Reducing student cheating
What are some ways you can reduce the opportunity for cheating in your classes?
I always spread my students out, so they do not have the opportunity to see another students exam. Also I walk around the classroom and make my presence known. I also have the students clear their desk, and they are not allowed to have anything on their desk. Binders, drinks, papers, and textbooks, are placed in the back of the classroom or on the floor. I have had a student in the past write terminolgy words on her ID badge. So, I now do a complete observation of the students and their desks.
I make my students spead out during testing. Nothing is to be on desk, cell phones to be put away and I monitor the class during testing.
My student's seats for tests are randomly selected.
This way the chance of them sitting near people they are more familiar with is minimized. Also nothing on the desk but test,scantron, pencil and highlighter. Scantron answers are highlighted beor the test is turned in. If they want paper i give them clean paper.
I have students remove all objects from their desks and I stand in the back of the room while testing is takin place
As soon as I hand out the tests, I stand in the front of the room for a few minutes so students can see that I am observing their behavior. I then walk to the back of the room and continue my observation without disturbing the class.
Hi Jeri,
I like you way of minimizing cheating. It is simple, let the students see that you are actually watching them.
Patricia Scales
Hi Patricia,
I think of the board exam proctors. If testing time is proctored well objective competancy markers among all students will be assessed fairly among them.
I occasionaly stroll around the room during test periods and acknoledge a student by a few second glance if i feel that he/she may be showing the possibility of cheating
Hi John,
This is definitely a way to curtail cheating. A good rule to follow to reduce cheating is to never sit while students are testing.
Patricia Scales
I have an open discussion the first day in class about cheating. I let the students share how they feel about cheating and why is it important not to cheat. What do they gain from cheating? What is considered cheating? So that everyone is on the same page about cheating and how I feel about it and what happens when they are caught cheating. Now we all know.
I believe that having the students remove everything from their work areas is helpful. I also belive walking around the class is helpful.
I have been lucky enough to have a small class size, so I don't have to worry about having enough space to have the spread out, so I don't have to worry about them cheating off of each others exams. I also make it so that most of the quizzes and tests are short answer questions, and I compare papers of those students who are seated close to each other.
Before an assessment I have then put everything away and then have them place it in the back of the class. If calculators are needed the school supplies them for the test. I used to wander around the class, but it was distracting to some. Now I just pick random places to stand for each test.
Hi Mary,
Some students really are easily distracted, and they are unable to fully focus on their work when the instructor walks around during test time.
Patricia Scales
Have atleast 3-4 different test format/key.
I think most of the strategies to reduce cheating have already been mentioned. However, it think it is important for the teacher to pay attention to the the classroom environment while the students are taking a test. Being aware of what is going, and not sitting and reading a book, will let the students know you are aware of what they are doing; This includes paying attention to the students non-verbal gestures.
I like to space my students out in the room, and I also will use different tests in the same class. Using Scantrons works well for that because you can put out multiple tests and grading is still done quickly. On my online tests that are taken in a computer lab, I randomize the answers.
My first term teaching I had a large amount of students plagiarizing in my English course: from homework assignments to final papers, and I found that in talking one-on-one with the students the complaint I heard was they were scared of what I thought of their answers or paper. This changed the way I begin a class because I found that in a career school when a student hears, “English major,†they start judging me as a stickler. So I always begin class with a simple assignment that has them tell me their concerns towards writing. I then respond by the next day giving them words of encouragement and clarity of what this class will cover. We also use Turnitin.com, so my life has become much easier.
Use a different seating plan for each test/exam. Use different versions of the same exam (questions in a different order). Make sure all electronic apparatus is not available.
