According to Edutopia, more students are cheating on tests, assignments, and homework than ever before.

So why is this?

In my personal opinion, it’s for multiple reasons. 

Cheating is easier with the access to technology that provides an endless supply of websites that offer answers to the material students are stuck on. 

Also, there is so much pressure on the completion of homework assignments to gain the points to maintain a perfect grade in the class. Along with tests that if a student doesn’t perform well on their grades will plummet.

This is all because of the idea spoon fed to us all of our schooling years that if you do not have straight A’s you are some sort of failure. 

So what do you do when you didn’t study for the huge midterm because you were up all night trying to get your classmates to send you their answers to the homework you have in all of your other classes?

Cheat.

The only way to fix this problem is to better prepare students and not overwhelm them with work. 

Yes, easier said than done but it is possible.

One effective way to ensure students understand the lesson is to adopt a flipped classroom style. 

This is where teachers film the lesson for students to watch at home and then complete the homework worksheet in class. 

That way students can ask questions directly to the teacher. Also, instead of copying their classmates work, they would be able to collaborate to reach the answer in a way they understand what they are doing. 

According to LearnDash, in 2016 78% of teachers made the switch to the flipped classroom style and students’ understanding of material increased by 96%.

Students must feel confident in their studies. With a decrease in pressure over a letter and a different tactic of teaching, students will stop cheating because cheaters never win.