NO TO CHEATING

First I would like to say hi to one of my masugid na tagasubaybay (yesss), DK. He told me he wanted to be mentioned in my blog. You got the first line my friend. Haha

Today officially starts our one week sembreak. Everybody loves sembreaks but one week? That sucks. But before going into that, I would like to reiterate my position on a very important issue—cheating. You see my dear readers (as if there are really that many huh) I personally consider cheating as malum prohibitum, that is, the mere act of doing it already considered unlawful. Good faith is not a defense. Intent is not a defense.

Cheating starts in very little things until you actually apply it to bigger things and you never notice but it is already your way of life. Look at these greedy politicians seating comfortably in the Congress, when do you think they start cheating? Of course they started that in little things. Maybe even in simple murmuring with their seatmates during classroom exams in 2nd year high school.

As a rational being, we can always rationalize things to our advantage. We can always justify why we did or did not do something. But in the case of cheating, this must be absolute. No matter how small that may be, it is still considered cheating. If I become a lawmaker, my landmark legislation will be a law on cheating in schools, that’s how passionate am I about this.

Anyway, here’s the back story. Last October 22, we had our final exams in Persons and Family Relations under Judge S. I was one of those exempted to take because my midterms standing is already quiet high (well, at least to the Judge’s standards) but I opted to take though it will no longer affect my grade. I just want to look at the exam questions as it might help in the future. A few minutes after we started, Judge told us that he will go out for a while and get a drink. As soon as the door closes, my not so honorable blocmates at the back started whispering with each other to the point of actually distracting the other takers. I looked back and momentarily hold my gaze hoping that if they see me looking at them, they have the shame to actually stop. But they never did. What’s worse is that C, a son of a former lawmaker, put out his iphone in the middle of the exam, Y beside him is also looking at the iphone. This triggered me to do something no one ever thought of doing—telling all these to the Judge.

I waited for him outside and the first line that went out of my mouth was “Sir I do not actually want to tell you this but I really cannot contain it. This is not an honorable thing to do.”

Really not an honorable thing to do. But for those involved, I’m still mabait as I did not name names.

When I was still in UP, cheating is never a problem. There are exams when Tita Lorns from the department will just give us the exam questions, walk out from the classroom and go back to get our papers as the time’s already up. In UP, when the professor or proctor started distributing the exam questions, not a single noise will be heard. I have never caught someone looking at another’s paper or whispering with the other, either they’re too smart to get caught or no one really cheats. I remember my professor in PolSci 1 during my freshman year saying, “in UP, cheating is not a problem”. According to her, it is just about pride. If you are a valedictorian or an honor student way back in high school, will you look at the other’s paper? Or will you give your answers to your seatmate? I think this set up applies for the freshmen. But for the higher years, a different reason is applicable, when they already grasp the University motto, Honor and Excellence, they will apply that. Honor first before excellence that’s why they (we) don’t cheat.

One might ask why I’m very passionate about this. Simple. Training. If you have been trained that cheating is inherently immoral, you would not. If your University would not let cheaters go away unpunished, you would not cheat. If you came from UP, you will not cheat. Well, this is a generalization but there are of course isolated cases.

I really wish San Beda has a strict policy about cheating. Let us not tolerate it. We all know it is wrong. Speak up. We all say, NO TO CHEATING.