On Cheating

PREFACE: I rarely write prose. Today is the exception.

In American schools, I never cheated. It wasn’t always because I was interested in the subject, but because I wanted to develop my brain by learning about different sectors. I learned to solve difficult problems in Physics, to write creatively and effectively in English and Journalism, to apply lessons from History, to learn the inner workings of Government and Economics. But the reason why I succeeded in school was because I wanted to learn all these things. After school ended, I was able to succeed in nearly everything I’ve done because I had learned how to learn. In college and after, I was elected director of multiple organizations and clubs. I was able to find the way to realize my dream of creating and touring music. I was able to graduate from a great school with a great GPA. Why? Because I had the ability to understand the details of what was going on in those organizations and clubs, because I learned how to properly search for the path to music, and because I knew how to understand the information from the courses I was taking in college. Now why is this? Because I have always challenged myself to understand what is going on. I never cheated in school, and it’s given me opportunity in life. I am satisfied with what I’ve done, and I know that I can do anything that I want to do. This is not because I’m some genius, or rich, or American, or a white male. This is because I made a commitment long ago to give everything I have to understanding what is presented to me.

If Ukrainian students are allowed to cheat from the very beginning, then after school when they enter the real world, they will always look for ways to cheat any system also. If they stay in Ukraine where corruption is the law of the land, then they can survive. But if they live any time abroad, they will learn that cheating a system is not socially acceptable;  they will see laws are enforced to prevent it. They will either adjust themselves to this new line of thought, or they will return to corrupt Ukraine.

We need Ukrainian teachers who have lived abroad and will not tolerate cheating. We need Ukrainian teachers who teach pupils how to learn and think for themselves to solve problems. We need to teach our pupils that the way to get rid of the corruption in Ukraine is absolutely, only in their hands. Cheating may get you good marks, but a generation of cheaters will prevent Ukraine from growing and maturing into a respectable member of the Global Community.