Cambodia: The School system that gets an F

In the last week I have learned more about the Cambodian school system than I wanted to know.

As a teacher it was SO frustrating to have my students try to cheat on tests all the time, I was told it is cultural, I was told it is "ok". I made 4 different copies of the final and went threw the effort of shuffling the students and checking arms and pockets for cheat sheets. I marked down students, threatened monks in my class, and even failed one kid.

It all started this week when one of the girls in my house who is living with me, asked me for money. She needed money to pay a bribe to her teacher so she can pass. I was angry. Why would I help anyone cheat? Apparently all teachers in Cambodia demand bribes. This week every student in this area have been taking finals. Students who do not pass must retake the entire year. That can be very expensive to do, because students pay to be in school, even public school.

Students who don't go to class but have money can simply pay 1thousand or more to be given High marks and a Passing score. Students who are poor and can not pay have NO chance of passing.
It works like this: a huge final is given in every subject. The questions on the test are impossible and the teacher has not taught most of the information on the list. Students study fearfully and for many hours. (keep in mind this is High School).
On the assigned test day you must go to a test location. Kinda like going to your voting district to vote for elections. For each hour of testing the teacher will accept a bribe in order to allow students to use there notes. Cheat sheets are sold to local copy shops with the answers for the test on them. If you pay you can use open notes, if you do not pay you are sure to fail.
Math cost extra, and each hour can be in the range of $2.50-5.00$ or much more! I know students who must pay 150$. Keep in mind that the average salary of a Cambodian worker is no more than 30$ per month.

Back to my dilemma. In my western mentality cheating is wrong, however I think it is more like a commission or a bonus that you are giving the teacher. It seems to be a self perpetuating problem, and how will this country ever improve with students passing with high marks biased on how much they could pay the teacher.
I feel frustrated and angry, not with "my student" but with a system that is so corrupt.
Pray this week as you remember this story, pray for justice. and please pray for our family as we face difficult situations like these every day.