Cheat on Standardized Tests

Remember when cheating on tests was as simple as locating a seat close to a smart person and occasionally chancing a glance in their direction during the test? Those were the days! Now, with schools bursting at the seams with placement and standardized test, the stress among students is as high as ever. As a result, some students have started taking very inventive approaches to cheating on standardized test. And while many of these methods don’t work out in the end, they should definitely be given an A for effort.

As stated, even sitting behind someone had evolved into a whole new concept. For instance, some students have adopted what is known as a “Flying V” seating method. What this entails is a series of students (reportedly as many as 10) sitting in a V formation behind the student that they intend to cheat off of, each student sitting in diagonal fashion behind the student closest to the top of the V.

Apart from this, there are a few cheating methods you can use before the test even begins. For instance, you can always bribe the TA or the copyist in order to get an advanced copy of the test. Of course this is risky because if the parties in question are reputable members of the school, they could easily reject your bribe and turn you in.

There is also the idea of acquiring a copy of the test questions from someone that has already taken the test. Some ways to benefit from the questions without being caught are taping the answers into the inside of a flannel shirt or, as gross as it may sound, writing answers on a tissue in pencil; if the professor seems to be on to you, simply blow your nose and pocket the tissue.
If you want to get really creative, there is always the concept of planning out “communications” strategies with your friends.

One classic example that has been passed around for years goes something like this: Lightly tap out a number with your pencil so that a nearby friend can hear, making sure to do so lightly as to not distract any other test-takers. Let’s say you tap once (1) and then pause, adding three more taps, indicating the number 13. Your friend, whom just happens to be munching on Skittles or M and Ms (or any multicolored candy), eats the answer. That is, a blue one would be A, a red one would indicate B and so on. This does take quite a bit of planning but is pretty fool proof unless the tapping is loud and excessive.

Lastly, there are the ever popular Brain Dumps to be considered. For those not in the know, Brain Dumps are a place—usually a website or forum—where people who have already taken an exam dump (or post or record) all of the information they can remember following the exam. Brain Dumps are especially popular for standardized tests and even certification exams. Many test takers go to great lengths to memorize test questions so that they can accurately post them on Brain Dumps.

If you think Brain Dumps are the way to go but aren’t sure where to find them, here are some amazing resources that will point you in the right direction no matter what sort of test you might have on the horizon.