Once upon a time (in a galaxy far far away) I took a daylong training session on teaching online classes. During a break in the training, I asked the trainer, “What do you do about exam security?” Another trainee (teaching a giant online section of a general education class, History of Rock and Roll) piped up with his answer. “I find that those who cheat are only cheating themselves.”
The trainer nodded wisely. “Yes, those who cheat are only cheating themselves.”
Translated: “We don’t concern ourselves with exam security.”
I had some strong reactions to those comments. But I was trying to be sociable and friendly and to play well with others … so I kept my mouth shut. (Others could hear my teeth grinding.)
My thoughts at that time should not be printed. A much milder version of them was, “That is such --”
A much much milder version of those thoughts was simply “That is SO WRONG.”
A much much milder version of those thoughts was simply “That is SO WRONG.”
“Those who cheat are only cheating themselves.” Think Bernie Maddox. Enron. Various political figures. People who cheat hurt LOTS of other people!
Can you imagine a university president, asked about the authenticity of college’s degrees, answering “Well, we here at State U. feel that those who cheat are just hurting themselves. That’s the philosophy of my college.”
How can an intelligent person spout such dribble?
A major difficulty with online education is secure exam testing. But there are companies that offer secure online (at-home) exam testing. It's not easy. It has its problems. But there are people doing it.
Here is a story from the Chronicle of Higher Ed.
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