How do you treat cheating during the tests?

Hi, everybody!!! You know, my University teacher once told that in America students disapprove cheating during the test and if they notice that some other student cheats they tell to their teacher about that. I wonder whether the situation is really like that? And what about other countries? I can only say that in Russia we always cheat! And the idea of telling about that to our teacher never strikes our heads!

Oh… everybody is honest in America. Didn't you know that? ;o) From the President down to street sweepers… no one cheats in America!!

I have a big area of land that I own to the North and West of Canada. Not to far from Russia.  Would you like to buy it cheap? ;o) 

I'm sorry!? Maybe I didn't understand you or you're just joking! What to byu? Land !?  

By the way I didn't trust my teacher when she told us about American honesty! I just couldn't imagine the situation like this!!!

I think you carzy!

Thanks, Hgptime, I see your point

John Jack, can you explain what do you mean? Why crazy?

Hi Lily!

I'd hoped someone else would explain the joke. "Tongue-in-cheek" I was saying that everyone in the US is honest and never cheats. Everyone in the world knows in reality that this is not true. The President lies and maybe everyone in the US lies about one thing or another. (Your teacher should be asking you: Do you want to be like Bush?)

What I was saying about the land makes reference to two idioms about America. The first being a common scam that cheaters have done to new immigrants to America. They would point to something like the Brooklyn Bridge and tell the foreigner that they own it. And then ask the foreigner if they'd like to buy it. The foreigner may not know better and think what a great deal it would be to own a Bridge like that. They give the cheater some money for this. Of course the cheater doesn't own the bridge and now the foreigner doesn't, either. 

Also, the State of Alaska, to the North and West of Canada, used to be owned by Russia. The US bought it a long time ago for very little money. Although the man in government who made the deal was shamed by some Americans as though he was cheated for this "useless" piece of land in a terribly cold place. It seemed as though he was swindled. Today we recognize the opposite is true, since Alaska is a very valuable piece of property. Alaska also is not mine to sell. ;o)

Back to honesty: one thing to know about cheating, especially in school. When you cheat, you only cheat yourself. The idea of school is not to just pass and get a good grade, it is to learn something important. Having the answers is not the goal. Knowing the answers and knowing how to find the answers is what you go to school for. Cheating seems clever, but in the end, the cheater loses. A cheater can provide the answers taken from someone else, but they never learn or KNOW the answers for themselves. 

Oh, Worldmikel, now I understand you! Shame on me, but I didn't know these details!

Sorry, maybe you understood me wrong (in fact it was me who didn't explain my point clearly), but I of course exaggerated when I said that Russians always cheat! We do try to learn, but it's impossible to learn everything and I want to give you just a simple example: It's an exam and due to some circumstanses you're not ready. You have a choice: to be honest and tell the teacher that you know nothing (and maybe later be sent down from the University because of it) or to cheat and get a good grade. I'm sure that I'd prefer the second. Of course I don't mean that it's good to cheat constantly but I believe in such situations like this we can do it!

And one more question to Worldmikel. If someone cheats and other students notice it, will they tell the teacher about this? Or they will shelter (I'm not sure whether I used this verb correctly…) their groupmate?

This one I can't answer for sure, since it is a long time since I've sat in a classroom as a student your age. I remember when I was your age, lots of people cheated. I never did. As I recall, a few reported others cheating. Usually only if it directly affected them or where grading was on a curve.

I can't tell you how young people today feel about cheating and how they act in class. I'm sure it would be hard to say overall. There are a lot of schools in the US and many different students from many different backgrounds. I don't know if all the students will ignore or cover another's cheating or if they'll "squeal" on them or "rat them out". ;o)

I guessed you were exaggerating about Russians cheating. 

Robert had good advice.

Thank you very much for all this interesting information!!! You have really cleared the matter for me!

well,system is "should be", right?