By SYDNEY LESNICK and REESA LEFKOWICZ
One unintended consequence of online learning is the confusion that has surfaced about what qualifies as academic dishonesty. Regardless of whether students intend to cheat or not, many have been actively violating Jericho’s academic integrity policy during online assessments.
Jericho’s Academic Integrity Policy, which can be found in the Student Handbook, is a critical part of the school’s regulations but is widely unknown throughout the student body. According to the integrity policy, academic dishonesty is “an action intended to obtain or assist in obtaining credit for work which is not one’s own.” This definition encompasses a wide range of actions, including communication during exams, internet usage and copying someone else’s work.
Students are not only expressing lack of clarity about using the internet during exams. Another discrepancy is that 40% of respondents reported that communicating with others during a test is not cheating. Many teachers, including A.P. Biology teacher Mr. Croce, believe students require clarification. “In my class, I had to take out the school policy on academic integrity and read it through,” Mr. Croce said.
Many students have found that their teachers have not clarified their expectations, because teachers assume that students are aware of the guidelines. Junior Mackenzie S. said, “Many teachers have different rules and expectations for testing and use different testing platforms. This makes it very difficult for students to keep track of each teacher’s expectations.”
Due to the abundance of resources available to students while testing online, many believe that cheating has become significantly easier during hybrid learning. Junior Caroline K. said, “I do feel like it is easier to cheat this year because students take all of their tests or quizzes online, which allows them to also have access to communicate with other students. They are also able to find online resources or apps to help them cheat on an exam if necessary.”
Students and teachers agree that the increase in cheating is due to increased accessibility to outside resources during exams and a challenging shift in learning conditions. Many students and teachers have noticed the pandemic’s toll on students’ abilities to learn. Consequently, many students have resorted to cheating to maintain their grades. Dr. Artiles explained that many students’ attitudes are that this year in particular they are not cheating, they are surviving.
Assistant Principal Dr. Artiles acknowledges the unique circumstances that add to students’ academic stressors this year.
An anonymous student justified their actions and said, “This year, with the added stress of new learning styles, health concerns, and untraditional working locations, it is fair to assume that most students have cheated on their assignments. I will admit to using outside resources on assignments and exams to maintain my grades.”
A majority of survey respondents reported using the internet during open-note exams. This practice is frowned upon by the administration. Assistant Principal Dr. Artiles is firmly against using the internet on tests, regardless of whether or not they are open notes. “When you go onto the internet, that is cheating. And that’s unacceptable because that’s not your teacher,” Dr. Artiles said.
By comparing the amount of students who admitted to communicating with others during a test last year to this year, interpersonal collaboration during tests increased by 175% during hybrid learning. Mr. Croce caught 2 students working through an exam when one student accidentally unmuted during the test, revealing an exchange of information about test questions.
Another disparity between students and faculty is their views on sharing work with peers. According to the survey, 33% of respondents have admitted to sending their friends answers to graded assignments and homework, although this violates Jericho High School’s academic integrity policy.
Junior Corrine D. faced a predicament when she shared work with one of her classmates. “I thought I was helping them with one of our homework questions, but then my teacher gave me a zero for the assignment. I soon found out that she submitted all of my work,” she said. This encounter made her much more reluctant to share her work with others, as she added, “I learned my lesson.”
Teachers are trying to prevent cheating as much as possible and penalizing those who do. Pre-calculus teacher Ms. Survilla said she strives to avoid cheating by creating many versions of an exam. “Suppose it’s a digital type of test like shuffling the answer, shuffling the questions, making a big question bank for the digital resource to pull from, things like that. It takes a lot more work for the teachers to try to prevent cheating,” she said.
Ms. Survilla has taken an approach widely used by teachers throughout high school when faced with lapses in student honesty. When a student is caught cheating, she doesn’t reward any credit for a response that she can prove is not entirely the student’s own.
Dr. Artiles feels strongly that character is much more important than any grade. “I’d rather see students not getting amazing grades and developing a sense of honesty and a sense of ethics and morals. Those things, they will always be with you,” Dr. Artiles said.