Dalexi Carrillo ‘12
EE Staff Writer
Have you ever considered cheating on a test? One quick glance at the paper next to you could be the difference between passing and failing. Throughout the past years, cheating has escalated drastically in the education setting, and more specifically in the high school learning area.
Everyone, including teachers and students, know that cheating is nothing new. As long as there are students, there will always be some that cheat. However, the indifference behind the cheating shows that it is evolving into a more prominent problem.
Due to the significant impact of technology in today’s society, forms of cheating are no longer limited to the traditional peeking and copying from another’s test. With unlimited access to the Internet, teens are able to easily copy text from websites and turn them in as their own work.
In the Trumbull High Handbook, the policy and consequences behind academic honesty are explained. Cheating and plagiarism are seen as “serious violations that undermine learning, hamper competence, and tear down ethical behavior.” . Pijar, Dean of Students, enforces this by stating, “Students know what is considered acceptable behavior and what is academically dishonest.”
Even though the handbook explains the cheating policy and affirms the consequences, is cheating really a problem at Trumbull High?
When asked this question, senior Rhianna Sefferian stated, “Cheating does happen, but it’s more like ‘little cheating,’ such as copying homework.”
Sefferian continued to say, “Teenagers are really busy people and during the week, do not have too much free time and I don’t think teachers understand that.” Teachers do not see that the pressures begin to build, and as a result cheating on homework has become, more or less, a generalization among current high school students.
Another senior, Emily Eilersten said, “Cheating is all relative. It really depends how you view high school. Some people, many of those who do cheat, just view high school as four years to get by.”
Humorously, senior Mark Poplowski stated, “While copying a classmate’s homework, you can build a friendship that would not have happened otherwise.”
Even though it is clear that students do cheat, many teachers and psychologists believe that it partly deals with the fact of whether or not the student is engaged in the course. High school teens may be more likely to cheat if they did not care about the course and or teacher or if they were forced to take the class.
Also, throughout the years, education has become an impersonal concept for some students, leading them to cheat. This evolvement within teens may be because their school is too big or a lack of connection to parents and or teachers. The importance of a good education may not be valued in some homes as much as others. Even problems within families or friends may take a toll in a teen’s life and place school in second place.
Moreover, with pressures like getting into a competitive college, balancing work and activities or pleasing their parents, students find themselves doing almost anything to get a decent grade on tests and other assignments. A university looks for a solid and competitive curriculum with not only good grades, but also with various out-of-school activities. For many high school students, there are not enough hours in the day to fit in all after-school activities, homework, and the appropriate study time.
Why do you cheat?
