In a recent survey by "Who’s Who Among American High School Students," 80% of college-bound high schoolers admitted to cheating at least once on a school assignment or test. High schools and colleges are taking action to track down cheaters and reduce academic fraud by using high-tech solutions.
Among these Tech Gadgets:
- Web-based anti-plagiarism services. Cutting and pasting research papers from the Internet has been the bane of teachers in technology-driven schools. Thousands of secondary schools, colleges and universities in the US and around the world now use services like Turnitin.com, which automatically compare student papers to more than 2 billion Websites, as well as a growing collection of books and encyclopedias.
- Positive ID. Thumbprint scans and digital cameras are used routinely in national standardized testing centers to discourage test-taking impersonators and monitor student attendance. Photos will become a permanent part of the test record.
- Cheat-Resistant Software. More than 100 high schools and colleges use Secureexam. This software prevents cheating on computer-based tests by blocking students from using the Web or email during exams.
(Source: Parenting Teens, December 2001)