Hi Richard,
I also get a good feel for students who are trying to cheat if they are trying to find where I am located. I watch these students like a hawk.
Patricia Scales
Keeping them spread out and all materials books, assignments, folders, and papers have to be cleared from desk and they are placed where they can not be viewed. Walk the classroom and monitor the whole class.
Different tests and watch the class take the test
I like standing in the back of the room. I believe students are less likely to cheat and rick getting caught if they can't see where I am looking.
When an exam or quiz is given I have two test label A and B. I give one student test A and the other student test B. It makes more work for me but that way I somewhat reduce the ability to cheat. Due to the chairs be so close together in my classroom.
Hi Jeanne,
Try it! Having different versions of test is really easy now with the technology that is out today. Cut and paste will work wonders.
Patricia Scales
In reducing the opportunity for cheaters to cheat, I had to separate students during test time. From the beginning of the course I set the tone for class when it comes to exam/quiz time. I let them know the consequences for there lack in studying. You would have to see the class to really see, but picture long rows of desk linked together and four-five students at each. I would separate the desk and space them out to where one desk one student would be seated during the time for the test. I also give a certain time limit to take a quiz and exam. In doing that I learned that with a time limit there is very little time to have your head up looking around trying to cheat. However, you will have one or two that will try you. I learned that standing at the back of the class works better than standing in front while a test is going on. One other way that I have reduced the opportunity for cheating is to create multiple tests. The same questions are asked, but they are numbered differently. My test range from short answer, essay, multiple choice, and true/false. It’s a lot of work, but the test bank I use allows me to easily create test.
The best way I have handled this situation is in assigning "Testing Seats". I try to seat the students with one empty seat in between, and I monitor them during test administration. Also, a friendly reminder of the importance of ethical integrity, and the fact that they are only harming themselves by being dishonest in the test taking.
I also comprise a multiversion test. I walk around the class while the test is being administered.
I keep my students separated by at least one seat and everything must go on the floor other than their test and the answer sheet. I like the idea of given different version of the test. I may try that. I had a small class of only seven last semester so it was very easy to monitor them, but with a larger class it might be harder and different versions of the test would help keep them honest. Not only do we want to discourage cheating for obvious reasons, but we need to know who really knows the material and who doesn't.
Whave small classes of no maore than 15 students. When it is test time they are all separated and have to put all books and papers off the desks. I also have a baskett in the front of class that all their phones go into so that there is no temptation to used them. Then if there is any talking that student will automatically get a zero. i do not have any problems with this and it work well for all of my classes.
Hi Roland,
It is obvious students cheat all levels. This is sad. Some people will do anything to succeed. You are right, if a course is relatively simple minimal cheating occurs, but difficult courses will increase the cheaters.
Patricia Scales
Throughout undergraduate and graduate training I observed other students cheating. It was especially prevelant in the more difficult classes like Organic Chemistry, Genetics or Cell Structure--you get the idea. In upper level majored courses the "honor system" in my opinion should be followed but during those initial years students should be monitored in a more controlled environment to establish what is acceptable; especially during vulnerable years.
As a professor I have witness plagiarism a few times and dealt with those situations appropriately. Under test conditions I limit the number of objective questions, present more short answer and essay type questions giving the student more freedom to distribute the information in their own words. Multiple choice tests sometimes confuse students especially if appropriate care isn't taken to construct carefully worded stems and distractors. If a student who isn't performing well on a specific type of exam, consistently, will be more prone to cheat. Establishing ground rules during examinations, separating students, and observing students from the rear or the class seems to be working
Patricia:
You are right if the cheating standards are enforced and monitored uniformly.
However, there have been instances where I have been informed that students are being more creative in their cheating methodology.
The proper endoctrination,monitoring, and immediate consequences based upon validated incidences of cheating, would reduce those opportunities considerabley.
Gary
Hi Gary,
Some students are too afraid to cheat because they know they will be fully reprimanded according to policy.
Patricia Scales
From my experience, reducing the opportunity to cheat by setting firm guidelines on test taking including the penalty for cheating and closly monitoring the in class examinations by seperating students, if possible, insuring that all items are placed on the floor, and standing in the rear of the classroom until the tests are completed.
I personally have not had issues with students cheatingt because they are fully aware of the consequences.
Gary Young
I use this same technique in my classroom and have found that it really works. I do not tell my students that they all have different versions of the same test, I have labeled them one through four so I know what version I am grading. We have a great test program that allows us the ability to create several different versions of tests with little or no extra work.
Students are separated in the room, and have only a pencil/pen with them. I do observe from the back of the room and walk around as needed, but I love the idea of rearranging the order of the questions on the test. I'll try that this week!
I use cardboard forms around each students written exam.This prevents students from seeing neighbors test.At first, I felt bad about having to resort to this. I no longer feel that way. When a lecture and lab test our given simultaneously,I have half the students do written portion and half do lab portion
I sometimes look at it in a sense of if the student is one who will always cheat, sometimes there is no amount of effort on the instructor's part to eliminate that however there are some things that I have attempted to do to eliminate some of the cheating which consists of making tests more short answer/critical thinking. If it is a multiple choice test, every 4 students get a different test (so there are 4 different versions). And if these methods have proved to be unsuccessful, unfortunately the student does get written up until the 3rd time they have attempted, then they get withdrawn from the institution even though they were counseled by the dean or program manager.
