Have you ever been quandary when taking a test and not knowing the answer to a question? And you get the urge to look over at your friend’s test for an answer? Then finally you got caught for cheating. The teacher calls you to their desk. He asks you why did you try to cheat? And your answer is, “I don't know”. Well, this has happened to many people over the United States of America. They start to cheat because of the amount of pressure students feel to succeed, and many of them get caught. Many have cheated in college, middle school, high school and standardized tests like the SATs. They know that if they do not do good in school than the college they want to go to may reject them. Now, the increase in academic cheating among students can be blamed on the pressures they feel to succeed because their futures depend on it.

To begin, students know what will happen if they do bad on their test and exams. When a student cheats, “Studies find that students feel under more pressure than ever to succeed and increasingly see cutting corners as nothing serious” (Rivera 1). The pressure is what causes the students to cheat because they want to do well in school. Students know the consequence when cheating, but when the students start feeling pressured they just stop caring for what is going to happen if they get caught. Also, the students that try to emulate the honors students are more likely to cheat, “With competition at elite institutions especially intense, high-achieving students are as likely to cheat as those who struggle academically” (Rivera 1). Even the students that always do excellent in school can struggle on a simple test. Specifically, the high-achieving students want to do good and they know what can happen to them in the future. Whereas, some inane people will argue that cheating is fine in today’s society. When in reality it is not. Some students also, “... went on to remind faculty members of their responsibility to discuss with students the seriousness of cheating-and the consequences. A first offense can result in a student being suspended for one quarter” (Rivera 1). Since students are getting suspended for cheating and as a first offense you can tell that cheating is taken very seriously, therefore, it is not acceptable in today’s society. Therefore, students want to do well, but when it comes to being pressured on a exam students just break and cheat knowing the consequences.

Secondly, college acceptance rates are low and students want to get in. Colleges use the SAT’s and the grades students earn in their time in high school against them. The grades a student earns does not affect the student as much as the SATs, “The SAT and ACT, another college admissions test, generally pay a major role not only in whether a student gets into a school, but on the type of grants or other financial aid they receive” (Khadaroo 1). The SAT and other college admission tests are heavily graded, and when students know about this they feel pressured to do good. Then sometimes students can break down when they feel this kind of pressure. Teddi Fishman, director of the Clemson center said, “‘There is such steep competition for a relatively small number of resources, such as getting into a particular major or into graduate school, where one or two or three points might make a difference, that even good students see a reason to go for that unfair advantage’” (Rivera 1). Students want to get into these colleges, and when a point can change their chances of getting in they feel the need to cheat. When colleges heard that students are cheating some colleges stopped using the SATs and other college admission tests against student. Mr. Schaeffer, a critic of standardized testing , “About 865 college and universities no longer use the SAT or the ACT scores for most of their admission decisions, in part to cut down the pressure surrounding the testing and admissions process…” (Khadaroo 2). After colleges found out students have been cheating on tests to get into college, they stopped using the SATs and other tests. Now that the students know that the SATs will not be used against them they will stop cheating. The students know the SATs are not affecting them so now they can concentrate on other things.

Finally, students use their technology to give the the answers to the test. Also, sometimes students do not need to try to hide their phones from the teacher. The teacher allows the student to use their phone, “ The center found evidence that some teachers allowed students to use electronic devices to look up answers during tests and use tailored calculator programs” (Oglesby 2). Students know that doing this is bad, but they want to get a good grade on the exam so the pressure they feel goes away and they can relax. Also, some students use technology made specially for cheating, “But she also acknowledged a growing disconnect even in the definition of cheating in the age of easy access to smartphones and the Internet” (Rivera 2). Most students now in elementary, middle and high school mostly every student has a phone. Due to the internet not only can the students get study guides, but also answers while they are taking the actual test. When a student has a phone on them during the test, and they do not know the answer to a question they feel pressured to get the answer. Even if a student does not have a phone they can buy items to cheat, “Companies such as Spycheatstuff will mail overnight a kit with tiny wireless earbuds to allow a test-taker to discreetly ‘phone a friend’during a test” (Oglesby 1). Students now can go on to these kinds of websites and buy items to help them cheat. They can have a friend outside the classroom giving them the answers to the test.

Cheating in today’s society is wrong but it can be because of the pressure students feel to succeed. Most cheating is because students know what could happen to them if they fail a certain exam, college acceptance rates are low and students want to get in and finally students have technology to help them cheat so that they can do good in the future. In the future, the next time you are about to cheat, just think about the conversation you will have with your teacher, you would say, “I don’t know” when you should have known not to cheat and the consequences it comes with.

Works Cited

Khadaroo, Stacy Teicher. "SAT Cheating Scandal: Are Stakes Getting Too High for College..."
Christian Science Monitor. 28 Sep. 2011: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 09 Mar.
2016.

Oglesby, Amanda. "Academic Cheating on the Rise." Asbury Park Press. 08 Sep. 2014: 1. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 02 Feb. 2016.

Rivera, Carla. "College Cheating: Success Above Honor." Los Angeles Times. 16 Apr. 2015: B.1.
SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 02 Feb. 2016.