The Spread of Cheating with Online Testing

Many schools are moving towards online schooling, and this is increasing the spread of cheating. Online testing should be avoided at all costs. In past years, a lockdown browser and attentive teacher have been sufficient to catch cheaters, but this does not work for online testing. 

Time is a big reason for using online testing. “Teachers in schools doing hybrid instruction say they don’t want to spend all their limited in-person time administering tests and quizzes,” Madeline Will from educationweek.org writes. Many teachers try to save class time by giving tests on online days. The problem is virtual tests open up a whole new world of cheating. Homework-help websites such as Chegg, Socratic, and PhotoMath are a huge issue. Will mentions students’ usage of Chegg during quarantine; “The company reported $153 million in revenue for the second quarter, when the pandemic shutdowns were at their peak — a 63 percent year-over-year increase.” Students are using these websites and finding ways to avoid getting caught.

With online testing, students’ attitudes towards cheating change. A study published in the Journal of the National College Testing Association hypothesized that students’ attitudes regarding cheating during an unproctored vs. proctored setting would not change. However, the data collected rejected this hypothesis. The data suggested “students are more likely to state that cheating behaviors in proctored settings are more unacceptable than cheating behaviors in unproctored.” Students surveyed also believed it was the teacher’s responsibility to take preventative measures against cheating. 

Sometimes online testing is unavoidable, but that does not mean that other options cannot be explored to prevent cheating. Online tests should be proctored, or students should be allowed to use notes/collaborate. If this is not possible, students should be assessed in other ways such as with a project or an essay.