The author, David Callahan, presents case after case discussing the cheating culture here in America. In some shape or form, it is growing increasingly popular seemingly in every culture. Chapter 7, “Cheating from the Starting Line,” sheds light onto several examples of duplicitous situations involving students in academic settings, and job seekers trying to get gainful employment. Cheating at the Horace Mann School and Stuyvesant High School, two of America’s most prestigious prep-schools, was quite prevalent. Parents and students alike encountered immense pressure. Parents to provide for their child or children access to whatever was necessary to pass, and students do almost anything to have success and get into an Ivy League school. Cheating became an accepted or expected norm.
Of course, cheating is not a new phenomenon. Reflecting on this chapter caused this writer to consider experiences from high school. There were several situations witnessed where teachers assisted students with the answers to tests in an attempt to help them pass to the next grade, keep a higher average in order to play sports. It was even expected by many of the “elite” athletes, and encouraged by some teachers, that certain “top” students complete
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students from Pepperdine University to Las Vegas. The purpose was not to gamble or go to shows, but to converse with individuals who committed white-collar crimes. The trip was to a federal penitentiary; the purpose was to give the graduate students an opportunity to interact first hand with people who were found guilty of committing corporate crimes, and see the consequences of such actions. The chapter goes on to discuss further issues America faces with cheating in our society. A culture where individuals are unscrupulous and immoral just to fulfill self-interest, notwithstanding when there are good upstanding choices