In recent times, cheating has become rampant in the school educational system. Students now go to tremendous lengths just to cheat during an examination. Such as hiding a phone under their shoe, writing answers on their laps, smuggling textbooks or notebooks into the exam hall, etc.
The options for cheating are always expanding, especially as kids have access to more and more technology.
As a teacher, you can better assist your students in growing into responsible, intelligent adults by taking precautions to prevent cheating. A teacher can set up the classroom to help prevent pupils from cheating by being proactive and making an attempt to stop cheating before it starts.
To help you stay proactive, I have mentioned 10 ways teachers can prevent students from cheating during an examination. Let’s get right into it.
How to Stop Cheating During An Examination
1. Don’t Let Anyone See The Exam Papers
Before an examination, it’s critical to keep exam papers secure. This includes verifying that the original, as well as each copy made after it, are all present and correct. Some students could try to acquire access to the exam questions ahead of time, even if it involves breaking into your office or classroom.
To prevent this,
• Never offer your keys to a trusted student for any reason, and never leave them dangling on the door.
• Secondly, don’t presume that the examinations and study materials you left at school will be secure either. If you’re planning to leave your exam questions at school, be sure to lock the file cabinet with the key and keep the key on you at all times.
• Make sure to modify the exam source material each year. This will make it easier for siblings and friends in various grades to share feedback from the previous year.
2. Set The Examination in Different Versions
Before the examination begins, inform the students that there will be many versions provided, and then distribute the various versions among the students. This will stop students from thinking they can cheat on their classmates during the examination.
Also, avoid making visual distinctions between the various versions, such as color, that are obvious from a distance. If not, students might ask around to see if anyone else has the same version.
3. Students Should Be Permitted To Use Only The Materials You Provide
If you are worried that your students might bring in answers, provide all the materials they will need for the examination. For instance, make available the clean sheet of paper to be used, graph paper, or any other relevant material. By doing this, you can guarantee that the students will take the examination on a blank piece of paper.
• If your students are prone to copying, you might want to get something to separate them apart during the examination time to stop them from looking over each other’s work.
• Some students won’t try to cheat in the first place if they are informed in advance that they would be doing this.
4. Ask the Students To Remove Everything From Their Desks
Students should not be permitted to use their phones, notebooks, lunchboxes, or books while taking an exam. Every desk/locker must be kept empty and the teacher must ensure he/she sees to it. With this, cheating will no longer be possible in many more modern ways as well, such as inputting answers on phones or using desktop computers.
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• Allowing pupils to have labeled water bottles on their desks is not recommended if you are very concerned about cheating. It is a popular trick among the students to write the answers on the label’s interior and then reattach it to the bottle.
• Additionally, you have the option to ask that during the exam, backpacks be left out in the open at the front of the room or another unoccupied area.
5. Keep a Close Eye On the Students During the Examination
Keep an eye on your student’s reactions while remaining in the classroom and refrain from leaving them during the examination. Even if you have honest students, you shouldn’t allow them to be on their own during the examination.
• Also, you might have teaching assistants to assist you if it’s a big class, so that more students may be watched at once. Ask the assistant to watch the students while they take the exams.
6. Tell the Class to Come to Your Desk and Ask Questions
During an examination, going to your student’s desks to answer questions focuses your attention on one student and provides a possibility for cheating by other pupils. If a student has a question, have them come to your desk. This lets you assist them while still keeping an eye on the rest of the class.
7. Pay Attention To Any Student Who Leaves The Examination Room
Make sure they don’t take any examination materials with them when leaving the examination room. Students should generally only be permitted to leave the room if it is essential. If you believe it’s proper for a student to leave the classroom, such as if they have to use the restroom, you must make sure they don’t bring any notes or devices with them.
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• Only let one student leave the classroom at a time. You’ll be able to keep tabs on who is departing and how long they’ve been gone. There is a possibility that someone who frequently uses the restroom may have kept the answers hidden there.
• You can instruct the student to show you where their phone is and ask them to remain in the room.
8. Observe Where the Students are Sitting
You can make a seating map or ask students to indicate on a piece of paper the names of the person sitting next to them. It will identify the appropriate person if a claim “I noticed someone looking at my exam” is made.
When marking, it also enables you to contrast their answers together. Is it similar?
• This would be especially helpful in very large college classes where students might not be familiar with the names of the person sitting next to them.
• If you have a small class, you can also make a seating chart that shows where people were seated. By doing this, you can set up a table so that friends can’t sit close to one another. If your class is large, label each student’s seat with a number, and ask them to write that number on their test.
9. Change the Students That You Believe Are Cheating
Reposition a student whose eyes you believe are roaming too much. Reassure the student first that you are not accusing them of cheating and that all you are asking is for them to change their sit. Be relaxed if they decide to comply. You can assume that the student is cheating or intends to cheat if he/she refuses to cooperate.
• If you have to relocate a student, try to do so in a spot where they won’t be around other students. The student may find it simpler to concentrate on their examination if they are separated from other students.
10. Do not Allow Students To Change Their Answers
Let them know ahead that there won’t be an eraser or new paper because of an error except for a case of extra paper. Also, they should be aware that there will be a mark deduction for shady or answer canceling.
Provide them with spaces enough to contain each answer. This will stop the students from changing their answers and alleging that it was a mistake.
Conclusion
Cheating is very bad and should not be encouraged in school. Cheating breeds uncultured, lazy, and incompetent adults. Therefore, as a teacher, it is important to stand against cheating to raise competent, hardworking, and self-confident adults for the positive growth of society. With these 10 ways, cheating will be reduced.