by Prof. Spencer BENSON

Academic dishonesty “cheating” is a universal problem in universities around the world with estimates showing that more than 50% of college students engage in some form of academic cheating. The problems and issues of student cheating are as old as the academe and have occurred throughout time in both Western and Eastern cultures. In this workshop we will briefly look at some of the history of cheating, what constitutes academic cheating, why students cheat and the influences that motivation and assessment type can play on academic dishonesty. By understanding the underlying issues that promote cheating it is possible to reduce cheating. We will look at how student motivation, learning activity design (pedagogy) and types of assessments that can be leveraged to reduce the potential for cheating. Participants will be asked to think; about what defines cheating, how it is handled, the UM guidelines regarding academic dishonesty and to design ways to reduce the potential for academic cheating in their courses.