Modern technology makes it hard for exam boards to stay ahead of cheats, says inquiry chairman

Exam boards are struggling to stay one step ahead of pupils using modern technology to cheat, the head of an independent inquiry has said.

Sir John Dunford will lead the inquiry, announced last week by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), to tackle cheating.

The council has emphasised that cases of cheating are “extremely rare” but Sir John said exam boards are facing “known unknowns”.

He told the Daily Telegraph: “Traditional exam cheating is something the system has faced for generations. The exam boards, schools and colleges are alert to it.”

But he said increasingly sophisticated technology is making it hard for exam boards to stay ahead.

Questioning how the system could be made future-proof, he said: “That is to say, thinking about the implications of technology that is just around the corner. I think it is not easy for the exam boards to keep ahead of the game.”

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Announcing the new commission, Mark Bedlow of the OCR exam board said: “Malpractice that is deliberate is still extremely rare. But we are seeing the occasional story pop up and it is getting profile and we are also seeing students increasingly use technology in different ways.”

He said a lot of work was already done to combat malpractice but more could be done to look at issues such as the role of social media.

Exam boards said the inquiry was not a response to any particular issue, but part of ongoing work to prevent malpractice. Its work will begin in September, with a final report published next spring.

Official figures show that last year 2,715 penalties were issued to candidates (0.01%), along with 895 to school staff and 120 to schools and colleges.