Do cell phones facilitate cheating?

According to a recent survey by Common Sense Media, more than 1/3 of teens with cell phones admit to cheating at least once with them. Half of teens admitted to some sort of cheating involving the Internet. For example, searching online for a quiz answer or plagiarizing from papers online. What’s perhaps even more worrisome, is that many teens did not consider this a serious offense, suggesting that teens have normalized electronic cheating as something that ‘isn’t a big deal.’

Parents aren’t in the loop
This same survey shows that while parents acknowledge that cheating is a widespread problem in schools, few believe that their child would commit such an act. It’s time for parents to confront the reality that if nearly half of all kids admit to cheating using the Internet - we need to get serious about ensuring that kids understand the consequences of this behavior. Kids today live in a world where all sorts of information is at their fingertips and content is created, shared, and downloaded in ways that were unimaginable a decade ago. However, ensuring that kids have the capacity to navigate this digital world fairly and responsibly is critical to their academic and success.

Five tips for talking with kids about digital cheating

1. Familiarize yourself with the media your kids are using.
   
   
2. Don’t assume that your kids understand how to use the Internet responsibly for their school work. Help them understand the difference between cheating and good, responsible Internet research.
   
   
3. Create opportunities for screen-free study sessions, so that kids can practice studying and recalling information without electronic aides.
   
   
4. Figure out your child’s school policy on cell phone use and support it.
   
   
5. Make sure your kids understand that there is zero tolerance for academic misconduct like cheating.