Chip in cheek: Students go hi-tech to cheat

It’s no more simple paper chits, students are resorting to sophisticated methods to cheat in exams, thanks to technology.

An ‘Al Khaleej’ report cited several incidents when students were caught cheating in exams. In one such case, an invigilator at an English language exam noticed that students in the class were not answering even though the exam time had begun.

But after about half-an-hour all of them began writing at the same time. Suspecting something was amiss, he closely monitored the students and discovered that all of them were wearing tiny earphones. The amazing part was that they were being helped by a private tuition teacher. He also seized 15 mobile phones from students in the class.

In another case, a student sought a dentist’s help to have a chip implanted in his mouth through which he could talk to his friend and get answers. Action was taken against him.

In yet another incident, a student who was giving history exam was caught with several transparent pens. Suspicion rose, when the invigilator noticed the student changing pens throughout the exam. On closer monitoring, he saw all the pens had transparent covers, with answers scribbled on them. The student was stopped from giving his exam.

One student was excited that he  successfully completed his exam by cheating. But his happiness didn’t last as he forgot to remove chits from the answer sheets before handing them to the invigilator. The chits scattered on the floor as he was submitting his answer sheets to the amusement of his classmates.

Rajab Al Jamal, a Chemistry teacher and exam invigilator for many years with the UAE Ministry of Education, said many students are making wrong use of technology.

“The development in communication tools and social media has led to a rapid growth in cheating methods used by students. Students who cheat do not deserve to pass the exams,” he added.

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