Why do academic cheaters cheat?
It has not been entirely uncommon, if slightly under-reported, for students to cheat when writing their academic papers or examinations. Lying to get an extension on a submission deadline, paraphrasing documents without citing them or even having papers written by hired writers, if we have not done one of these, we surely know someone who has. As Doherty notes in his article, academic cheating is not limited to university students alone but is undertaken by higher officials of universities as well . He also points out that cheaters constitute only a fragment of the overall student mass. However, I believe that this a ‘tip of the iceberg’ scenario where a majority of cases, especially pertaining to plagiarism, remain undetected.
The penalty for someone caught cheating is severe, often resulting in expulsion. However, this has failed to deter students from seeking ‘help’ for their assignments. Instead of forming stricter laws to curb the situation, I believe it would better serve the purpose of education is writing assignments was made easier. Several universities do not accept online sources and, while it is understandable that a majority of online content may not be verified, permitting reputed organizational content may encourage students to actually conduct research from their home and write their own, original papers. Further, instead of making expulsion the penalty, students should be required to spend compulsory time in libraries and submit fresh notes.
Bibliography
Doherty, M. (2013, February 19). Schooling Liars. Retrieved from Macleans: http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/02/19/webs-of-deception-2/#more-350216
