Top 5 Do’s and Don’ts to Prevent/Reduce Online Cheating

December 2012, Bernard Bull published an article giving methods to create an online course with “a culture of honesty, integrity and accountability” (in title). He makes it clear that even with these in place, it will still be possible to cheat. I’ve experienced it somewhat in my online studies and have been wondering how to approach this if I become an online teacher. Though I have taught over 20 years, I’ve never had to give a letter grade to a student so cheating doesn’t really happen in my classes -- unless you count giving someone a line they forgot (while acting), cheating. I know about using rubrics to grade, but not much about cheating. Bull gave six tips. Though only five were required, I couldn’t decide which to leave out, so I included them all. I’ve retitled a few of them.

Five “Dos” to Prevent Cheating:

Define it. I’ve been amazed that things that I would consider cheating, my students don’t think anything is wrong with those actions. I relate this to some of my young students who think if they find something, even in the school or the floor of my classroom, it is theirs. They looked stunned and some don’t seem to understand that it’s not theirs. I know this seems like a different topic, but in a way, cheating is stealing -- at grade, an award, etc. They found the information, it is theirs.

Tell them Why. Bull (2012) calls this, “state your case” (para. 3). Relating it to my example above, I ask students if I find something in their locker or their room at home or in their desk if it is mine, after all, I found it. Bull states that we can’t just expect students to accept our authority. I might add that as we teach higher level thinking and explain why we teach things, students expect “the why” in other situations.

Cover the “gray areas.” Bull says that some areas aren’t as clear as a direct copy of a paper. I like his idea of zero point quizzes. I didn’t have that much test anxiety as a child, but I do now. I did not like the quizzes we had in one...