A Rutger's survery found that seventy-five percent of high-schoolers \"engage in serious cheating,\" but the reality of cheating at Wayland remains obscure. Do Wayland students cheat?
Faculty Perceptions
Academic Dean Mr. Lennertz defined cheating as “stealing, pure and simple.”
Mr. Lennertz commented on the amount of cheating at Wayland. “I would like to think it is not very prevalent, but I do not know. The instances that come across my desk are few... I tend to see the serious situations of cheating. I don't hear the faculty talking about cheating.”
Although the punishment can be “on a case by case basis,” Mr. Lennertz said, “I keep track of instances of cheating. I warn the student that the next time I will enforce the handbook because cheating violates the core values of integrity and respect for other people.”
Dean of Students Mr. Keller defined cheating with an example. “There have been instances of students hiding answers on the back of their tie.”
There is an unclear area of cheating, according to Mr. Keller. “The only gray area is working together, although every student is smart enough to know the difference between copying and working together.”
When asked how widespread cheating is at Wayland, Mr. Keller said, “I would like to think that [the seventy-five percent statistic] is not talking about Wayland, but we have had prefects lose their title over cheating, and I am sure there are kids that regularly plagiarize.”
The dean had no immediate solution to the problem but noted, “It is great to have this discussion.” He explained that open conversation gets everyone on the same page.
Mr. Keller shared some thoughts about punishment for plagiarism, “Current academic circles say the best way to curb cheating is to punish to the full extent of the law. Anywhere from a zero, to a major violation, to a dismissal. I assist Mr. Lennertz in the decision, but he has the final say.”
Mr. Keller believed that time constraints compel many students to plagiarize. “At a boarding school your schedule is so full that it is very easy to get caught in a hole. Time is the scarcest resource in a boarding school.”
Mr. Keller underscored the societal pressure to have a high-paying career. To achieve this, a student reasons, he or she must graduate from a prestigious college, and getting into college requires stellar high school grades. Thus, students value the A over genuinely learning the material.
Certain televion shows are also to blame. “Cheating is one of the effective ways to win on a reality TV show.”
Corrupt icons and leaders are another ingredient to the problem. In general, Mr. Keller said, “People's perception of what is okay has changed.”
As proof of this moral relativism, Mr. Keller explained that his mother knows people from church who have lost their livelihood because of corrupt corporate leadership.
English teacher Mr. McDonnell, when asked if Wayland students cheat, said, “Yes! I have caught them.”
On the other hand, art teacher Ms. Boucher said, “It is pretty difficult to fake an art project.”
Mrs. Peters simply observed, “I think cheating is more prevalent than the faculty realize.”
The Student's View
Two main camps of thought emerged among the students: those who thought that their peers cheat and those who believed they did not.
Selina Adler said immediately, “I think that everyone at Wayland has cheated before.”
Austin Scholz calculated, “Just today, eighty-six point three percent of Wayland students are cheating.”
Jacqueline Hill's figure was a bit lower. “Eighty-three percent of the students at Wayland will end up cheating before they graduate.”
Amberly Ritchie agreed. “I think a lot of kids at Wayland cheat.”
Dezarae Avalos said, “I have seen more cheating at Wayland than in my years in public middle school.”
According to Avalos, “People cheat because everyone else cheats.”
Matthew Hernandez disagreed. “I don't think cheating is prevalent at Wayland. It is not like public schools would be.”
Amongst the numerous voices, there was one consensus: by cheating, students are only cheating themselves of knowledge and character.
Sidenote: Stand Out Quotes
Spencer Schumann: “Cheating is going to come back and bite the cheater in the butt.”
Anonymous Quotes: “I don't have the guts to cheat.” “Of course I cheat...[laughs], It's fun.” “We cheat because we are desperate, lazy, arrogant procrastinators who are pressured by our parents.” “There is good cheating and there is bad cheating. It is the way we get by.”
If we want more filler in the teacher area, here are some more of their quotes. I do not plan on putting them in the paper unless we need to fill some space.
Mr. McDonnell: \"Cheating can be any form of academic dishonesty. If you help somebody else in an incorrect way that is also cheating. The punishment for plagiarism is a grade of zero and a reference to the Academic Dean. He is a reasonable man. We are probably not going to catch everyone that cheats. There are different levels of cheating.\"
Ms. Boucher: \"Plagiarism is very, very serious. It can ruin your professional and academic career. It is just wrong! Part of me thinks it should be a one strike policy, but some people need a warning when it is their first time. Before coming to Wayland, some people do not know what plagiarism is. Seriously egregious is copying a paper off the Internet. Asking your friend what happened in the chapter you did not read is a gray area. The only solution to cheating is to punish it. They don't have enough time or because they are lazy or a combination of the two.\"
Faculty Perceptions
Academic Dean Mr. Lennertz defined cheating as “stealing, pure and simple.”
