Contract Cheating and Academic Misconduct in Examinations and Tests - HEA STEM Conference 2016

1#contractcheating #HEASTEM16

Contract Cheating and Academic Misconduct in Examinations and

Tests

Dr. Thomas Lancaster and Robert ClarkeHEA STEM Conference 2016Thursday 28 January, 2016

http://thomaslancaster.co.uk/



Background




Our Role in Student Cheating and Academic Integrity Research

Dr. Thomas Lancaster

Senior Lecturer in Computing at BCUSenior Fellow of the Higher Education AcademyPhD “Effective And Efficient Plagiarism Detection”Programme Leader BSc Computer Science

Robert Clarke

Educational Consultant at SCLVisiting Lecturer/Former Principal Lecturer30 Years Experience Teaching at BCUHas collected more than 30,000 attempts by students worldwide to outsource their work




Contract Cheating

Working DefinitionContract cheating occurs when a student pays (or uses) a third party to complete assessed work for academic credit

This has most often been observed with students using technology to pay others to do their assessments (e.g. through an online essay mill or by hiring a ghostwriter)




Underlying Questions

Are students using contract cheating to aid their exam results?How does this feed into the changing landscape of student cheating?What measures, as academics, should we be taking when such cheating is possible?




Is Exam Cheating A Problem?




Backlash From The Australian Cheating Scandal (2014/15)

Average level of cheating in multiple choice tests of 5% (worse in tiered rooms, such as lecture theatres)Identified computer security issues where exam papers and questions had been stolen and then shared using social mediaFound students using toilet breaks to search the Internet for solutions




SAT Tests Cancelled In China

“The College Board has cancelled college entrance exams on Saturday in China and Macau after the company learned that many of the applicants might have seen the exam paper for the upcoming SAT.The now-cancelled Scholastic Aptitude Test was to be held at over 45 testing centers across mainland China and Macau.”

Macau Daily Times – 25 January 2016http://macaudailytimes.com.mo/44793.html

http://macaudailytimes.com.mo/44793.html

http://macaudailytimes.com.mo/44793.html




“Student Cheating Crisis”

The Times – Saturday January 2, 2016

From UK university cheating figures for the past 3 years:“At least five cases of impersonation were recorded, when students arranged for someone to sit exams on their behalf.”

Other common offenses:Starting exam early/finishing writing lateSmuggled in notesCopying from other studentsLong toilet breaksAn incident where “…student did not use the most convenient toilet”




Is Paying Someone To Sit Your Exam Contract Cheating?




Classified Ad On Seattle Craigslist

The Atlantic – March 18 2014http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/03/catching-a-cheater-online/284461

Are you good with college level math? I need a taller college aged brunette female student to take a math placement test for me in person as I am out of state currently. If you believe that you can be of help please respond to this ad and let me know your math qualifications. Must know college level math. Willing to pay a neg fee. This could turn into more work in the near future if interested. Serious inquiries only as I need this done ASAP! Thank you!

The student communicated to with a local professor in a “sting” operation.The college would not promise to refuse the student entry.

http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/03/catching-a-cheater-online/284461






University of York

“A highly intelligent former City banker who suffers from Asperger's syndrome and an economics student have been given suspended jail sentences for cheating in university exams.Jerome Drean, 34, and Elnar Askerov, 23, each received sentences of nine months' imprisonment suspended for two years after Drean was paid £20,000 for posing as Askerov, a student at York University, using a fake identity card.”

The Independent – 1 March 2008




More Common Than You Might Think?

“TWO other cheats were caught on the same day and at the same exam as Jerome Drean and Enlar Askerov.Qiu Shi Zhang, 23, who was supposed to sit the economics finance exam, got his friend Xin Zhang, 24, no relation, to stand in for him at the University of York.But vigilant staff spotted that Xin Zhang was very different from the picture on the ID card he carried and both were arrested.Qiu Shi Zhang, of Hickleton Court, Garrowby Way, Heslington, admitted aiding and abetting fraud and Xin Zhang, who was studying marketing at Birmingham University last May, admitted fraud.Each was ordered to do 100 hours' community work and pay £35.”

The York Press (not dated)




Technology-Aided Exam Contract Cheating




Freelancer.com

Unlike many services used by students to cheat, the requests made on Freelancer can be observed.These are some test and exam related examples seen on Freelancer.




Re-work Exam as Coursework

I study MSc Management and Finance and I have 2 referrals which are Accounting&Economics and Operation . Therefore, I have to re-work both exams as an assignment to achieve an overall pass at cammendation . I have the questions and I need the answers for all of them , the deadline for all referral work is in the 9th of December 2015.

