Search Page

Following the rapid transition to digital delivery that many institutions have had to navigate, there has been an increase in online services that help students cheat. A simple Google search for the term ‘assignment help’ returned 279 million results in mid-June 2020 and 302 million in early 2021. In Australia to help combat the problem, the Government has passed a law that makes it an offence to provide or advertise academic cheating services in higher education and published an academic integrity toolkit.

Following the Covid-19 confinements, there were multiple reports of misconduct in online assessments: plagiarism, use of notes, an online file-sharing service, mobile phones, or collaboration with other students. Five of the eight New Zealand universities recorded an increase in cheating in 2020 compared to 2019: 258% at the University of Canterbury, 104% at the University of Lincoln, 61% at the University of Waikato, 21% at the University of Victoria and 10% at Massey University.

Stellenbosch University experienced an unusual increase in academic misconduct amongst students due to the move to online assessments during the COVID crisis. In 2020, 183 students were charged with collusion, where one or more students assisted each other during online assessments, compared to only 2 students in 2019.

17 medical students at the Geisel School of Medicine were accused of cheating during online exams. The school found evidence of the students who logged into the online course platform Canvas, giving them access to the answers. After an investigation, seven of the cases were dismissed, while the other ten students were expelled, suspended, or giving a failing grade for the course. Some also received unprofessional conduct marks on their records.

Due to a glitch in the online testing program, 31 students out of a class of 137 were involved in a cheating incident at Southern University's School of Nursing. The students used their cell phones and notified other students through a group text message that the cameras were off so that they could cheat. With the exam being compromised, the faculty administered a different exam that covered the same content.

Examination standards are virtually impossible to reinforce in a distance-learning environment where hundreds of students are simultaneously online. The Dean of the University of Crete’s literature department reports that it is easy for students to Google exam answers even under the eye of supervisors on camera. A 20- year-old student said that one of her friends gave 100 euros to a teacher to sit for her math exam. Similarly, a 20-year-old psychology student took exams on behalf of 2 of her friends and nobody realized.

A Cal State LA student allegedly denounced the actions of her classmates in a discussion forum on Canvas. Using the GroupMe app, students participated in cheating such as sharing answers and taking credit for the work of others. According to the Vice president for student life and dean of students, the University investigates all alleged acts of dishonesty and will hold students accountable if found responsible.

A recent survey reveals that large numbers of students use “little tricks” in order to achieve good results during online exams. Cheating techniques include sticking cards behind the computer or on the walls during video oral exams, to sharing their answers in groups on social networks. Due to financial constraints, many universities have not been able to implement video surveillance systems to prevent students from cheating.

In the three months before March 15, the company ProctorU, which monitors tests remotely, confirmed cheating in 2,547 cases. In the three months after, when the pandemic triggered campuses across the US to move online, ProctorU verified 57,597 cheating incidents. Ethicists say that students Googling answers on tests have an unfair advantage over students who do not. This same behaviour by medical students or apprentice pilots has consequences that are even more serious, as it places others in jeopardy.

The assistant dean of students reported 292 cases of academic dishonesty on the Atlanta campus for the academic year 2019/20. For the current year, from July 1 through, 268 more cases through November 5. With the increased use of technology and apps like GroupMe, universities all over the country had to integrate cheating via GroupMe into their academic honesty policies.