Examination Ethics

Cheating is part of the human nature.  Here in the Philippines, we tend to associate this word to the elections.  Whenever the election results come out, we have everyone, including voters and elected officials crying foul.  Throughout my more than six years of teaching at The American Institute, I have come across individuals who have asked me to do something unethical for them.  For different reasons, there were people who have asked us to lie for them.  Here are some of the things we've encountered:

1. Money for Certificate.  The most common one is to give them a certificate even if they have not enrolled in our English proficiency classes.  They will just pay the tuition fee.  Why do they needs these certificates?  They want to present to their employers that they are improving their skill sets.  They want to present to a future employer that they have studied at The American Institute, which would give them a better chance of gaining employment.  They can also present these certificates to the embassy when migrating to an English speaking country like Canada, the US, the UK, or Australia.
   
2. Falsified Certificate.  There have been individuals who have gotten a copy of the certificates we issue, and they reproduced their own with fake signatures.  One technical training center required their students to complete at least 100 hours of English proficiency training in order for them to complete their school requirements and graduate.  These students created their own certificates, but they were caught when the training center called us to verify the certificates. 
   
3. Exam Substitute.  Just recently, I got a call from a foreigner who would like me to find someone who would take the TOEFL or IELTS exam for them.  This individual mentioned that his school required him to have a 7.0 Band on his IELTS exam, and he would be willing to pay someone who would pretend to be him and take the exam for him. 

Of course, we point blank refused to do anything unethical.  These individuals argue that there are some schools who would do that for others.  Well, they called the wrong school.  Some of them even argue that "this is the Philippines."  Well, sorry to say, but we do stand by our corporate motto: Ethics, Education, Empowerment.  Ethics is the first word, and with better education, citizens would become more empowered, as in empowered to create better decisions.  So instead, we clearly tell these individuals that what we do is to help them speak English well so that they do not have to resort to any unethical behavior.

There will always be individuals who would like to take the quick, easy way.  We believe that learning a language isn't necessarily easy, but it could be made possible when one practices, studies, and works hard.  At The American Institute, we make learning more fun and interactive so that acquiring the English language and improving one's communication skills can be more effective.