Cheating on Examinations - Essay Example

Sociology: Cheating on Examinations Upcoming generation is not much concerned about doing hard work for the success in life. They are looking for shortcuts in all the aspects of their life. It should be noted that the life styles of generations in the past and the current generation are entirely different. Because of the lack of facilities, older generation forced to do hard work whereas advancements in technology and living standards helped upcoming generation to lead a life with minimum hard work. “A review of over 40 studies found that 70.4% of college students report cheating. Of these, 43.1% report cheating on exams, and 40.9% report cheating on homework assignments. A study of high school and college students found that 76% of students reported that they had cheated on at least one examination. Another study conducted among 6,000 students at 31 selective colleges and universities, found that 70% of students admit to cheating on exams, 84% admit to cheating on written papers, and nearly 50% of the students admit to inappropriately collaborating with others on assignments” (Shapiro 1-2). Educational sector is one area in which teenagers look for shortcuts. Academic dishonesty or cheating on examinations is growing day by day everywhere in the world. Growing incidents of plagiarism is a big headache for teachers in deciding the level of progress of students. Many students have the belief that earning an academic degree at any cost is more important than learning. This paper analyses the factors which encourage and discourage me from cheating in examinations through the perspectives of a sociologist. Overload of assignment and project works are a motivating factor for me to cheat in this examination. Since a substantial portion of the grades are determined by internal assessments, it is critical for me to do well in internal assessment examinations. However, heavy loads of home works, assignments, term papers, project works, etc. are causing problems to me and encouraging me to search for shortcuts. It should be noted that the time periods allotted for the completion of assignments are insufficient facilitating me to explore shortcuts. Students are labelled as consumers by modern educational establishments. “In an ever more competitive marketplace, when state and federal spending is on the decline, universities are catering to students to boost enrolment numbers. As students are increasingly marketed to and recruited as ‘consumers’ they may be internalizing a privileged status and taking it into the classroom” (Shapiro 1). “As higher education becomes more of a business, with schools aggressively competing for the same students, if students are coming to college simply to get a credential, how these students get that credential becomes less-and-less important”(Shapiro 1).There is no point in blaming the students alone for displaying academic dishonesty of cheating behaviours. It should be noted that we are living in a world of commercialization. People judge every activity in terms of the profits it may generate. Education is becoming a business more or less as time goes on. School and college managements are more interested in making profits rather than trying to increase the quality of education. There are plenty of private schools and colleges which demand capitation fee for admissions. Students taking admissions after spending a huge amount of money as capitation fee may definitely try to pass the examination using all available means. In short, huge expenditures made on my studies by my parents is another motivating factor for me to cheat. The abilities of a student are judged based on the grade he achieves in an examination. It should be noted that the future of a student depends primarily on the grades he obtained in the examinations. No company may give employment to a youth if he fails to obtain a suitable grade in examination. For many students, the major objective of education is to secure an employment. Since employers give better jobs only to the students with higher grades, students often try to capture higher grades at any cost. “Research supports the claim that students who have a desire to learn or master a particular body of information are less likely to cheat than are students motivated by extrinsic factors such as ‘getting a better job’”(Shapiro 2). Another sociological factor which encourages me to engage in cheating behaviour is the influence of peers. Even honest students may become dishonest when they see the achievements of their fellow students using improper means. It should be noted that even ignorant people may get better grades than me using false means. When a bright and honest student sees the achievement of a dull student using improper means, he may sacrifice his ideals and ethics and may change his honest behaviour. “Perceived cheating tolerance by fellow students also seems to induce more cheating behaviors”(Shapiro 2). The above fact is true in the case of me as well. I have seen many dull students excel brilliantly in examinations whereas many brighter students perform poorly in examinations. One of the major reasons of such brilliant results among dull students is cheating and poor results among brilliant students are caused by lack of cheating. “Researchers conclude that students cheat because their peers do. As they point out, today’s students face a highly competitive world and try to take every advantage to receive top grades. In this context, recognizing that their peers are cheating and reaping the benefits of good grades without the requisite work, students do not want to be, or feel, that they are at a disadvantage. As earlier researchers in this field pointed out, social learning theory helps us make sense of this: we model our behaviour based on what we observe. If “everyone is doing it’, then it’s normal, right?”(Inniss). Social learning theory argues that people learn within a social context. Man is a social animal who loves the company of others. It is difficult for him to lead a lonely life. He accepts good and evil things from the society in which he stays. Even terrorist may become a saint if gets opportunity to develop in the company of good people. Same way even a saint may become a terrorist if he happens to be in the company of antisocial elements. In short, the influence of society upon our behaviour cannot be ruled out. Both heredity and environment are equally important in the development of a person. So it is difficult for a student to stay away from cheating like activities, while living in a society which encourages all malpractices. “Bandura’s Social Learning Theory posits that people learn from one another, via observation, imitation, and modeling. The theory has often been called a bridge between behaviorist and cognitive learning theories because it encompasses attention, memory, and motivation” (Bandura). “Academic dishonesty does not seem to be linked with authoritarianism. On the other hand, religious values have been found to decrease student cheating. Furthermore, the stage of moral development has been found to be correlated with academic dishonesty” (Lambert & Hogan). Morality and ethics are rapidly disappearing from this world because of various reasons. Religions were the saviours of morals and values in the past. However, religions are losing popularity in the modern world and so does morals and ideals. Survival at any cost is the slogan adopted by the modern generation. They give more importance to the life in this world and reject the ideas of life after death. For many of the upcoming generation the objective of life is enjoyment. In order to enjoy life properly, money is required. Money can be earned through employment and employment depends on the grades obtained on the examinations. In short, changing life styles, life philosophies and attitudes contribute heavily to academic dishonesty and cheating behaviours of students. Being a person who has immense faith in religion, ethics and morals, I cannot think about academic dishonesty even though other factors encourage me to do so. I strongly believe that life in this world is a temporary assignment and a permanent assignment is waiting after the death. I wanted to perform better in the permanent assignment rather than in the temporary assignment. To conclude, there are plenty of pressures in our society which force a student to engage in academic dishonesty and cheating behaviours. As education is becoming more and more commercialised, students are doing everything possible to get better grades. Education can make or break a person as far as employment is concerned. Only those who get better grades may get better employment. While most of the students use shortcuts to get better grades, it is difficult even for an honest student to stay away from it. People judge the abilities of a student based on the grades he obtained rather than the way through which his studies completed. Morality and ethics are disappearing from this world because of the diminishing popularity of religions. The only way to encourage academic honesty is to educate students on the importance of keeping morals and ideals in personal and academic lives. As society plays an important role in shaping the behaviour of a person, it is necessary to work for the development of a healthy society first to prevent cheating like social evils. Works Cited Bandura, Albert. “Social Learning Theory (Bandura).” 2012. Web. 09 August 2012. Inniss, Janis Prince. “Do Cheaters Win in College?” 2010. Web. 09 August 2012. Lambert, Eric G., and Nancy Lynne Hogan. “Collegiate Academic Dishonesty Revisited: What Have They Done, How Often Have They Done It, Who Does It, And Why Did They Do It?” 2003. Electronic Journal of Sociology. Web. 09 August 2012. Shapiro, Paul D. “Entitled to Cheat: An Examination of Incoming Freshmen at a Small Regional University.” The Journal of Public and Professional Sociology 4.1 (2012). Print. Read More