Cheating in school

[Countxxx]

Hi well first let me say this is my first thread I am 19 yrs old and currently going to be a sophomore in college... I have basically cheated my way through elementary, middle, and high school. At the time I did not realize the harm I was doing but now that my parents are spending a boat load of money for me to go to college it just seems pointless to cheat. They have no idea that I never took a single test in high-school without cheating on it and would be devastated to find out... I am very worried that its to late for me to learn how to learn. I try and study but dont know how and always get sucked into just copying someone else's answer. I have never tested for a learning disability on account my grades were always average to above because I would find away to get the answers not to brag but I am pretty damm good at cheating something that no one should be proud of.
And on another note I started Smoking pot everyday for about the past month and it wasnt until I started smoking that I realized what I had done. I feel that when Im high I think on a higher level of knowledge I know this sounds weird but smoking weed made me understand that cheating is very wrong. Maybe Im just crazy.
But do you guys think there is any hope for someone like me who probably has the education level of a 5th grader to succeed in life. one more thing you should know is that I was a very hard worker in highschool I just devoted all my efforts into sports and working out. And well I am not going to be a professional athlete( im short and white) so now I feel that I just screwed myself over and theres no hope for graduating college.

[Xanafax]

First of all shut up with all this negativity.

Grow a pair and face up to what you've done. You've made a balls up, no doubt but every wrong can be righted given time and effort.

The question is, are you ready to change?

If you are then suck it up and admit to yourself you need to start again. 19 years old is not too late to change. It's time to get tough, get hardline with yourself. Have you considered taking a year out, maybe working, getting some self discipline before college?

[Beuford]

It's not too late. I recommend what you do is start doing things to expand your knowledge like browsing the internet for useful things that are relevant to use and reading non-fiction books on topics that interest you. You will find something that you can do and remember your life is under your control so just work at it and work towards a positive outcome. You don't need to go to school again, you just need to take steps to realise what you've done and reverse the process.

[Countxxx]

Xanafax thanks for the kick in the ass I need that every once in awhile yes I have considered taking a year off but I am at very good university and my parents do not understand nor support me leaving school.

[Chillax]

how badly the cheating will effect you depends on what you do, some courses tend to be cumulative in nature, especually the math and sciences

some kids do bad in highschool and good in college and vice versa, what does that tell you?

college is a completley new beginning, no **** you'll have to work a bit harder than the average person JUST TO KEEP UP, but you're not screwed, in almost every class, they start from the beginning

"I try and study but dont know how"

this heavily depends on WHAT you are studying, there's really no sure fire way

[davidv90]

Originally Posted by Countxxx

Hi well first let me say this is my first thread I am 19 yrs old and currently going to be a sophomore in college... I have basically cheated my way through elementary, middle, and high school. At the time I did not realize the harm I was doing but now that my parents are spending a boat load of money for me to go to college it just seems pointless to cheat. They have no idea that I never took a single test in high-school without cheating on it and would be devastated to find out... I am very worried that its to late for me to learn how to learn. I try and study but dont know how and always get sucked into just copying someone else's answer. I have never tested for a learning disability on account my grades were always average to above because I would find away to get the answers not to brag but I am pretty damm good at cheating something that no one should be proud of.
And on another note I started Smoking pot everyday for about the past month and it wasnt until I started smoking that I realized what I had done. I feel that when Im high I think on a higher level of knowledge I know this sounds weird but smoking weed made me understand that cheating is very wrong. Maybe Im just crazy.
But do you guys think there is any hope for someone like me who probably has the education level of a 5th grader to succeed in life. one more thing you should know is that I was a very hard worker in highschool I just devoted all my efforts into sports and working out. And well I am not going to be a professional athlete( im short and white) so now I feel that I just screwed myself over and theres no hope for graduating college.

How do you usually cheat? Don't teachers give out different tests? I'm not in school anymore though.

[Nani]

You're probably not as behind as you think. I'm also going to be a sophomore in college. I went through high school as an A student and did very well without cheating (I cheated maybe 2 or 3 times), but I learned very little. I think most students have the wrong mindset about learning all throughout school. I wasn't much different from you, really, because the only thing that mattered to me was getting a good grade. I would study that boring-ass material for that good grade, and then I'd throw it aside, never wanting to look at it again. Ever.

