ago, only half of high school graduates were applying to college. Now, more than two-thirds of students are applying to college. High schoolers are well aware of the increasing competition for college admissions. In 1975, 3.2% of students applied to at least seven colleges. In 2006, this number increased to 17.4% (Bierer). Students live in fear of being rejected by a college, thus applying to as many colleges as possible. These students have no control over the growing number of high school graduates and rising competition. In an effort to cope with these pressure factors, some students resort to cheating. It is evident that this type of pressure inclines students to cheat. According to the president of Teaching That Makes Sense Steve Peha, “We’re all inclined to cheat when the pressure to achieve good grades is greater than what we think we can do on our own in a given situation” (Fanning). Students are not confident in their understanding of the material, so they go to unethical lengths to achieve a good grade.

Cheating is harmful to other students, creates a culture of mistrust, and devalues education. Therefore, cheating must be prevented. It is easy to simply say that cheaters only do harm to themselves. The reality is that “the people getting hurt are the hard-working students who are trying to compete honestly with their peers” (Fanning). Cheating also harms the disabled. In recent scandals, students purported to having learning disabilities and used testing accommodations to cheat on their SATs. The issue with this is that it causes people to view testing accommodations as a method of cheating. In actuality, testing accommodations are an important tool for those who can not physically complete tests on their own (Hitselberger). Studies have shown a strong correlation to cheating in high school and perpetuating that in the workplace (Rivera). This cheating mentality is dangerous in the workplace, as it can produce a culture of mistrust. If students do not see the harm in cheating, they will not have any reason to suspect everybody of cheating (Hudgens). Most would agree that they would not trust a surgeon that cheated on his or her medical exams, or a pilot if she or he cheated through flight school. The same ideology can be applied to the education system. If cheating is deemed acceptable in schools, then diplomas are no indication of actual achievement. The school system must be changed to alter the dishonest mindset of students.

In order to give value to education, it is the responsibility of educators to emphasize learning over test grades. The ideal classroom is one that promotes passion for the material and best prepares students for their future. Yet, this possibility seems to be so far away from the current education system that it is often overwhelming to think about. The first thing that educators must consider is eliminating the grading system, standardized testing, and the stress associated with them. Starting with the grading system, it is often linked with diminished motivation, a superficial mindset, and a preference for simple tasks (Kohn). Some schools have already abolished grades and have become a model for success. At one middle school, principal Janet Stork did away with the grading system and reported that more graduating students than ever heading to selective middle schools were accepted at their top choices. The admissions officers from these schools told her that her school’s narrative reports offered “‘a far richer understanding of [the] students than a GPA could provide’” (Kohn). High school English teacher Jim Drier teaches all of his classes, including an AP class, free of grades. Instead of grades, he offers comments to minimize the harm grades do within classrooms. At the end of the term, Drier meets with each student individually to review their coursework and decide what grade the student should turn in. Drier claimed that this system of evaluating the student lead to “meaningful” and “rich” conversations (Kohn). These are the types of conversations that students and teachers must have to leave a lasting mark on students as they continue on into their careers.

Eliminating standardized testing is another effort that educators can make to increase the meaningfulness education has with students. Standardized testing is ultimately not a determining factor as to whether or not a student is smart. An MIT study of 1,400 eighth graders found that students’ performance on standardized testing had no correlation to fluid intelligence skills. Fluid intelligence skills include working speed of information processing, working memory capacity, and the ability to solve abstract problems (Goldberg). These skills are important, as they are a student’s ability to analyze and solve problems with a more complex level of thinking (Logsdon). Students need these reasoning capabilities in their everyday lives and as they approach adulthood. So many parents today believe that a student’s intelligence is tied to standardized testing alone, when in reality this is all but true. By eliminating standardized testing, it takes unnecessary stress off the student and allows classrooms to focus on developing fluid intelligence skills.

A few of the most successful schooling countries like Finland, Wales, and Singapore have successfully implemented this policy. Singapore is well regarded for ranking first in the international PISA tests at the time it was given. Starting at the beginning of this year, the city-state dropped standardized exams, minimum and maximum marks, and subject grades for primary 1st and 2nd level students. In an address to 1,700 school leaders last year, the Education Minister Ong Ke Yung announced that learning is “‘not a competition, but a self-discipline they need to master for life’” (Ras). By implementing a learning for life initiative, Singapore hopes to follow the example of other successful education systems around the world. One of these countries is Finland, where standardized testing has been abolished and students are considered to be some of the best young readers and mathematicians in the world. There, educators emphasize a stress-free environment. According to Finnish teacher Kari Louhivuori, “Children learn better when they are ready, why stress them out?” (Hancock). Students have been shown to benefit from both a testing-free and grading-free environment. Instead of focusing on learning, American schools tend to prioritize systems judging the performance of students. This unnecessary stress inhibits learning and is counterproductive. Eliminating stress is one of the most important components to a valuable education system.

Another important component to a successful education system is emphasizing passion and sparking curiosity. Schools that have put students’ passions at the forefront of learning have shown to be successful. At Design 39 Campus middle school in San Diego, an emphasis is put on creativity and personal learning. By incorporating 45 minute electives at the end of each day, students are free to explore their passions and recognize how these passions are changing. The Design 39 Campus was ranked as the highest performing middle school district in 2018 and was presented as a school model as an exemplar to the U.S. Department of Education (“Explorations: Making Curiosity A Part of The Curriculum”). These schools help prepare students for their lives and while incorporating elements of STEM into their curriculum. Real-world applications in education play an increasingly large role with today’s global economy (Carter). Going back to the example of Finland, students are taught communication, art, and language from an early age (Hancock). Not only are these subjects engaging, but they prepare children for jobs yet to exist. When learning is no longer a task and becomes a passion, students are willing to learn regardless of their performance.

Learning is ultimately the purpose of schooling, and not test performance. By implementing certain measures, not only can cheating be prevented, but students learn in the process. Eliminating elements of stress and sparking curiosity will give students the opportunity to focus on learning and learning alone. Dishonesty is not necessary in an ideal classroom environment. Although many educational systems still have a long way to go, curricula around the world have proven that these classrooms do exist. The perfect classroom is not far away. With all the components in place, it is in the hands of educators to now take action. Of course, enforcing such a system will require a great amount of bravery and persistence. However, educators will realize the benefits greatly outweigh the consequences. By reducing the emphasis on grades and putting learning in the hands of students, educators can ensure a more positive learning environment for years to come.

Works Cited

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