Can EdX Tell If You Cheat On A Course?

If you are interested in e-learning, then it is likely that you have heard of edX. edX was created by Harvard and MIT in 2012 and it quickly became a very popular online learning platform.

A large part of the popularity of this massive open online courses platform was the fact that the vast majority of these courses are available totally free of charge. 

Completing courses and qualifications at home does open up a lot of room for foul play. Cheating on a course when you have to complete the exam in person can make it very difficult to cheat.

But when you’re at home completing the course, and it’s totally online it should be easier to cheat, right?

While cheating on a course is something that you really shouldn’t do. But, if you are wondering just out of curiosity if edX can tell if you cheat on a course, then you’re in the right place. 

Read on to find out: Does edX know if you cheat? 

Is It Possible To Cheat On EdX?

First things first, let’s take a look at whether, or not, it is even possible to cheat on an edX exam. It is possible to cheat on an edX exam, however, most of the time this isn’t something that you will need to do.

The majority of edX courses are designed to be open-book. So, you can look at the notes you made during the course without this being considered cheating. 

There are a number of different things that could be considered cheating on any of the edX exams. However, one of the things that the edX platform seems to focus on most when it comes to cheating is ensuring that the person who completed the course completes the exam.

If you really struggled with the course, then it would be really easy to get somebody else to complete the exam. However, edX does see this as cheating. 

Another possible way to cheat on edX is to try to find the correct answers to the exam prior to completing the exam. With online courses, a lot of the time the answers to the exams will be published on websites specifically designed for cheating on exams. So, it is possible to cheat on edX exams, however, this really isn’t something that you should do. 

Does EdX Know If You Cheat On A Course?

Now that we’ve established that it is possible to cheat on a course, let’s take a look at whether, or not, edX can tell if you cheat on a course. 

It actually isn’t as easy as you might expect it to be to prevent users from cheating on an exam. Even when exams are taken in person, people still find ways to cheat on the exam.

So, it goes without saying that a lot of people try to cheat on online courses. While it is tricky, edX has made attempts to prevent users from cheating on courses. So, let’s take a look at what they are. 

As we said earlier, the main type of cheating that edX has attempted to clamp down on is ensuring that the person who took the course completed the exam.

This cheating style is fairly easy for edX to focus on as the entire course and exam are completed online. 

There is software that can be implemented in the course to ensure that the IP address of the user who completed the course is the same as the IP address of the person who completed the exam.

That way, if the IP addresses do not match, edX can quickly clamp down on potential cheating due to using multiple existences online. However, outside of this, it is very difficult for edX to prevent their users from cheating on courses. 

Preventative measures have been taken to try and dissuade students from cheating – including the exam being open-book -, but this will not stop cheating in its entirety.

Ultimately, edX wants the person who completed the course to complete the exam themselves. So while they cannot prevent cheating entirely, throughout the course the platform does push that you need to complete the course on your own. (Check out ‘Can edX Courses Contribute To Your Career?‘)

Can You Look At Notes During An EdX Exam?

Yes, as we have said, for the majority of edX exams you absolutely can look at notes during the exam, so copying answers is possible. The exams have been designed to be open-book as this generally will mean that most people won’t cheat on the exam, as the perceived value of cheating will drop. 

An open-book exam is generally just an exam where you can look at the notes that you made during the course while taking the examination. So, if you made lots of notes during your course, you are allowed to access these notes during the exam. (See also ‘Can I Get edX Certificate For Free?‘)

For this very reason, the best way to pass the majority of edX exams is to make thorough notes during the course, and then use the notes that you made during the course to take the exam. 

Are EdX Courses Difficult?

It is impossible to say whether, or not, edX courses are difficult, simply because there are so many different courses available on edX. edX courses cover a wide range of subjects and specialties, and the difficulty of the course will differ depending on the type of course you complete. 

It is worth noting that edX courses aren’t designed to be easy. Learning isn’t simple, and it will generally take a lot of hard work and effort to complete any course.

To a certain extent, edX courses are a little more difficult as you will need to be very disciplined if you want to complete the entire course. 

Completing a course at home can seem like a good idea, but it is very easy to get distracted when you are at home learning. So, make sure that you really apply yourself to the course if you want to pass the exam. 

Reasons You Shouldn’t Cheat On An EdX Course

We have discussed cheating on an edX course in quite a lot of detail during this guide, but generally, this is something that you shouldn’t do. 

If you cheat on the exam part of the course, then you didn’t actually achieve the qualification. Cheating will take away from your achievement, and it can damage your knowledge of the subject in question. 

So, if you have gone through the entire edX course, you shouldn’t fall at the last hurdle and cheat on the course. Instead, take your time and complete the course yourself, it will give you a real sense of achievement!

Summary

In short, it is debatable whether, or not, edX can tell if you cheat on a course. There are some precautions taken by the platform to detect if people are cheating, including software that checks if the person taking the exam is the same person that took the course.

However, this seems to be as advanced as the anti-cheating software on edX is. 

It is worth noting that the vast majority of edX courses are designed to be open-book. This means that you are allowed to use notes made during the course when completing the exam.

So, if you use your own student data notes, then this will not be considered cheating for the vast majority of edX courses. To be safe, always check the rules for your specific course before taking the exam. 

Thanks for reading!