As we kick off the new school year at New Trier, students are refreshed on the rules regarding Academic Integrity from the Student Handbook. One of the most important sections that students are aware of is about cheating. Most every student knows that cheating is morally wrong but how come there are still some students who engage in this unethical epidemic?
I was reading an article on the New York Times website that talked about the growing number of students that are cheating, even in top notch high schools and universities across the country.One recent example includes Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan where more than 80 students were accused of sharing information via text messaging about state Regents Exams. With all of the technology at our disposal, cheating can become more widespread much quicker and fly "under the radar". Also in this day and age, it is even easier for cheating to happen because of the wide variety of resources that are available to students. For example, the Internet has opened endless doors for information but has also created the opportunity for vast amounts of plagiarism. Students can just copy and paste straight from the source into their work and call it their own. On one of the first days of class, Mr. O'Connor stressed to us the importance of citing our sources and not plagiarizing. The article also mentioned how unlike at New Trier, many students are unaware of the Academic Integrity polices at their schools and that parents do not do a great job of reinforcing these rules.
Students feel more pressure now than ever to succeed in what they do and will go through any means to reach their goals, even if this includes taking shortcuts. Donald L. McCabe, a researcher on cheating observed that students in the past who were struggling were usually the ones most likely to cheat but now, he is seeing that more high achieving students are cheating. In high school, students may feel pressure from their parents to get good grades, or even feel inadequate next to their peers. These can be reasons that drive students to cheat, McCabe describes.
Particularly in the US, there is a large emphasis on success and doing one's best. The future of the United States rests on the shoulders of young adults and some may collapse under this intense pressure. Cheating may slide by in high school and college but the act will have detrimental affects on the country if some continue down this path.
Lauren, I definitely have a strong opinion on this subject. I have witnessed fellow students cheating in class before, or on their homework and it drives me crazy! I definitely agree with you that cheating has been getting easier over the years with technology; not only do teachers have to worry about their students' honesty in class but on their homework as well because of the internet. However, I think that it is mainly the teacher of the class's responsibility to enforce rules and make sure that none of the students are cheating.
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