Freelancer 8920932Dec 2015 UK

£22




“Seen exam” paper

There will be exam on The Medieval History during 2 hour and half, I need an academic essay about the topic that instructor will provide. I need to essay in 2 hours. As instructor writes,You will have a choice of 8 questions of which you will have to answer 1. These questions will require critical analysis to answer just like the assignment questions.

Freelancer 9134309Dec 2015 Azerbaijan

€62




Time-limited Question

Android Question

This is a timelimited question given as an assignment. It should be answered in a very detailed manner. Question:What is an intent? Is it possible to update/upgrade an app without using an intent? What are other possibilities or possible scenarious of updating an app without using intent? Implement a very short and simple app which will try to update itself without using an intent. In which situation does a good app update itself in this possible scenario?

Freelancer 8931083Nov 2015 USA

$30




Multi-choice Questions

Accounting HomeworkThere are 4 multiple choice question on my accounting lab. I will give the details

Freelancer 9114582Dec 2015 USA $39




Skype or Facebook to help me

Mathematics ExamYou should have whats App or skype or facebook to help me IntegrationCalculusInfinityHere is final exam past papers

Freelancer 6010360May 2014 Malaysia

$23




Take-home Exam

Final examEconomic DevelopmentFall Semester 2015This is a take home exam. Your work should be your own. Do NOT consult members of the class in writing your exam. Please include a cover page with the following information: Final Exam, Fall Semester 2015, course number (EC 4600), and your name. Number the pages and staple them together in chronological order.Freelancer 9060406Dec 2015 USA $50




Open-book Exam

This is an open book exam therefore there is no word limit, it will consist of 2 questions Financial & Non-Financial Analysis of Annual Report of Tallow Oil of year ended 2012.

In Financial Analysis we need to calculate ratios e.g Performance Ratios, Investment Ratios, Financing Ratios and Liquidity Ratios and do an analysis how each Ratio is effecting the company's performance and if there is anything important mentioned in the balance sheet ( max 1000 words)Freelancer 9060406Aug 2014 UK

$50




On-line Exam

ASCI 309 Aerodynamics: Final ExamAll questions have equal weightShow ALL work for partial credit considerationInclude UNITSEnter answers and show work in space providedShow any additional work in the extra space providedSave Your Completed Exam Answer Sheet Using the File Format “lastname_FE”Submit Using the Assignment Upload Tool in BlackboardFreelancer 6566633Oct 2014 USA $61




Test for a Job Entry

Numerical Reasoning Test for a Job EntryThese numerical reasoning tests contain questions that test your knowledge of Ratios, Percentage Increase/Decrease, Cost and Sales Analysis, Rates and Trends, and Currency Conversions.Use a calculator. The tests are not negatively marked but accuracy is essential so try not to rush or guess. Practice makes perfect.

Freelancer 8880460Nov 2015 UK

$45




Online Exam Exam on operation managementHere are the log-in instructions:1.) go to www.mymanagementlab.com2.) the username is: Anberlin10the password is: Password283.)Click on the link that says "Operations Management" on the left side of the screen.4.)From there, you can click "assignments" and then "take a test"I am looking to have weeks 1,2,3,4,5 exams being completed. Like I said in the initial post, if these work out I may be interested in paying additional to have some quizzes completed.The exams that you will be taking are NOT on a time limit, and you can take them as many times as you wish. I am only requesting an 80% or above. Anything above 80% would be greatly appreciated. Please message me if you still have questions. Thank you for taking on this project.U only need to do five exams

Freelancer 1326059Dec 2011 Bangladesh $50

Pearson Education




Trends To Avoid

Exams taken home, or taken in an unsupervised mannerExams taken on computers with external communicated availableStudent self-invigilationUsing a previous exam as a courseworkReusing exam questions




Other Exam Challenges




Online Classes? You’re Covered!

Services will take entire online classes and MOOCS for students




Access To Exam Archives

Should the availability of these services really represent a problem?

I'm the academic chairman of my fraternity, and I'm looking to start a test bank for our chapter. The only issue is, I'm not sure how to run it. Should I do it in paper, or online, available to everyone, or to a select few people, etc. If anyone can tell me how they run theirs that'd be much appreciated!https://www.reddit.com/r/GreekLife/comments/2hiz1p/how_is_your_organiations_test_bank_run

https://www.reddit.com/r/GreekLife/comments/2hiz1p/how_is_your_organiations_test_bank_run







Technology

24kupi Invisible WatchSmart watch screen appears blank unless special glasses are worn

Screenshot grabbed from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYxGHChOh8I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYxGHChOh8I






Popular “Exam Help” In India

Underwear with built-in mobile technologyMiniature earpiece hidden inside earSkin coloured bean shape microphone

http://www.earsort.in/bluetooth-underwear-earpiece.html




Gumtree Australia

Classified advert from June 2015Reported in An Approach to Minimising Academic Misconduct and Plagiarism at the University of Sydney




Selected Recommendations

Ensure that students understand the benefits of completing their own work and exams (there are future exams in industrial/employability settings)All exams should be closely invigilated, with student identities confirmedTechnology, including phones and watches, removed from use during examination. Mobile signals blockConsider individualised exam papers to prevent copyingMore exams taken on computers, screen monitored




The Future?

