Cheating hasn't gone away yet

December 3, 2007 —

Recently, a classmate of mine asked if I would be her partner for a group project. Normally, I would be glad to work in a group, but this time was different - my would-be partner didn't know the material and wanted to have her name on my project without putting in any of the work.

Disregarding the fact that she would have taken credit for my work, I was upset that she didn't have any trouble with cheating on the project.

Cheating happens everywhere, and drives me crazy. Not only is it selfish and shortsighted, but it goes against everything that is embodied in a university education. Coming to get a university education and cheating is like buying a new car and then selling it for scrap metal - it's not a good way to get the best value from the investment. Or in layman's terms, cheating is stupid.

I think it's pretty obvious, but it bears repeating - a university education is not cheap. Actually, it's downright expensive. By cheating and cutting the corners of their education, cheaters are almost literally throwing money away. If they don't put in the work, they won't learn the necessary skills and the $184 per credit hour won't mean a thing.

If that's the approach that some are going to take to their classes, why not just drop out and find a job now? It sure is a lot cheaper than staying in school.

Unfortunately, cheating doesn't affect one person - and that is why I get so bent out of shape over people who don't feel they need to put in the required effort in class. Classes are a group experience, where everyone learns from the professor, as well as from each other. But the benefit of the group weakens when students don't put in the necessary effort for the class. Discussions, group activities, and so many other learning experiences are pointless if some members of the class aren't able to contribute. And if enough of the class doesn't learn the required material on the first try, the professor has to go back and rehash old material. What a waste.

And consider a class' grades, one of the surest measures of a student's comprehension. Believe it or not, professors do want us to learn, and are willing to do what is necessary to get the concepts across to their students. But if they can't see how the class is learning through accurate grade distributions, they won't even know that there is a problem that needs fixing. On a more practical note, curves and class averages also get screwed up when there is cheating, and that will usually lead to lower grades for the entire class.

The bottom line is this: you aren't hurting just yourself when you cheat. You're also hurting your peers and wasting the time and energy of your classmates and professors. Cheating also degrades the academic quality of a university. This affects the university's image, and that will in turn affect current and future students.

I believe in exercising our freedoms and doing what we want, when we want it. If some want to skip class or cheat on an exam, that's their right. But I hope they consider what it means for their peers before they hurt them too.