I was really bitter about it, and ended up learning almost nothing because of that. I did develop a strong work ethic and drive to complete any assignment on time no matter what, though, so it's not without its positives as well. I'm sure you can find something positive about your years of cheating, too. If you made it all throughout your school years by cheating, then hot damn, you probably have excellent social skills, persuasion skills, and/or you're extremely creative. You can use all that to your advantage.

Now that you're in college, I think the most important thing you can do is learn with the intention of USING what you learn in the future. Don't always study just to get a good grade. Try your hardest to see how the material can be relevant in your own life.

I'm sure this can be done with any subject if you're creative enough, but I'll be the first to admit that sometimes it's really hard. I wanted to die in my Art History class and could not for the life of me see any use in knowing the names of paintings and their history. In classes like these, I suggest you either try to use the class to personally challenge yourself, like studying every day to strengthen your self-discipline, or develop some kind of interest in the subject by reading about it and asking questions.

Now, about how to study. You have to study efficiently. There are a lot of people in college who never cheated but still don't know how to study effectively. Reading the information over and over and hoping it'll stick in your mind is a method that rarely helps, yet a lot of people use that.

I recommend reading the free e-book on this page: Scott H Young » Holistic Learning EBook
Kind of funny, because I recommended it to someone else here the other day...
But I think it really will help you.

[ChrisN]

Okay, I cheated in 1 test in primary school and boy, did I get stung for it... Never cheated since...

The thing you need to realize is that the more you think you can't do it, the more likely you wont achieve it.

"You can only achieve, what you believe"

Cheating you know is wrong, get a buddy or friend to help you with this. Just ask him to keep and eye out on you and make sure you don't cheat. You do realise if you cheat in uni and get caught, you will be expelled from college and yelled at in front of some 100 other ppl in your class.

About the pot, you know its wrong... I suggest you stop before it becomes an addiction that you don't want to quit.

Drug Addiction Support <-- my blog

[Countxxx]

Thanks appreciate all the comments regards to the marijuana for some reason I feel that when I smoke not only do I feel better but more motive to learn and expand my mind....It wasn't until I started smoking that I wanted to stop cheating but now its as if I am replacing one addiction for another. I recently took a summer course about 4 weeks long and would smoke everyday for about the first three weeks after I had gone to school the last week I did not want to smoke because I didnt want to be a pot head but the amount of work I did dramatically decreased. Its like when I get high I feel that I need to work harder so that I can be productive and get high again but take away the high and I have no reason to work. Im struggling with it because this is the first time I have seriously been involved with drugs and am learning new things about them and myself I know the journey of drugs is negative but I feel I am feeling all of their positive affects with no negative I fear what could happen if I cannot live without them.

[Countxxx]

Originally Posted by davidv90

How do you usually cheat? Don't teachers give out different tests? I'm not in school anymore though.

plenty of ways to cheat
Math class plug notes and answers into calculator.
Steel the test memorize answers
find a buddy sit behind my personal favorite because you cannot get caught if your sneeky no teacher will call you out including college professors.
My favorite and one that I created is take the notes type them in about 8 font print them on a strip and glue the notes to the inside of a water bottle that is about 1/4 full and you can see right through to all the answers. I once had about 5 water bottles for a anatomy final.
Teachers are either oblivious or dont give a ♥♥♥♥♥ about cheating cuz literally my friends and I would cheat on every test in every class maybe it was just my school>the funny thing is I went to a private christian academy considered a really good school. But anyway where theres a will theres a way I would walk into my finals not knowing any of the info but still somehow come out with A's and B's.
The best time to get answers is when every is turning in their test the teacher is distracted perfect time to copy answers.

[Ravi Jaya]

Originally Posted by Countxxx

Thanks appreciate all the comments regards to the marijuana for some reason I feel that when I smoke not only do I feel better but more motive to learn and expand my mind....It wasn't until I started smoking that I wanted to stop cheating but now its as if I am replacing one addiction for another. I recently took a summer course about 4 weeks long and would smoke everyday for about the first three weeks after I had gone to school the last week I did not want to smoke because I didnt want to be a pot head but the amount of work I did dramatically decreased. Its like when I get high I feel that I need to work harder so that I can be productive and get high again but take away the high and I have no reason to work. Im struggling with it because this is the first time I have seriously been involved with drugs and am learning new things about them and myself I know the journey of drugs is negative but I feel I am feeling all of their positive affects with no negative I fear what could happen if I cannot live without them.