Drones flown over Chinese test centres during university entrance exams to detect radio signals

http://time.com/3914087/china-drones-cheating-exams






Further Resources




Selected References For Our Contract Cheating Work

Lancaster, T. and Clarke, R. (2015), Contract Cheating – The Outsourcing Of Assessed Student Work, in Handbook of Academic Integrity, Bretag, T. (editor): SpringerReference.Lancaster, T. and Clarke, R. (2015),The Implications of Plagiarism and Contract Cheating for the Assessment of Database Modules. 13th International Workshop on Teaching,

Learning and Assessment of Databases (TLAD 2015), Birmingham, UK, July 2015.Hersey, C. and Lancaster, T. (2015), The Online Industry of Paper Mills, Contract Cheating Services, and Auction Sites, Clute Institute International Education Conference, London,

June 2015.Lancaster, T. and Clarke, R. (2014), An Observational Analysis Of The Range And Extent Of Contract Cheating From Online Courses Found On Agency Websites; 8th International

Conference on Complex, Intelligent and Software Intensive Systems (CISIS 2014), Birmingham City University, UK, July 2014.Lancaster, T. and Clarke, R. (2014), An Initial Analysis Of The Contextual Information Available Within Auction Posts On Contract Cheating Agency Websites, 28th IEEE International

Conference on Advanced Information Networking and Applications, University of Victoria, May 2014Lancaster, T. and Clarke, R. (2014), Using Turnitin As A Tool For Attribution In Cases Of Contract Cheating; 3rd Annual Higher Education Academy Conference in Science, Technology,

Engineering and Mathematics, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, April 2014.Clarke, R. and Lancaster, T. (2013). Commercial Aspects Of Contract Cheating; 8th Annual Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education, University of

Kent, Canterbury, UK, July 2013.Lancaster, T and Clarke, R (2012). Dealing With Contract Cheating: A Question Of Attribution; 1st Annual Higher Education Academy Conference in Science, Technology, Engineering

and Mathematics, Imperial College, London, April 2012.Lancaster, T and Clarke, R (2010). Staff-Led Individualised Assessment – A Case Study; 11th Annual Higher Education Academy Conference in Information and Computer Sciences,

Durham University, August 2010.Lancaster, T and Clarke, R (2008). How to Succeed at Cheating Without Really Trying: Five Top Tips for Successful Cheating; 9th Annual Higher Education Academy Conference in

Information and Computer Sciences, Liverpool Hope University, August 2008.Clarke, R, and Lancaster, T (2007). Establishing a Systematic Six-Stage Process for Detecting Contract Cheating; The Second International Conference on Pervasive Computing and

Applications, Birmingham City University, July 2007. Lancaster, T and Clarke, R (2007). Assessing Contract Cheating Through Auction Sites – A Computing Perspective; 8th Annual Higher Education Academy Conference in Information

and Computer Sciences, University of Southampton, August 2007.Lancaster, T and Clarke, R (2007) The Phenomena of Contract Cheating, in Student Plagiarism in an Online World: Problems and solutions, Roberts, T. S. (editor), Hershey,

Pennsylvania, USA: Idea Group Inc.Clarke, R and Lancaster, T (2006). Eliminating The Successor To Plagiarism? Identifying The Usage Of Contract Cheating Sites; 2nd Plagiarism: Prevention, Practice and Policy

Conference 2006 - Newcastle, UK, June 2006.




For More Information

General Resources:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contract_cheatinghttp://contractcheating.com

Contract Cheating Special Interest Group (supported by the Higher Education Academy):https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=CONTRACTCHEATING

Slides Available At:http://www.slideshare.net/ThomasLancaster

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contract_cheating

http://contractcheating.com/

https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=CONTRACTCHEATING

https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A0=CONTRACTCHEATING

http://www.slideshare.net/ThomasLancaster

http://www.slideshare.net/ThomasLancaster




Our Contact Details

Thomas LancasterEmail: [email protected]: http://thomaslancaster.co.ukBlog: http://thomaslancaster.co.uk/blogLinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/thomaslancaster Twitter: @DrLancaster

Robert ClarkeEmail: [email protected]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-clarke-96712a16

mailto:[email protected]


http://thomaslancaster.co.uk/blog

https://uk.linkedin.com/in/thomaslancaster

https://twitter.com/DrLancaster

https://twitter.com/DrLancaster

mailto:[email protected]

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-clarke-96712a16

https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-clarke-96712a16

