There are always students who look upon the severe consequences of academic dishonesty in a light manner. Although schools constantly stress the grave repercussions, some students find it hard to truly grasp the seriousness of this dishonest act. After all, how many of us have shared answers with our friends after a test, or copied off of someone else’s homework assignment?

Currently, ISB has a strict zero-tolerance for academic dishonesty, and holds a very firm rule towards this subject. The Dean of Students Mr. Peter Roback also adds that this year, ISB has taken even further measure than last, by holding assemblies, comm. groups and surveys to bring more awareness to this matter.

The punishments, which can be found in the ISB High School Student Handbook, include suspension, a permanent record on the student’s transcript and expulsion. This may seem harsh, but in reality, it is awfully lenient in comparison to how this matter is dealt with in the real world. The students who are involved in this type of behavior in universities are expelled on first offense – there is absolutely no room to plead your case.

An ISB senior expresses that “the current regulation for academic dishonesty at ISB is an appropriate one for high school.” Although it is more moderate than the approach taken by colleges, they claim that “since high school is the transition from being a kid to becoming an adult” there needs to “be some room for the students to make mistakes.”

Unfortunately, when the mistake of academic dishonesty is made, the student(s) involved are not only the ones that pay the price. While some acts of academic dishonesty happen within the school, a lot of it can involve the application process, or a standardized testing that implicates a larger corporation as well. When this occurs, although the penalties are still aimed directly at the student(s) involved, the whole situation triggers unwanted attention from universities and overall, shines a detrimental light on the students of ISB.

An anonymous junior understands, “a college’s reasoning for grouping the students of a single school in the same pool,” due to the vast number of applications they receive.  Nonetheless, they find it unfair “to the students of an institution to be given a disadvantage when pursuing a high education based on what students from previous classes may have done.”

So why is it that so many of us are inclined to breach the parameters of academic dishonesty, when the consequences for both the person and the school are so severe? What is going through a student’s mind when they decide to cheat on a test or plagiarize on an essay, and potentially destroy their future?

The HS Principal Mr. Philip Bradley states that there are “several reasons which cause students to resort to academic dishonesty,” with some of them being “the desire to appear to be someone they are not for the benefit of a teacher, parent or a college” and “the fear that an honest answer is not going to be acceptable.” He also shares that ISB’s goal is to “to raise awareness and stress to students that integrity is the most important commodity for an individual and an organization,” and it is our obligation to protect both.

Mr. Roback holds a similar opinion, saying that he doesn’t “want students to be shaken by the consequences of academic dishonesty” but rather refrain from it because “they have integrity, and they know that it is not right.” Although the number of academic dishonesty cases has increased from last year, he believes this is because the school has gotten “better at detecting” it, in order to take a preventative approach towards this issue.  ISB wishes to teach all of their students to be truthful in their current and future academic careers by informing their students early on of this consequential act, and enforcing strict rules when it is violated.

Academic dishonesty should not be viewed, or even considered as a solution or an easy way out of a difficult situation. The only way any schools can decrease the incidents of academic dishonesty is to teach students that this path is never an option. It is when students stop thinking of academic dishonesty as being a choice, that we can expect to see a glimmer of hope in actually succeeding to reduce the occurrences of academic dishonesty.

Sarah Lim