Mr. Lennertz commented on the amount of cheating at Wayland. “I would like to think it is not very prevalent, but I do not know. The instances that come across my desk are few... I tend to see the serious situations of cheating. I don't hear the faculty talking about cheating.”
Although the punishment can be “on a case by case basis,” Mr. Lennertz said, “I keep track of instances of cheating. I warn the student that the next time I will enforce the handbook because cheating violates the core values of integrity and respect for other people.”
Dean of Students Mr. Keller defined cheating with an example. “There have been instances of students hiding answers on the back of their tie.”
There is an unclear area of cheating, according to Mr. Keller. “The only gray area is working together, although every student is smart enough to know the difference between copying and working together.”
When asked how widespread cheating is at Wayland, Mr. Keller said, “I would like to think that [the seventy-five percent statistic] is not talking about Wayland, but we have had prefects lose their title over cheating, and I am sure there are kids that regularly plagiarize.”
The dean had no immediate solution to the problem but noted, “It is great to have this discussion.” He explained that open conversation gets everyone on the same page.
Mr. Keller shared some thoughts about punishment for plagiarism, “Current academic circles say the best way to curb cheating is to punish to the full extent of the law. Anywhere from a zero, to a major violation, to a dismissal. I assist Mr. Lennertz in the decision, but he has the final say.”
Mr. Keller believed that time constraints compel many students to plagiarize. “At a boarding school your schedule is so full that it is very easy to get caught in a hole. Time is the scarcest resource in a boarding school.”
Mr. Keller underscored the societal pressure to have a high-paying career. To achieve this, a student reasons, he or she must graduate from a prestigious college, and getting into college requires stellar high school grades. Thus, students value the A over genuinely learning the material.
Certain televion shows are also to blame. “Cheating is one of the effective ways to win on a reality TV show.”
Corrupt icons and leaders are another ingredient to the problem. In general, Mr. Keller said, “People's perception of what is okay has changed.”
As proof of this moral relativism, Mr. Keller explained that his mother knows people from church who have lost their livelihood because of corrupt corporate leadership.
English teacher Mr. McDonnell, when asked if Wayland students cheat, said, “Yes! I have caught them.”
On the other hand, art teacher Ms. Boucher said, “It is pretty difficult to fake an art project.”
Mrs. Peters simply observed, “I think cheating is more prevalent than the faculty realize.”
The Student's View
Two main camps of thought emerged among the students: those who thought that their peers cheat and those who believed they did not.
Selina Adler said immediately, “I think that everyone at Wayland has cheated before.”
Austin Scholz calculated, “Just today, eighty-six point three percent of Wayland students are cheating.”
Jacqueline Hill's figure was a bit lower. “Eighty-three percent of the students at Wayland will end up cheating before they graduate.”
Amberly Ritchie agreed. “I think a lot of kids at Wayland cheat.”
Dezarae Avalos said, “I have seen more cheating at Wayland than in my years in public middle school.”
According to Avalos, “People cheat because everyone else cheats.”
Matthew Hernandez disagreed. “I don't think cheating is prevalent at Wayland. It is not like public schools would be.”
Amongst the numerous voices, there was one consensus: by cheating, students are only cheating themselves of knowledge and character.
Sidenote: Stand Out Quotes
Spencer Schumann: “Cheating is going to come back and bite the cheater in the butt.”
Anonymous Quotes: “I don't have the guts to cheat.” “Of course I cheat...[laughs], It's fun.” “We cheat because we are desperate, lazy, arrogant procrastinators who are pressured by our parents.” “There is good cheating and there is bad cheating. It is the way we get by.”
If we want more filler in the teacher area, here are some more of their quotes. I do not plan on putting them in the paper unless we need to fill some space.
Mr. McDonnell: \"Cheating can be any form of academic dishonesty. If you help somebody else in an incorrect way that is also cheating. The punishment for plagiarism is a grade of zero and a reference to the Academic Dean. He is a reasonable man. We are probably not going to catch everyone that cheats. There are different levels of cheating.\"
Ms. Boucher: \"Plagiarism is very, very serious. It can ruin your professional and academic career. It is just wrong! Part of me thinks it should be a one strike policy, but some people need a warning when it is their first time. Before coming to Wayland, some people do not know what plagiarism is. Seriously egregious is copying a paper off the Internet. Asking your friend what happened in the chapter you did not read is a gray area. The only solution to cheating is to punish it. They don't have enough time or because they are lazy or a combination of the two.\"
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