Cheating is a common problem in all schools.
Cheating constitutes things like copying answers and plagiarism, and can get students in a lot of trouble.
Most students cheat so that they can get the grades that they want.
Other reasons for cheating include stress and not having the time to do the work the proper way.
Teachers have recognized the fact that some students are willing to go above and beyond to achieve certains scores.
To curb this issue, many teachers have become much more aware of what happens in class during quizzes and tests.
But students cheating habits are evolving along with teachers.
Many cheaters have figured out new methods in order to avoid getting caught.
“With iPhones and all that technology, it’s a lot more challenging to be vigilant about everything that’s going on. So I’m sure that there’s a lot more going on than we realize,” Spanish teacher Maureen Hunt said.
Sometimes, cheaters don’t even care about whether or not fellow students see them or not.
“The weirdest way that I have seen someone cheat is when I saw a girl write things on her legs under her skirt,” senior Astha Banjara said.
“The strangest way that I’ve ever seen someone cheat is when a group of kids were throwing papers that had answers on them around the classroom,” senior Karla Castillo said.
But sometimes, cheaters’ creative efforts just aren’t enough, and they do get caught red handed.
“Once, a student had taken a water bottle and took the label off. And instead of writing down answers, he typed up a cheat sheet in really small letters,” Hunt said. “He rewrapped the paper around the water bottle and was sipping on it throughout the quiz until the student was caught.”
“Several years ago, students had to write an essay on oceanography. I had a student copy an article, cut and paste from Wikipedia,” geosystems teacher Eileen Walsh said. “He deleted every other sentence.”
Still, it’s obvious that cheating is a persistent issue that needs to be dealt with.
Students who cheat don’t get to benefit from all of the pros that come along with being a hardworking student.
This includes developing work ethic, study skills, and patience.
“Cheating is a problem because some students aren’t learning how to do their own work or how to cite sources properly,” Walsh said. “So in terms of life skills, I think that it’s a real issue.”
Other students also agree with this truth.
“When people cheat, it shows a lack of effort,” senior Luis Rodriguez said. “People who cheat are in a bad position because they can’t show their knowledge and intelligence.”