The Likelihood of Cheating at Formative Vocabulary Tests: Before and During Online Remote Learning in English Courses

Introduction: Early review studies identified the prevalence of cheating and the emergence of various forms of cheating in academic institutions. Now, there is growing concern about the rise of academic dishonesty in an unproctored online test environment that is conducted remotely. Purpose: This study examined the likelihood of student cheating at formative vocabulary tests that were conducted before and during online remote learning in English courses. The vocabulary tests were administered using the Socrative application in both learning conditions. Method: Using a quantitative research design, including Multiple paired-sample t-tests and independent t-tests, this study collected 2971 first- and second-year students’ formative scores across six general English courses. Results: Multiple paired-sample t-tests confirmed that students’ scores were significantly higher during online remote learning, with score differences ranging from 0.10 to 2.21 between before and during online remote learning. This difference in score patterns indicated the likelihood of students cheating during online remote learning. Then, independent t-tests did not reveal the tendency that male students are more likely to cheat on online tests more often than female students. Conclusion: The findings of this study may serve as an initial phase of inquiries into the identification of formative test cheating in online English classes.