With the continuous growth of new technology like artificial intelligence, students today are finding new ways to pull a fast one right under their teachers’ noses; however, cheating is by no means a new concept. In 2017, former Torch News Editor Suzanne Brown wrote about a spike in cheating and the disparities between teachers and students when it came to academic dishonesty at Pine View.
With the rise of technology and the access to unlimited information with the click of a search button, classroom cheating has shifted away from old school methods and taken on a new, modern form. However, as high school students claim to notice a recent spike in the number of cheating incidents they’ve witnessed – particularly those involving phones – administrators and teachers have yet to see an increase in the amount of cheating cases reported.
Out of the numerous teachers and administrators interviewed, none claim to have received evidence of a recent rise in cheating. When asked whether or not there had been an increase in the number of cheating cases that have gone through administration this school year, Assistant Principal Jennifer Nzeza noted a decrease, if anything. “I think maybe I’ve received two referrals [sent to my desk regarding cheating] this entire year, where it /seemed like last year [cheating] was a huge epidemic,” she said.
Contrary to adult perspective, much of the student body feels as if the popularity of cheating is growing. “Cheating has been increasing a lot,” tenth-grader Pablo Gonzalez said. “Just these past few weeks, I’ve seen numerous cases of people cheating on tests… It feels unfair. People have gotten away with it so easily that you get this feeling like you can’t do anything about it.”
When performed electronically, cheating through cellphone communication sets itself apart by the ease in which information is distributed. Oftentimes photos of tests or answer keys spread so widely that the source of the images becomes lost in communication, making it difficult to pinpoint a culprit and carry out disciplinary actions.
A notable example of the above is a cheating incident that occurred last year in history teacher John Schweig’s AP World History classes, which led to a curriculum restructure. According to Schweig, a student managed to break into a file cabinet in his room and take photos of upcoming tests – including the mock- using his or her phone. Images of the tests circulated through text message group chats. “I’ve never had this happen before in 20 years of teaching,” Schweig said. “It was audacious [and] offensive.” Administrators were able to track down who took the photos and the perpetrator received punishment accordingly.
When discussing if there had been any trends in cheating since the incident, Schweig said, “I would say the level of cheating hasn’t changed recently that I’ve noticed. Obviously the advent of cellphones has given more worries to teachers, but I haven’t noticed an increase in cellphone based cheating, except for last year at that incident. I’d say cheating is still old school. You look at your neighbor’s paper. You talk to your fellow students about how the test was… and how it’s going to be. Old school cheating still thrives, but I haven’t noticed any increase in overall cheating.”
A tenth-grader who wished to remain anonymous disagreed and said that cheating was on the rise, recounting an incident in which the student unknowingly became involved. “People somehow got a hold of a chemistry test the day before, and I got sent pictures of the test… I had heard that pictures were being sent around by the particular person [who texted me]. I saw that there was an image attached to the text, so I never opened the message or anything, that way I wouldn’t be accused of cheating. I didn’t want to go to administration and say, ‘Hey, this person sent me pictures of the test, and these people are cheating.’ I have to go to school with these people for the next two and a half years,” the source said.
Because of the disparity between student and faculty perspective, it is difficult to say whether incidents like these are isolated. In cases where students are unknowingly sent unfair information via a peer, Nzeza said, “What do they do? It’s a hard question. [Students] don’t want to get in trouble, and they don’t want their friends in trouble necessarily… Kids are put in a very difficult position, but in the end, if they have received something they shouldn’t, the best course of action is to let us know.”
For students who are hesitant to report to administration, Nzeza advised innocent students not to worry. She said, “If you didn’t do anything and you just received [a photo of a test], and you can show me that … it’s going to come out in the end that you weren’t the one who took the photograph.”
As cheating becomes more of a discussion topic, teachers have sought numerous solutions to limit academic dishonesty. These range from leaving cell phones in a shoe rack at the back of the classroom to having multiple versions of a test. However, as students continue to acknowledge cheating as an issue, they are encouraged to speak up. Schweig said, “Teachers have to continue to be suspicious of human nature, and unfortunately sometimes expect the worst… But teachers also have to have a good enough relationship with the good kids that those kids will help keep justice going. Good kids don’t like to see bad kids gain an unfair advantage. If there’s a relationship of trust and respect between teachers and students, then the good kids will help keep the bad kids in check.”