Countxxx - You show all of the typical signs of addiction. You know that you don't want to continue smoking but you do it anyway. This is one of the biggest signs of addiction: Having a want to stop but no ability to stop.

Also, having no motivation to work unless you are high is another signal of addiction. People who drink and use in a non-addictive way do not need to get high to do ordinary things such as work. Usually, non-addict drinkers and users only drink or smoke weed for special occasions such as a party.

I can tell you from experience because I abused weed for about 11 years and I had all of the same experiences as you. Although, only you can evaluate whether you are truly a weed addict. You should try hitting a marijuana anonymous meeting and working with a sponsor to see whether or not you are addicted.

[themaster]

Well, I'm not going to judge you for cheating.. (basically I'm saying in this statement I don't care if you cheated or not.. either choice was fine/right) though you seem to be judging yourself..

But here's the real question.. why do you want to learn useless information that schools teach?

I think your true reasoning for cheating.. is cause the information is
a. Borringgg..
b. You just want that diploma, pass that test prove your smart?

The real question is why???

Why do you want this.. can you not see yourself in a world where your treated as smart without a diploma without even going to grade school?

Why do you want to learn useless information you don't care about?

The true reason why we don't remember 90% of the crap taught in schools and sometimes have to be taught it over and over.. is cause it is useless.. do I use algebra in my life?? not really, never..

Here ends my lecturer on giving a damn about something that sounds "unimportant to you"

[Strem2]

Hey, your first thread and look at how much interest you generated!

What are you really good at? I would think that you have friends from the responses here. That bodes well for your "after college" life so take heart.... Look at our last president.... Grades aren't everything. A man named Gardner wrote about multiple intelligences and pointed out that reading and math and memory are the ones tested in most schools. That leaves out visual, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic, kinaesthetic. That's a lot to leave out. You might be interested in the multiple intelligences website. They have a test that you can take that's fun. (No cheating!!

But, I would look at the cheating only because you are putting more faith in someone else than in yourself. That doesn't seem like such a good idea. You are going to have to develop some faith in yourself at some point if you are going to be happy.

This is why you're not feeling good about the cheating. You are dis'ing yourself every time you do that. Stop that.

-Nancy

[ar81]

Originally Posted by Countxxx

Hi well first let me say this is my first thread I am 19 yrs old and currently going to be a sophomore in college... I have basically cheated my way through elementary, middle, and high school.

But do you guys think there is any hope for someone like me who probably has the education level of a 5th grader to succeed in life. one more thing you should know is that I was a very hard worker in highschool I just devoted all my efforts into sports and working out. And well I am not going to be a professional athlete( im short and white) so now I feel that I just screwed myself over and theres no hope for graduating college.

Why do you study? Because you need knowledge and skill to succeed. If you cheat, you are cheating yourself, unless you gain those very same skills in your spare time.

You may say "this is useless". What do you know about it? At high school I did not study enough french because I said "when in life will I need french?". By the time internet did not exist and at most you could see a few american students in exchange programs coming to the school for short periods.

Later I met a french girl and she became my girlfriend, and I used to regret not to study french enough.

I used to hate history. I always loved airplanes, and when I tried to learn more about them I learned their story, and that led me to study history.

I used to hate spanish class, with very tight and demanding teachers. But there was a crisis in my family and I started to attend a workshop led by a spanish writer who taught us about how to play with words. Not only it brought relief, but also gave me joy. Nowadays I love spanish.

At university I hated math. I hated matrix operations, which I regarded as useless. Later, when making mods for games, I coded a tool where I needed 3D rotation for 3D objects, and I discovered that using a matrix to rotate points was faster. Then I discovered that math was great and fun.

I bet you cheat because you have not found the fun of studying.

If you wanted to be astronaut, you may need to be in good physical shape, but also you need to study a lot. If you want to climb a mountain you will have to learn about local culture, weather and many other areas of knowledge so you do not jeopardize the expedition. If you plan a trip to south pole, you will need lots of knowledge, and that would put your physical skills to the limit. There it does not matter if you are short or white, and you may need to study a lot.

Succeed? If you get a job that allows you to save money and fund the expedition, you may find why is that other things you saw as useless, are very useful.