Cheating. Say the word and many students will conjure up images of wayward peers sitting in a classroom the day of a final exam, the answer key scribbled on their arms in black ink. The students are anxiously scribbling down answers at lightening speed, hiding them cautiously from the teacher’s view. This is stereotypical cheating; it is what many students have been taught not to do since elementary school. Don’t cheat, that is, don’t take work that is somebody else’s and use it as your own. It’s that simple, right? Not quite. 

If there’s one definite conclusion that can be drawn from an in-depth study of any cheating problem it is that cheating, like many such issues, is much more complicated than it seems. Despite the fact that many people would agree that cheating is wrong, the word can be defined in many ways from a variety of perspectives. The results of Lasso Online’s survey of 214 George Mason High School students readily confirmed this. It was clear that George Mason’s student body has not reached a consensus as to what constitutes cheating.

Take for example, the question that asked, "do you feel that it is cheating to copy minor assignments?" The students polled were split, with a majority believing that it was not cheating to copy the answers to such assignments. Why? Many commented that these assignments were busywork, and therefore not worth their time. These comments bring in scores of other educational concerns not addressed by the cheating survey at all.

Later in the survey, students were asked, "is cheating ever justified?" While nearly 60 percent had stated that copying minor assignments was not cheating and justifiable, more than two thirds of the students claimed that cheating was never justifiable. Many would argue that there is an apparent contradiction here; students are not uniform in their definition of cheating.

Such contradictions may make it difficult to install an honor code at George Mason, or in most high school environments for that matter. The honor code idea is a wonderful one. It would be great to curb student cheating. However, in order for an honor code to be effective, the school would need to establish a detailed, well-publicized definition of what exactly cheating is. Granted, such efforts are already being made by faculty. The English department, for example, distributes to each student a letter on what plagiarism is and how to prevent it. An honor code would require a further explanation of cheating, in the general sense of the word.

There are several other issues that make it difficult to install an honor code on a high school campus. For example, because GM is public, many of the consequences for violating honor codes at the university level, such as expulsion, would most likely not be possible. Also, many college honor codes have provisions that a student should report other students who violate the code. A good number of students who stated in the survey that they opposed the honor code (nearly 40% did not support it; just under 37% were undecided) commented that it would not work because students feel too much camaraderie with their peers to turn them in. This is most likely a generally true statement. 

This is not to say that the school should not continue to consider some sort of honor code. As Principal Snee commented in a recent interview, "if it changes some students’ behavior, it has done some good." It would be exciting if a student cheater did not have to continue learning lessons about the consequences of cheating beyond high school.

If the school continues to consider an honor code, it is important that the faculty and administration actively involve the students in the implementation process. This is not to say that the entire student body should assemble for a roll call vote in the auditorium. Perhaps a forum could be organized after school so that students could raise serious concerns and innovative ideas regarding a code. Whether an honor code is implemented or not, it’s important that students are involved in the decision making process. After all, if an honor code does become reality, students will be at its core.