Cheating comes in many variations. Just because you are not leaning over and peaking at somebody else's exam does not mean that you are not cheating. Cheating includes any dishonest action used by a student to complete an assignment without actually having to complete it themselves. Some of the most common forms of cheating are looking at someone else's exam, using materials without permission, collaborating with other students without permission, and not reporting another student if you see that he or she is cheating. Students cheat for all types of reasons: pressure to succeed, no time to study, peer pressure, laziness, and the list goes on. While schools claim that a student can be expelled for cheating, many cheating students escape the consequences. I do not think that it's possible to set consequences based on the reason why a person cheated because the severity of a reason can be relative, but it's more logical to base consequences on the method in which the cheating was done.

Perhaps the most classic form of cheating on an exam is taking a quick peek at the exam of the person sitting next to you or in front of you. Oftentimes it's easy to see answers in the corner of your eye and the teacher seldom notices. I believe that this type of cheating should result in automatic failure of the exam, no questions asked. Likewise, if the student tries to cheat again then he or she should fail the whole course. Looking at someone else's exam is extremely unfair because you're putting forth no effort to complete the work, and you're benefitting from someone else's hard work. Students generally do this when they're not confident in their own answers and they want confirmation of the correct answer, but that doesn't make it acceptable. Not enforcing consequences for this type of cheating will result in the student feeling as if he or she never has to study or do work, because there will always be someone to copy off of. One possible way to solve this problem is to have the exam questions in different orders so that a student would have to really try in order to steal someone's answers, and it would make it more noticeable for the teacher.

Using restricted material is another common form of cheating. Students find ways to sneak in note-cards, write answers on their hands, peek at a textbook, or store information in electronic devices. Students usually do this to ensure that they don't forget any information while taking the test. The best way to prevent any of these actions from happening is for the teacher to walk around the room and make sure that there is no material present. Unfortunately, technology makes this difficult. If a student is taking a math test then oftentimes a graphing calculator is needed, but these calculators have the capabilities to store material. I feel that if a student tries to cheat in this manner then the consequences should be that they are no longer able to use a calculator in future exams and they will fail the current test. Not allowing calculators during future exams would be a drastic consequence because many algebra and geometry tests require calculators. Obviously, if this type of cheating occurred again then the student should fail the course. If this type of cheating is not stopped then students will see no need to study or read their textbooks because they can just record the information.

Although many students do not realize that unapproved collaboration is a form of cheating, it actually is. Sometimes the teacher will walk out of the room or the classroom is so big that it's impossible to hear whispering. Collaborating with classmates during an exam that is supposed to be done by each individual is dishonest. The consequence for this type of cheating should be failing the test, being separated from the class for future tests, and failing the class if it happens again. Collaborating with classmates gives some students an advantage over the ones that are not doing so, and it fails to reflect the skills of each individual. Obviously cheating in this way is a huge disadvantage to the student because they are not always going to have someone there to help.

Lastly, failing to report someone else's cheating or allowing someone to cheat off of you is a form of cheating. Most students are not willing to report a cheater because they are concerned about the reactions they will get from their classmates. There are ways to anonymously report a cheater. While you may feel like you are throwing someone under the bus, you will actually be harming a lot more people if you don't tell. If someone in the class gets a perfect score because they cheated then the curve of the test might be higher, and the expectations for high scores will also be higher. People that are not cheating do not have the same advantage as the ones that are, they did the hard work, and they are going to be the ones that get the short end of the stick. The consequences for not reporting a cheater should not be as severe as the ones for cheating. In fact, the consequences are mostly personal because it's nearly impossible to tell if someone knows someone else cheated. The consequences are that you put in a lot of time and effort to study and you have less of a chance of getting a good grade.

No matter what reason a person has for cheating, it is never acceptable. If students do their work, study, budget their time, and pay attention then there should be no reason to cheat. Whether it's peeking at someone else's exam, storing answers in a calculator, collaborating with others, or not reporting another student cheating, the damage that it does to one's integrity remains the same.