SATs / ACTs & Cheating

Cheating on the SATs/ ACTs may have smaller consequences than you would think. A recent article in the LA Times suggests that although scores are canceled, schools are not notified of the behavior. Students can still retake it - and that's if scores were canceled to begin with. Of course this is only if you are caught cheating - and many SAT / ACT proctors are not as strict nor as vigilant as they should be.

Some argue that these cheating policies are good because they prevent a student whose allegedly cheated may not actually have done so. Reporting to schools without firm evidence could mean damaging an innocent kid's career. But what if there is firm evidence?


From the original article:

The agencies say their only concern is the integrity of scores, and that it would be impractical to expose student cheaters or try to exact punishment, such as barring them from retaking the test or noting infractions on transcripts.

'We don't tell schools or anyone else; we simply cancel the score,' said ACT spokesman Ed Colby. 'What we're trying to do is make sure the scores that we send to colleges are valid. It's not our intention to go around punishing students who make mistakes or who've done something they shouldn't have done.

From the looks of it, cheating seems to be taken a little lightly - is this really the message the entrance boards want to send to someone whose about to enter college where sometimes exams are given solely on the honor code (no proctoring) ? What do you think. (photo: accordingtoaccordions.wordpress.com/)