Academic Cheating in Thailand

Cheating on exams and in other academic situations is rife in Thailand. Within months of starting my teaching career here, I was exposed to it first hand. I caught numerous students red-handed and they were promptly failed on the exam in question and were required to withdraw from the course.

The attempts were crude, amateurish and almost laughable. Small bits of paper smuggled into the examination room were the most common method. In those first few years I also found a student who had arrived to class early and copied out a lengthy answer on her desk. She was banking on the fact that a certain question would be asked in the paragraph section of the test and guessed correctly. After I walked around collecting the papers afterwards, I noticed the incriminating evidence and promptly turfed her from the course.

Another flagrant example involved a speaking test which was conducted in the interview style with students sitting directly across from me at a table. The pupil in question kept glancing nervously down at his hands, which were laced together on the table with the palms facing him. I knew at once what was up and nearly burst out laughing at the sheer gall and stupidity of it. I stood up and peered over to see the words scrawled on his hands. He looked at me sheepishly as if the foolish technique would garner some sympathy. It didn't.

Essays copied verbatim from the internet are also common as are two or more students handing in identical assignments.

Those instances only involve the cases in which the little fraudsters were discovered. There are, of course, numerous, more savvy individuals, getting away with it.

Recent Trends in Academic Cheating

A number of trends have developed in the past few years as the serial scammers look for new ways to dishonestly improve their final grades. Not all of them are successful.

The most high profile recent method is the use of watches that are equipped with text storage technology. Many of these watches also allow messages to be sent to others with similar devices. This issue was discussed in the Thai media during the past few months and has probably succeeded to some degree in having the watches banned from exam halls.

Another method that has caught on and is more a testament to the herd mentality of some Thais and less to do with any logical expectation of getting away with it, is to walk out of the exam room with your answer sheet. The students apparently think that they will be able to later claim the paper was lost and they will have to re-write it.

In my experience, students attempting this are apprehended before they are far from the examination room or are later confronted and admit what they have done. Strange that they would try it on and then not carry it through to its logical end. Even those who have managed to convince some gullible teachers that they weren't responsible will face an updated and more difficult exam the second time around.

The Official Response

In some ways, it's not surprising. Cheating and corruption is widespread in government in Thailand. There is little cultural condemnation or real sanctions that come the way of people who cheat their way to the top. A number of years ago, the son of then-prime-minister Thaksin Shinawatra was caught cheating on an exam at a Bangkok university. The initial response from the school's administration was harsh. The following day a sudden reversal had taken place. It was waved aside with the claim that "nearly everyone does it anyway."

I don't ascribe to the gutless, equivocating apologists who claim that the collective attitude in Asia means that cheating should somehow be dealt with differently than elsewhere. Some things in life are universal as are the expected and proper responses. To give people a free pass in matters of integrity and honesty at the highest levels of education, is to demean the whole process and leave the decent students wondering what the whole charade is all about. And I honestly believe most Thais share this view as well.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the first college I taught at in Thailand supported my decision in every instance that I found a student cheating. There was some discomfort from them due to what they though was my harsh response. But their rationale was that if students were learning from a foreign teacher, they had to abide by my standards.

Unfortunately, other institutions where I have worked do not consistently deal with students who are caught in the act. The protocol and committee system that have been in place to decide on the fate of students were ostensibly fair and democratic. But from what I have seen, it occasionally provided an opportunity to obfuscate and let students of connected parents off the hook.

A case that transpired and which I observed, demonstrated the often farcical response to brazen attempts at gaining an unfair advantage. A student was caught using the above mentioned method of walking out of the exam room with her answer sheet. Her excuse, provided a few days after she was first caught, was that "my vision went blurry and I didn't know what I was doing."

Doctors were consulted. Which doctors? Affiliated or related to whom? Nobody knows. But these individuals provided all the excuse those in management were seeking.

"Doctor say it possible." Sure. It's also possible that Nigeria will one day be known as a technological and economic leader in the world. But it isn't bloody likely. With this pathetic defense offered and accepted, the case still went to committee but early indications were that she would be let off lightly.

The Way Forward

What is there to do about this problem if you are an English teacher in Thailand? All you can do is keep hammering away at students about the drawbacks of cheating. Why take a risk on getting caught and having a permanent mark on your academic record (no matter how few actual implications it might have)?

Despite the apparent reality that there are few risks involved regarding academic fraud, ultimately students short-change themselves and remove the possibility that they can feel honourable and proud about what they have accomplished.

Also, raise the issue as often as possible with teachers. The thought has often crossed my mind that the weak response from those in charge is an indication that they also hope others will turn a blind eye when they are less than scrupulous.

The amount of thought and energy put into effectively flouting the rules always makes me laugh. It reminds me of an old Archie comic digest in which Jughead searches high and low and expends huge amounts of effort while his parents are away. He is looking for some paper plates so that he won't have to wash dishes. The final frame shows him clutching the plates exhausted but triumphant in the attic, convinced that he has saved himself some work and somehow got one up on others.

Jughead: an apt role model for fools who cheat.