The Cheating Story That Should Not Have Been

Plus, University of Central Michigan considers policy changes. Plus, Miami University pushing out Proctorio.

Issue 59

Getting it Wrong: The Cheating Story that Should Never Have Been Published

A website named Scary Mommy ran a story about cheating recently. It was a bad story, full of nonsense and disproven rumor, underscoring why editorial oversight is important. Based on other posts on the site, the author writes about true crime, relationships and “trending” - as in, “A Message For Britney: Congrats! (And Sign A Prenup).”

Honestly, I loathe to give the article any visibility whatsoever. And I’m not mocking the writer. She’s probably talented and pounding out content. I get it.

But this type of coverage of a very consequential issue is not helpful. It’s actually worse, it’s counterproductive. And while bad stories run all the time - and some otherwise credible outlets have certainly flubbed this issue (see Issue 29 and Issue 31 for just one example) - this particular one was not only written and published, it was syndicated by Yahoo! and other outlets, giving it credibility and propelling it up search algorithms.

It starts off well enough, citing a “cheating epidemic” and featuring an image and description of cheating company Chegg. But it then goes on to use, as a source, a “Twitter thread” from a college student who describes himself as a “security and privacy researcher” in his Twitter bio.

So, here we go to crazy town as this very credible Twitter source runs though all the reasons why remote exam proctoring is bad. Unsurprisingly, most of them are wrong. But some guy said it on Twitter, so you know, it’s gold-star accurate.

The story goes on to call proctoring “spyware” and “classist” and “ableist.” It features several other tweets of students complaining about proctoring. Then comes full, misinformed rant:

Rather than trying to stem a tide of students turning to Chegg by violating their right to privacy — scanning their goddamn bedrooms! — we need to rethink school. 

And

If students are cheating their way through these classes and still succeeding at their professions, why are they paying for these classes? Where’s their value? What are they actually learning, other than more effective means of cheating?

As we move back into face-to-face learning, these are serious questions a university system needs to answer. Forget scanning bedrooms and installing malware. If students turn to cheating, we need to ask why.

Other than honor code violations, it doesn’t seem to matter if they do.

So, according to the person who covers Brittany, other than the lying and not actually learning how to be a nurse or an airline pilot, cheating “doesn’t seem to matter.”

I am sorry. This kind of thing just annoys me to no end. Thanks, Scary Mommy for adding this to the conversation.

Getting it Right: Upstate NY Coverage of Cheating

A regional publication in upstate NY covered cheating recently and did a good job.

For starters, it says:

High school and college cheating levels are skyrocketing — or, at least, more professionals are looking for cheating and finding it.

It then includes insight from an actual, respected source on academic integrity, David Rettinger of the University of Mary Washington, who says,

I’ve seen 100-200% increases. [and] There are a lot more reports of student academic misconduct.

Yup.

The article then continues, quoting Rettinger throughout, with suggestions for parents on how to help not just minimize misconduct but also support actual learning. The tips include lowering a focus on grades, defining success as best effort and praising progress. It says:

With older kids, this means emphasizing that an education — not a diploma — is what leads to a good career and life. Pushing external motivators like GPA, admission at specific colleges and honor society all discourage deep learning.

Fact check: true - proving it’s actually possible to write a good story with good academic conduct advice for parents.

Central Michigan Faculty Consider Academic Integrity Policy Changes

According to a news story there, the Faculty Senate at the University of Central Michigan is debating changes to its academic integrity policies.

The story says that the proposed change would require students to sign “an integrity pledge," locking access to the school’s learning management system until they do. The proposal says that, “hyflex formats have made it easier for students to cheat on coursework.”

Requiring students to sign an integrity pledge, while probably of limited value, does not seem too controversial. Honestly, I was surprised by the implication that the school does not require it already. Nonetheless, at least one member of the faculty disagreed with the new plan, saying,

Regarding the pledge that’s talked about here, that really bothers me,” [the instructor] said. “It’s just childish. It’s grade school stuff and it’s insulting to our students to consider something like that. We should respect and trust our students. They are adults, not children, and should be treated as such.

The Senate, according to the reporting, passed the issue to a committee.

Miami University Committee Votes to Drop Proctorio

A report in the student newspaper at Miami University (OH) says a “University Senate subcommittee recommended Miami University not renew its contract with Proctorio for next year.”

Like we’ve seen before (see Issue 48), the reaction to the news was swift and incorrect.

Miami University did not drop remote proctoring. It is very likely, if not certain, they will continue to remotely secure exams and other online assignments - just with another provider. According to the school administrator responsible for academic integrity, if the Proctorio contract is not renewed:

the committee would explore alternative options to Proctorio to ensure academic integrity, such as paper scantrons or other forms of remote monitoring

Explore other forms of remote monitoring.

Moreover, the proposal must still pass the University Senate. When it does, the article says it will be a “recommendation.” The disposition of the contract will be made by the University’s Board.

There are many good reasons a school may move from one proctoring provider to another - and Proctorio in particular has had its issues. But it’s not credible for a school to offer online programs, classes or exams with no proctoring whatsoever. Miami University may part ways with Proctorio, but they will certainly keep remote proctoring because the underlying issue is pretty simple.

Bill Moser, an associate professor at the school, said,

At a minimum, I don’t want my students to cheat on exams

In the next “The Cheat Sheet” - two articles - one from a student and one from an ethics professor - illuminate some ethical and moral elements to cheating. Plus, The Financial Times talks Chegg, cheating and Pearson. Plus, more. Too much more.

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