Essay on Academic Dishonesty: A Corruptive Social Norm

Cheating has always been an issue among students. Almost everyone cheats in some fashion in classes. Whether it’s by blatantly copying another student’s answers, or working together on an assignment meant to be done on your own, cheating will remain a staple occurrence in academic life. In Rebekah Nathan’s article, “The Art of College Management: Cheating,” Nathan (2005) delves into students’ various reasons for cheating and even includes cheating as an “aspect[] of student culture,” (p. 27) from the point of view of a student. Nathan defends cheating as a whole by including it as an inevitable part of student culture. Additionally, she claims that everyone cheats, further diving into the idea that cheating is not inherently wrong. As a result of consistently defending cheating, Nathan neglects to provide worthy solutions to the issue as well as ignoring the consequences of cheating.

Grades tend to be more hurtful than anything. They have negative effects on students and how they learn. Cheating can become a series problem even with students who normally wouldn’t cheat. “Researchers have found that the more students are

Ethics are the principals that build an individual’s character and integrity. It is the code of conduct that a person lives by; it is the way that a person conducts themselves when no one is around. Stealing, lying, and cheating are wrong, yet every day in the workplace these issues occur. Growing competition lends to the need for people to do what they can to get ahead and stay ahead. Ethics are pushed to the side as people try to gain power or to stay out of trouble, all at the risk of tarnishing their character. This same mindset has spilled over into Academia. A student’s desire to successfully earn a degree by any means necessary has caused educational institutions to address these ethical issues by setting policies in place to combat academic dishonesty.

Cheating used to be considered an unmentionable sin. However, in this day and age, it has become more common and somewhat of a daily occurrence. Cheating is more widespread today than in the past. According to the article titled Education: The New Morality, cheating has not been an issue of values, but simply one of practicality. This shows that many view cheating as a mere occurrence and something that can often be skipped over. The reason cheating has become such a pervasive movement is because many students tend to rationalize their cheating behavior. A common rationalization that many students use is, " That 's the only way I 'll get anywhere in life." Many students also tend to incorporate reasons, such as parental pressures,

As defined by the Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Academic Integrity is the moral code or ethical policy of academia. This includes values such as avoidance of cheating or plagiarism; maintenance of academic standards; honesty and rigor in research and academic publishing. Many believe academic integrity to be a strong, pervasive and understood rule when going to Universities and Community Colleges across the globe; however, in the recent decades, abiding to the rules and policies to uphold academic integrity has slowly become more problematic for students across the board. Thesis?

They may also cheat because of the pressure that has been put on them to succeed. Some may cheat because they are worn-out, lazy or not concerned with it. Some may because they feel flooded with all the info that our internet search engines provide them, so they feel that they really have nothing different to say. And finally some do it just to see if they can put one over on the system, the school and finally their professor. (Chace, W.M., 24)

Over the years, cheating does not carry the same stigma it used to represent. Because of competition and expectations, students are doing whatever it takes to achieve an A average. There are students who are fighting for scholarships or for the position to be on the top. Also, parents and teachers are the root cause of this matter because they have advocated the idea that high GPAs will lead to more successful futures. As a result, grades have become the main focus for most students,

As college standards increase yearly, students feel greater pressure to succeed. As a result of the rising academic expectations, cheating has become a national issue and most students have admitted to cheating at least once in their educational career. Overloaded with school work, students see cheating as an advantage and step towards academic success. Thus, cheating results from an urgency to do well in school and being overscheduled.

75% of college students cheat at one time or another in their college careers due to laziness, competitive pressures, or simply fear. In “Cheating Lessons: Part 3”, by James M. Lang, he explains that certain learning environments unknowingly give students opportunities to cheat. Lang also provides tactics to help classrooms reduce the numbers of cheating, while aiding students to achieve their academic goals with the right “tools.”

After reading “Stuyvesant Students Describe the How and the Why of Cheating” by Vivian Yee, I can wholeheartedly agree with the opinions and facts presented in the article. Why? The cheating described, whether light or serious, is prevalent in the schools that I have attended. The goal of attending a prestigious university and obtaining a prestigious job has led to a craze over grades, to the point where students describe the feeling as “...addictive, in a bad way, in a sick way” (Yee 20). Similarly, the craze over better grades has led to various actions of cheating such as plagiarism and copying of answers. As stated in the article, cheating has become such a prevalent and normal aspect of schools today that the “lines are blurry”, and that no one really knows what

In 1963, 75% of college students admitted that they have cheated in their college careers at least one time. McCabe and his researchers conducted a self-reported survey, asking students if they have been involved in any cheating behaviors. The results in the given response’s of nearly 150,000 students from institutions of all sorts, which showed that between 60 and 70% of all the students who participated, admitted

Many researchers have indicated that cheating is a serious problem on campuses (Bowers, 1964; Engler et al., 2008; Gallant, 2008; Leming, 1978; McCabe, Trevino, & Butterfield, 2001). Studies completed by Bowers (1964) and McCabe and Trevino (1996) revealed nearly identical results regarding student-cheating behavior despite the 30 year time span; both studies identified that

McCabe has said that an estimated seventy percent of college students have admitted to some type of cheating. He supports this claim by saying that the parties to blame here is the school system and the media. HBU defines academic dishonesty to when a student cheats or steals someone’s work and passes it as their own among these are a list of actions that count for academic dishonesty. Some examples being brought up about dishonesty is how in the NFL saw past the deflating incident in the Super Bowl were it seems like the media praised the player for his actions (Loschiavo). Therefor, students think it is correct to do be dishonest in their class work.

Many of the older generation who probably forgot about their days in school are repulsed to believe students have the moral instability and lack of remorse when it comes to cheating, even at major institutions. Students typically start cheating when they enter high school, at this age however, their moral reasoning is not fully developed. Cheating to students at this stage in life equates to a blatant white lie. When these students enter college, although they’re morally more responsible, are too desensitized from starting at a young age.

If you asked an average high school student to give you reasons for cheating in school, I am certain the list would be never ending - from reasons as simple as being too lazy to complete the tasks, to some students just flat out not understanding their assignments. Jones suggest that, “The reasons students engage in academic dishonesty vary, but as commonly understood, the overriding reason is