Based on cultural background, students have different concepts and definitions of academic cheating around the globe. Although there is no universal definition of academic cheating, many researchers have agreed that cheating consists of actions that disrupt the rules for managing exams and involves any conduct that provides an unfair gain to the students.
Cheating is considered to be wrong because a cheater receives undeserved high grades which is unfair to those who do not cheat. This also gives them an unfair benefit over all other students. In addition, students who cheat would not learn what they are required to learn. A university’s or college`s basic aim is to transfer knowledge to students, but cheating prevents students from acquiring the knowledge and skills for which the degrees and courses are designed. Cheating also reduces the efficiency of educational institutions and human resources. If the students at the campus cheat and can get away with it, the educational institutions will produce graduates with good qualifications but less potential and if this continues to be prevalent and acceptable, then assessment tests will not remain a measuring method of student’s achievements and skills but would only serve as means of checking students` cheating skills. Cheating also stops students from engaging in moral and intellectual struggles for their personal growth and development. Besides that, students graduating from educational institutions are the country’s future leaders, and studies have found that students who cheat in college and university go on to cheat in professional life and are found involved in unethical practices.
It is not possible to present the exact data for the frequency of cheating in exams in different educational institutions due to the gaps during the investigation of such phenomena However, many research studies have confirmed that academic cheating has been on the rise at universities, colleges, and schools in Balochistan in previous years. Cheating in examinations across Balochistan is an issue of growing concern. Students from school to college and even at the university level have become habitual in cheating to avoid failing courses, especially in board exams. Cheating in examinations has become a regular practice. Some common cheating practices in Balochistan include leaking question papers, carrying copied material into exam halls, providing of cheating material by the helpers gathered outside the exam hall, using mobile phones for cheating, and hiring someone to take an exam in the place of the original candidate. Another common practice being witnessed is that sometimes teachers themselves are also found involved in providing cheating material to students during exams.
The education department of Balochistan in the last few years is running a media campaign to curb academic cheating in exams. The awareness slogans include “cheating is the death of merit,” and “cheating is the death of knowledge”. Although some institutions and the education department of Balochistan look concerned about cheating, no such steps have been taken to control it and the issue has not been managed effectively in the province.
One may argue that the culture of academic cheating in Balochistan has reduced the efficiency of human resources and has resulted in graduates with high qualifications but less potential in the province. Therefore, it is very important to fight against the culture of academic cheating, and the educational administration in this regard should devote increased resources to deal with this issue and develop a mechanism to manage and curtail the level of academic cheating. Controlling academic cheating is not a herculean task. There are exams in the country such as CSS/PMS, where cheating is almost impossible. So, it requires sincere and strong interventions from all stakeholders of the province to curb academic cheating.
It is also very important to ensure the presence and performance of teachers in class. If teachers are missing in most of the classes and they don’t complete teaching the courses on time, then their students will exploit and find excuses for cheating. Moreover, examiners should set the exam avoiding the same style of repeating questions every year and semester.
In this regard, not only should there be a focus on students who indulge in academic cheating, but attention should be directed toward knowing the reasons behind the decision to cheat. Personal factors that contribute to cheating are students’ desire to excel, low GPAs, and slow learning. Institutional factors include the weak administrative role of institutions, poor academic policies, overload on students, and weak performance of the teachers. Situational factors include the poor management strategy of the examiner, time pressure, and technological tools instigating students towards cheating.
Faculty and administration should help students to do their work within the given framework of learning. There is a need to focus on changing the values and attitudes of students so that they refrain from cheating. Educational institutions should introduce strict administrative policies regarding academic cheating because the problem can be better managed through the formation of clear guidelines about academic cheating. Only warnings, the threat of failing the exam, and routine punishments may not help in hindering academic cheating. There is a need to set high penalties for those caught cheating in exams, like failing the exam.
When those students who work hard and do their work honestly see the phenomenon that cheaters are not punished, somehow, they also convince themselves to take advantage of the opportunity and cheat in exams. Thus the practice of less severe punishment and no punishment in educational institutions is one of the many factors that motivate students towards academic cheating in exams.
It is also very important to ensure the presence and performance of teachers in class. If teachers are missing in most of the classes and they don’t complete teaching the courses on time, then their students will exploit and find excuses for cheating. Moreover, examiners should set the exam avoiding the same style of repeating questions every year and semester. Introducing conceptual tests and randomly presenting multiple choice questions so that every student gets a different answer sequence may also help in reducing academic cheating in the exam hall. In addition to the aforementioned suggestions, confident faculty supervision, monitoring along with awareness strategies could also help in reducing academic cheating.
