Sadly, some things never change. From feigning a stretch in order to look at another student’s paper to using sign language to send answers to your friends-cheating, it seems, is alive and all too well in schools today.

Traditionally, cheating was thought to be most prevalent among underachievers. But the truth is it transcends all ability levels, especially now with the increased emphasis on testing and grades. Even those students who say they know cheating is wrong may cheat to get a score.

"Cheating definitely happens. A lot of kids do it. A lot of kids seem to get away with it," says Sheryl Kaplan, a student assistance counselor who works closely with secondary students. "The rationalization is that it is okay to do in order to stay in the game."

Grades aside, there are factors specific to middle schoolers that seem to motivate them to cheat even when they know they shouldn’t. Kaplan says that at the middle level so much of kids’ self-worth is related to how well they fit in with their peer groups. For this reason, it isn’t uncommon to find smart kids letting others cheat from them in order to be accepted. A fear of being labeled and picked on for being "stupid" can also play a huge role in why kids cheat.

Stemming the tide of cheating

Although teachers and administrators might seem the obvious front people when it comes to putting an end to school-related cheating, the reality is that much of it goes unnoticed or unreported. And Kaplan says that relying on honest kids to report incidences of cheating that they observe or are party to doesn’t always work with middle schoolers. Kids are often resistant to pointing fingers and being labeled as "tattletales." Having clearly defined expectations for your family when it comes to ethical topics like cheating can go a long way toward helping prevent the problem and to bolster your children’s resolve to do what they know is right. Here are some ideas:

Be clear about what constitutes cheating

Academic cheating can take many forms, such as copying homework, cribbing test answers, buying a term paper or test questions in advance or paying someone to do school work for you. Mistakenly, kids (and some parents) can think that it is not necessary to provide attribution (footnotes, source lines) for information found while doing research if the wording is changed slightly. When in doubt, check with your child’s teachers or guidance counselor about classroom and school-wide policies on cheating. Click here for information on what constitutes plagiarism, particularly with regard to the Internet.

Start them out young

Though intentions early on are well meaning, parents can send the wrong message when they do more than their share of the work on their child’s Cub Scout Pinewood Derby car or help construct an elaborate paper mache relief map of Antarctica. Children should be encouraged from an early age to do their own work, and never mind that some of their peers are turning in elaborate parent-created projects. Assure them that they are actually learning more, will do better in school and will have the satisfaction of knowing that the work they turn in represents their own abilities.

Look for teachable moments

Use every opportunity to discuss your values and model them for your children. This might include calling attention to articles in the newspapers about people who have cheated or showing your children what you would do yourself in the face of temptation - e.g. when the supermarket clerk overlooks one of your grocery items and fails to ring it up. Let them know that cheating is never right whether a person gets caught or not.

De-emphasize grades

Though many middle school students know cheating is wrong, time and again they point to a fear of their parents’ negative reactions to grades or test scores as motivation. As much as possible, Kaplan suggests rewarding your kids’ efforts and progress, not just the final results.

Help your kids by role-playing

Create scenarios that you can work through with your kids before they are confronted with a situation. For example, "You’re in the middle of a test and your teacher is in the front of the room with her back turned momentarily. What are some of the things you could do or say to the kid who takes that opportunity to ask you for a test answer?"

Family resources

Encouraging kids to do the right thing, particularly when confronted with peers who cheat and seem to get away with it (as well as public figures who use it routinely to get what they want), can be tricky. Following are some books that address a variety of ethical situations that kids might face and ways of helping bolster their resolve:

• Building Moral Intelligence: The Seven Essential Virtues that Teach Kids to Do the Right Thing by Michele Borba

• Call to Character: A Family Treasury of Stories, Poems, Plays, Proverbs, and Fables to Guide the Development of Values for You and Your Children by Colin Greer and Herbert Kohl

• Books That Build Character: A Guide to Teaching Your Child Moral Values Through Stories by William Kilpatrick

• What Do You Stand For? A Kid's Guide to Building Character by Barbara A. Lewis.

For permission to reprint this article, please contact the Capital Region BOCES Communications Service by e-mailing dbushsuf@gw.neric.org.

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