Cheating is when a person misleads, deceives, or acts dishonestly on purpose. In school, in addition to cheating on a test, a kid might cheat by stealing someone else's idea for a project or by copying a book report off the internet and turning it in as if it's his or her original work. Copying someone else's words or work and saying they're yours is a type of cheating called plagiarism (Kids Health, 2013).
Ways of Cheating
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| Copying your seatmate's answers |
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| Writing answers on your palm or any parts of your body. |
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| Cheat Sheets |
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| Teamwork. |
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| Through Text Messages |
Why do students cheat?
1. To get high grades
2. To impress the teacher and the parents with your high grades.
3. Too lazy to study
4. To pass the subject
Other reasons why students cheat:
- Students cheat when value is placed on grades instead of learning.
- Students cheat when they lack confidence with their ability.
- Students cheat when they feel pressure to do well.
Truth and Consequences
Many kids feel tempted to cheat once in a while. Most resist and do the work instead. Some kids cheat once and feel so bad that they never do it again. Others get caught and decide it isn't worth it. Unfortunately, some kids start cheating and feel like they can't stop.
Kids who cheat may feel worried about getting caught. Whether they are caught or not, these kids may feel guilty, or embarrassed, or ashamed — or all three. Even if the cheater feels fine or doesn't get caught, that doesn't mean it's OK. If you see someone cheating, or if someone asks to copy your work, you can tell a teacher or another grown-up.
Kids who get caught cheating might be given a "zero" score on the assignment, be sent to the principal's office, and have their parents contacted. Worse than the bad grade may be the feeling of having disappointed other people, like parents and teachers. A parent may worry that you are not an honest person and a teacher might watch you more closely the next time you're taking a test.
Cheaters cheat themselves in a way because they don't make an honest attempt to learn as much as they can. For instance, if you cheat your way through spelling tests, you won't learn how to spell. That can katch — I mean catch — up with you when you get older! And adults who cheat — at work, sports, or in their relationships — get into serious trouble, far more serious than a bad grade on a spelling test.
