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Electronic exam cheating exposes state university admissions calamity
View(s):An eight-member group will review the cheating involving the Colombo-schooled son of a police hospital dentist, a chemistry teacher and the doctor himself, who conspired to use a wireless electronic device and a hidden camera purchased online and a Facebook account to answer the chemistry paper at this year’s Advance Level exam.
Security at Rahula College examination centre in Matara. Pic by Krishan Jeewaka Jayaruk
Five suspects including the son of the doctor from Gampaha have now been arrested and are awaiting a court appearance. The doctor is alleged to have bribed the chemistry teacher Rs 1 million to help pull off the electronic cheating attempt.
Why students cheat is itself in the spotlight in a country where there is an shocking dearth of opportunities to enter state universities. Since independence, successive government have failed to facilitate places to those who pass university entrance exams. But Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinhge has promised to turn Sri Lanka into an “education hub’’, in addition to an “energy hub’’, “shipping hub’’, “logistics hub’’, “financial hub’’, and “aviation hub’’. He has also promised 1 million jobs.
The Commissioner General of Examinations, W M N J Pushpakumara, told the Sunday Times that professors from the Moratuwa University, security personnel and officials of the Ministry of Education will review the cheating and recommend ways to prevent further attempts.
“Discussions regarding a solution are underway, and apart from this, four temporary measures are being discussed,’’ he said.
According to Mr Pushpakumara, one solution is to give exam supervisors equipment that can detect hidden electronic devices. Electronics jammers could be used.
When asked about security at Ordinary Level exams, he said restrictions will be imposed.
This year, 300,000 students sat for the A/L exams in 4,000 centres island wide. And 600,000 students are expected to sit for the O/L exams in 6,000 centres.
Mr Pushpakumara also shared an incident in Ampara where an examiner has substituted another individual for a candidate. The student has been arrested.
The Minister of Education Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, said he will wait for recommendations from the the group reviewing the cheating incident. But solutions will be implemented “at least two months before the Ordinary Level examinations”.
He said that the chemistry paper will not be repeated as it had not been leaked.
Criminal Investigations Department Inspector, Mihindu Abeysinghe, said five people have been arrested.
The father and the brother of the teacher who had printed and distributed the flyers and the chemistry teacher were arrested together with the student and his father, a dentist in the police hospital.
“Charges have been filed and investigations are still going on. The suspects will be remanded until the case is called on September 4 when they will be produced before the Gampaha Magistrates’ Court,’’ he said.
Inspector Abeysinghe said that under the Examinations Act the offences is a bailable one and only a fine of Rs 2,000 is imposed.
The dean of the faculty of applied sciences at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura and a professor of chemistry, Sudantha Liyanage, said cheating at exams was not unusual, but the root cause needs to be addressed.
“We have to find out why children are doing this? It is believed that the person who copies is generally the average student and the student who is fairly better in class. The weak students don’t tend to copy,’’ he said.
Prof Liyanage explained that one reason is the competitive nature of university entrance and the lack of opportunity for higher education at state universities.
“315,000 students sit for A/L exams and only around 30,000 enter state universities that’s around 10% of the total. And the problem with private universities is that not all 315,000 students can afford to pay,’’ he said.
According to Prof Liyanage, the failure rate is high and this encourages some to engage in cheating.
He said 50% of candidates fail in maths, while 20-30% fail in physics and chemistry.
Senior professor of electronic and telecommunications engineering, Prof. Kapila Jayasinghe, said the device used by the doctor’s son may not be easily detected.
He said such devices are meant for other purposes such as surveillance by intelligence personnel.