Cheating Epidemic in Education – Part 2
This topic has really seemed to touch a nerve and its gotten more comments than any other post I’ve written. Responses varied from shock to a pragmatic “so what?”
Today, I’d like to look at the subject from two different perspectives, national and global.
Let’s talk about the global situation first, O.K?
While my Introduction and Part One on this topic focused on studies done in the United States, there have been studies done globally as well.
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In Britain, the Secretary of Education has called for a total revamp of the coursework system before 2008 testing can occur. This is in response to the results of a government study that showed massive cheating at A-level exams.
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In France, the Baccalaureate exams were found to have a high level of cheating.
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Across Asia, web-based bulletin boards have been discovered with answers posted for university Foreign Language tests, the scores of which are the basis for admittance of foreign students into most U.S. colleges
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In India, the ultra-competitive entrance exams have been sold again and again, for up to $15,000 for the Pre-Medical Test alone. Sales have allowed sellers to pocket at least $1 million dollars.
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In China, powerful gangs run web-based agencies where students can hire look-a-likes who are experts in their subject matter to take their tests for them.
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And in South Korea, the biggest cheating scandal occurred in 2005, when more than 20 ‘cheating rings’ text-messaged answers to test-taking students.
And now for another look at the situation in the USA
Sadly, cheating has become so common in the U.S. that now it’s an accepted norm.
There are many reasons for, and many ways of cheating, from utilizing technological advances, to taking illegal drugs to enhance alertness, to plagiarism and more.
Yes, there are occasional expulsions when high-profile students are discovered cheating, but by and large, it goes on unchallenged.
Competition for grades, admission into college, and seeking employment is tougher than ever before. And it’s only going to get worse as the global economy shrinks. Too many students and prospective employees are convinced that cheating is the only way to advance in our increasingly competitive society.
And, as a perfect example of cheating on a national level, there is NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND. Federal funds are tied into test results from NCLB and tests are being rigged at state and school levels. With no basis for comparison, and no regulatory watchdogs, states and schools have cheated at NCLB since it’s inception. With such a flawed program, what did Congress expect? And why haven’t they even bothered to work at fixing it?
Sadly, cheating is commonplace. It’s so pervasive that schools are starting to reshape academic admission programs. But there will always be people who will figure out the new programs and prefer to cheat at whatever system is implemented.
Several of my commenters mentioned their concerns about the doctors of the future cheating their way through Med school. That is scary, but there are even bigger problems to worry about. Cheating is now commonplace from k-12 through college, and then in the marketplace.
Instead of admiring the anti-hero cheaters, all the way from athletic scholarship students who don’t attend classes, to Enron, we better start thinking about what this means to our society as a future. We’re going to have more problems than just doctors that don’t know medicine.
Brennan
