Newspaper Page Text
Methods Are Unchanged;
Cheating Remains Problem
BY DEBRA NEWELL
From grammar school states and capitols to college algebra, some things
remain ihe same. After the test is passed out, eyes begin to roam. Some students
suddenly find their desk tops or hands very interesting. A few begin discreetly
dismantling their pens and pulling out microscopic notes which would do justice to
the Man from UNCLE.’
Cheating is as old as time and as inevitable, according to faculty members of
West Georgia s biology, chemistry, history, political science, and math depart
ments.
Categorized as an academic irregularity, cheating is addressed in the student
handbook as follows: “No student shall receive or give assistance not authorized
by the instructor in preparation of any essay, laboratory report, examination, or
any assignment included in any academic course.’’
Although not having dealt directly with the problem. Vice President John Lewis
notes that its wide spread occurrence on campus is some cause for concern.
“I have heard members of the student government association express concern
about this,” he said.
According to one faculty member, at least five per cent of his students cheat. He
finds a confirmed case at least once per examination.
“There are usually eight or nine instances per exam where I have reason to
suspect, though with some doubts,’’ he said.
Although the regularity with which cheating occurs varies, all faculty members
had had some experiences with the matter.
Just what happens after an instructor confronts a student whom he suspects of
cheating seems to be an individual matter.
Lewis explains, “As with any other disciplinary problem, the student might
receive an F’ on that particular paper or for the course or he might be removed
from the class. ’’
Students may appeal these decisions to the appeals committee.
Some instructors regard this problem as an internal one and deal with it on a one
to one basis with the student involved. Actions taken include warnings, failing
grades, and conferences.
In some instances, the situation finds itself on the desk of the dean of the par
ticular school involved. This is usually the case when students do not adhere to the
warnings they receive. ... . . ,
Student responses vary from sheepishness to resignation and an attitude of,
“Well, I’ve been caught,” to indignation and belligerence in the face of factual
proof, the faculty members said.
Dealing with active participants of the cheating game is easier than dealing with
accomplices, some of whom are willing and some of whom are not.
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“The brighter students often have problems,” said one faculty member, "with
their friends pressuring them to help out. In some cases they really don’t know
what is going on. It is hard to hide your test paper.”
What kind of student cheats? Almost any kind may, according to the faculty
members.
Sometimes it is the student who has made consistently poor grades and is really
desperate. Other cases involve students who, according to one faculty member,
“have partied a lot instead of studying and still want to make a fair grade.”
Another says, “Sometimes students who have made good grades all along are
unprepared for a particular exam and get nervous.
Methods also vary, though none of the faculty members have noticed any par
ticularly imaginative or sophisticated procedures. There are the "pre meditated”
crimes involving cheat sheets or other planned means of deception. Other cases
are simply spontaneous panic.
“I’ve seen some students pass only as a result of cheating,” said one faculty
member,” And I have also seen students who would have barely passed, flunk
because of a ‘o’ they received for cheating.”
Although they might not feel the results of their actions during their schooling,
one faculty member points out that cheaters get a slap in the face when skills they
supposedly learned in school are required of them in the job market and they
cannot deliver.
In addition to after the fact actions concerning cheating, some faculty members
employ preventive measures such as special seating arrangements, requiring all
the steps for math problems instead of just the answers, and different tests ad
ministered in the same class.
Lewis notes that, “Multiple choice tests are notorious for cheating. Also, some
tests are seen more than one year. Essay tests are not totally free from cheating,
but it is more difficult.”
West Georgia does not have one blanket rule governing cheating and the faculty
members stated that they did not wish to see this matter change.
Steps toward solving the problem, according to Lewis, should involve, “Better
supervision by individual instructors in their classrooms.”
TMI WIST QIOtOIAN FttOAV OCTOMt *.
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