Smartphones and internet aid student exam cheating

ABC News 14 August 2015

The internet and smartphones have made it easier for students to cheat in exams, a new report into academic misconduct at the University of Sydney has found, writes Cassandra Bedwell for ABC News.

The Academic Misconduct and Plagiarism Taskforce completed a number of investigations during May and June 2015, including interviews with representatives from each of the university's 16 faculties. The report, An Approach to Minimising Academic Misconduct and Plagiarism at the University of Sydney, states: "The problem of cheating in exams is not trivial – a study on multiple choice exams within the university revealed an average level of cheating of about 5%."

The report found social media helps students share stolen exam papers and questions quickly, with several cases of this reported across the university. The authors of the report found exam supervision must be rigorous, devices should be confiscated and they recommended a solution be found to prevent students using toilet breaks to search the internet for answers.
Full report on the ABC site

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