Something up the sleeve: fraud in education, or the learning of corruption

This article deals with the low profile issue of educational fraud. The author defines educational fraud in terms of a range of illegitimate practices in which students engage in order to inflate their recorded levels of academic performance. Four sub-types of fraud are identified. The cultural and social correlates of fraud are then considered. The discussion leads to a suggestion that fraud in certain circumstances can be fostered by the hidden curriculum. The paper concludes with a consideration of the implications of educational fraud and an exploration of some possible means by which they should be combated. Central issues are the links between fraud and dominant forms of educational evaluation, which stress outcomes over process, and the relevance of fraud to notions of citizenship and citizenship education.