On Cheating in Exams

jinjin1996

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If you were once in such an eager discomfort that you raised you neck to its full length so as to catch a glimpse of what your neighbor student has filled in the blank of a test paper, do not feel sorry because you were not the first to do so, nor will be the last.

We are all quite familiar with the pictures that at first, with the rustle of paper gradually dying out, students begin to hold their heads low to desks, writing continuously while a teacher or two walking around leisurely in the classroom; then some mysterious noise comes up, along with those writing tools touching the students’ laps more often than the papers, and the teacher becomes more alert, throwing occasionally a few words needed for discipline; little by little, the noise becomes thicker and heavier, and the teacher’s eyes are now busy moving at big angles, trying to locate something unsuitable yet actually taking place at the moment, that is, of course, the treating.

Naturally, teachers are strong opponents of the practice. They complain that they have consequently been treated of the opportunity to get to know the performance of students, that they cannot therefore make proper adjustment in their teaching plan, and that students will obtain much less knowledge than otherwise. They even say that this sort of behavior of students may eventually lead to their deterioration in morals as well as in nature and dim the prospect of the future society correspondingly.

But these are not always true. In terms of dialectical point of view, the major aspect of an educational process is the receiver, i.e., the student, and satisfactory results of such a process are largely dependent upon students themselves: how much interest they have in a subject; how great an effort they have made; and how many hours they could afford; in short, whether they are able to get knowledge in a great speed possible. Teachers can only function properly when these preconditions are well fulfilled. As for the effects of cheating on students’ nature, it should be noted that influences from society, their parents, and their closest friends play a much larger part. In fact, there is no proof or evidence, at least, clear enough to show that cheating in exams has direct relevance to one’s later lawbreaking conducts, except for those who still commit a fraud in the entrance examination for college when they have grown up and become teachers themselves. When we look back at a later stage in life, we most probably find it an amusing experience especially if it occurred on a less serious occasion. But that does not mean that cheating in exams has no negative effects, but it does mean that the practice is less dangerous to students’ nature than, say, watching violent and obscene films or TV programs.

Nor should society, parents, and even teachers be irresponsible for this kind of ignobility. If the assessment system for students’ performances can be greatly reformed, if the significance of being honest in exams is to be made clear through lectures accessible to students, if new methods, for example, tests without supervision, could be adopted widely, and if the meaning of marks is to be explained only by what improvement students involved should thus be making, the stop of cheating may not be unwelcome.

Moreover, teachers will not get so upset and hopeless if they understand that it is only human nature to be curious about things unknown, and when a student tries to steal a glance at what others have written, it is not that he chooses to be dishonest, but that he simply could not refuse the temptation to get to know how the puzzle or mystery turns out as the answer lies nearby. Besides, if a student cannot solve problems, keeping the paper as white as its origin, quiet and indifferent to what others are doing, and handing it over to the teacher still blank white after half an hour or so, how much more knowledge could be expected of him than his cheating a little?

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