read this aloud:
I, insert your name, promise to judge the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me insert the name of your favorite president.As I've suggested in the past, it helps:
In Experiment 1, 108 youngsters, aged 8-16 years, were left alone in the room and asked not to peek at the answers to a test. The majority of participants peeked at the test answers and then lied about their transgression. More importantly, participants were eight times more likely to change their response from a lie to the truth after promising to tell the truth. Experiment 2 confirmed that the results of Experiment 1 were not solely due to repeated questioning or the moral discussion of truth- and lie-telling. These results suggest that, while promising to tell the truth influences the truth-telling behaviors of adolescents, a moral discussion of truth and lies does not.Via Eric Barker.
The pledge is cute, but I wonder if it's too cute to be taken seriously.
ReplyDeleteYeah I've considered that. I figure it helps some and doesn't affect others. I don't think it hurts.
ReplyDeleteI have a statement at the top of each test that says " I will not discuss this test with anyone until I am told I can do so. " Like you, I know some take it seriously and some do not. But it does prevent the student from coming in and asking about questions that another student has mentioned from a previous period. I will always ask, did you talk to someone about the test.
ReplyDeleteGreat thoughts Gail. I'm not as concerned about talking in between classes, since most of my test are long multiple choice tests. But I do mix up any essay tests.
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