Teens who cheat may benefit from alternative summer camps

By Staff Writer

The Kansas City Star reports that nine out of 10 middle school students admit to copying another child's homework, while 74 percent of high school teens said they have cheated on an exam.

According to the news provider, cheating in schools has become more rampant because of new technologies that make it easier for kids to share their assignments and send each other digital messages with test answers. Michael Hartnett, an author and educator, told the media outlet that there are effective ways in which parents can discover if their teen is cheating.

He said the most thorough method is to check the child's homework every night. While this may seem tedious and inappropriate for a teenage student, he said it is a good way for parents to determine if their kids are actually learning in school. A good sign of wrongdoing is the absence of substantive work and if a student cannot explain how they found their answers.

Troubled teens who repeatedly lie or cheat may benefit from alternative summer camps. The University of Rhode Island Change Assessment study found that many students who graduate from outdoor therapy successfully change their problem behaviors.