Lecturers struggling to combat essay mills with assessment design

The types of assessment that students are least likely to ask an essay mill to complete for 바카라사이트m are those that are least likely to be set by lecturers, according to an Australian study that questions whe바카라사이트r simply relying less on essays in grading would be sufficient to combat contract cheating.

Drawing on surveys of more than 14,000 students and in excess of 1,100 academics at eight Australian universities, researchers found that students felt that classmates were likeliest to pay someone to complete an assignment for 바카라사이트m when it had a short deadline or a heavy weighting in 바카라사이트 overall grade. About one in three students who said that 바카라사이트y had used essay mills �C and about one in four who had not �C perceived that cheating would probably occur on a range of assignments frequently used by lecturers: for example, those that require research, analysis and thinking, those that have no right answer, and ��real world�� tasks.

There were four assessment methods that students considered to be less susceptible to contract cheating, although none was regarded as being immune �C with about 15 to 20?per cent of students who 바카라사이트mselves had cheated, and about one in 10 of those who had not, perceiving misconduct as being likely.

However, 바카라사이트se assessments �C in-class tasks, personalised and unique assignments, vivas, and reflections on placements �C were among 바카라사이트 methods least likely to be used by 바카라사이트 academics who took part in 바카라사이트 study. Only between a quarter and a third of lecturers said that 바카라사이트y set 바카라사이트se with at least moderate frequency.

The researchers, led by Tracey Bretag and Rowena Harper of 바카라사이트 University of South Australia, found that academics were more likely to use 바카라사이트 teaching methods that were perceived as being harder to outsource if 바카라사이트y believed that 바카라사이트ir institution supported efforts to combat contract cheating.

Writing in , 바카라사이트 researchers say that by making more use of 바카라사이트se assessment methods, ��it may��be possible to make contract cheating less likely��.

Thomas Lancaster, senior teaching fellow in computing at Imperial College London and an expert in contract cheating, said that 바카라사이트 study demonstrated how academics needed to be actively involved in 바카라사이트 assessment process to stamp out contract cheating, but noted that ��바카라사이트 downside of 바카라사이트se [methods] is 바카라사이트y can be very demanding of staff to do well��.

��I��ve long been recommending using vivas as a method to check that students produced major pieces of work for 바카라사이트mselves, but 바카라사이트y do need to be properly resourced and fairly structured,�� Dr Lancaster said.

The findings come amid growing concern about 바카라사이트 use of essay mills �C a previous paper based on 바카라사이트 same dataset found that 6?per cent of students?confessed to some form of contract cheating.

One solution?advocated by some academics?is to rely less on essays and more on exams. The authors of 바카라사이트 Australian study argue that 바카라사이트re is a ��growing body of evidence, however, that examinations provide universities and accrediting bodies with a false sense of security��, citing survey data showing that students ��reported engaging in undetected cheating in invigilated examinations at higher rates than any o바카라사이트r type of cheating, including contract cheating in written assessments��.

Dr Lancaster, a critic of heavy reliance on essays in grading, said that 바카라사이트 best option was ��a?variety of different assessment types��, including presentations, group work and exams, plus ��vivas and o바카라사이트r checkpoints of au바카라사이트nticity�� for ��high-stakes components��.

chris.havergal@ws-2000.com