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Over the last year some of the U.S. best schools like Harvard and Air Force Academy have found themselves implicated in cheating scandals. The recent research, conducted by the Iowa State University business faculty members supported by other studies, shows that most students violate academic ethics at some point. Strange though it may seem, A-level students do just as frequently as their less academically successful peers. The statistics on the issue show it is getting worse. Could you ever imagine such prestigious and reputable university as Harvard being mixed with something as shameful as cheating?

So, what are the causes of such behavior? Educational experts and students themselves say the Internet is to be partly blamed for this. With information being so readily accessible online, it has become increasingly easier to cheat. Students, who are allowed to use online resources, are statistically more likely to copy other works. Basically, the only limiting factor has been removed by the Internet which allows instantly getting, exchanging and re-posting any kind of information. Students have vague idea of what authorship and plagiarism are. Besides, there is every reason to believe that such attitude is much more tolerated than it used to be.

Obviously, students understand that cheating is the wrong thing to do. However, due to some reasons, they prefer to make such compromising choice. Some of them do it because they are struggling academically and feel they cannot fulfill their assignment without some extra help, but there are those who cheat to thrive and outperform.

The survey conducted among elite college students shows that such institutions impose higher academic requirements and consequently higher expectations, which many students are unable to meet. Challenged to choose between what is wrong but easy and what is right but can ultimately result into their dropping out, they usually prefer to violate academic integrity to stay afloat.

However, students should not be the only ones to take the blame, for schools themselves as well as teachers seem to be unable to clearly convey the message that cheating is wrong. Normally, universities would consult their first-year students on everything from food to campus life, but pay surprisingly little attention to educating them on ethic norms and standards, which students are expected to follow. The survey revealed that the majority of students consider collaboration during the test or paraphrasing other people’s work to be a minor violation of the integrity policy.

Parents should also be held responsible for this situation since, according to Tricia Bertram Gallant, the author of “Creating the Ethical Academy”, over the last 50 years there has been a major shift in parents’ attitude to their child’s academic success or failure. Years ago parents would not tolerate such behavior in their children, while now they are inclined to blame someone else for their children’s academic trouble or misbehavior. The result is clear: students cannot see why cheating is wrong and, if they do, they believe it is not something to be strictly punished for.

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