Press Release

Date: Wednesday 5 April 2006 (NR/12/06)

CCEA issues warning to exams cheats - you will be caught

CCEA, the body responsible for setting and marking GCSE and GCE examinations in Northern Ireland has issued a clear message to students preparing to undergo assessment this summer – cheating is wrong and you will be caught.

Although the numbers of students found guilty of malpractice in their exams or coursework is still very small, the trend in recent years has been on the up. Improvements in detection are undoubtedly contributing to these statistics but CCEA is keen to concentrate on prevention by discouraging students from cheating at all.

CCEA Director of Operations Neil Anderson commented:

“The vast majority of students do not cheat in their exams. Therefore I want to say very clearly to any student who might be thinking of doing otherwise – don’t. It is unfair to the many thousands of your peers who don’t cheat, to your teachers and to your parents. You’re also taking a huge risk with your future. Penalties for cheating range from a loss of marks through to barring a candidate from taking any public examinations.  Just think of the impact that being barred from examinations could have on your future prospects.

CCEA is the only exams body in the United Kingdom which trains and appoints examination invigilators on behalf of schools and colleges. Part of their training is the detection of malpractice in the exam hall. The professionals who subsequently mark examinations for CCEA also know how to spot the tell tale signs of cheating.”

An area of growing concern is the use of mobile phones. Their presence in the exam hall is prohibited and despite clear written and oral warnings, 20 students were caught with them in their possession during exams last summer. In addition to existing guidance on prohibited material and devices, CCEA will be providing schools and colleges with high visibility posters reminding students to leave their mobile phones outside the hall.

Another aspect of exams causing concern is coursework plagiarism. CCEA has been working with its regulatory colleagues in England and Wales to produce guidance for teachers in spotting and dealing with students trying to pass off plagiarised material as their own. The leaflet is currently available on the CCEA website – www.ccea.org.uk

Mr Anderson continued:

"It is essential that we support teachers to ensure that they are able to mark coursework fairly and be able to detect when a student’s work contains material from unreferenced sources. The practical suggestions included in the leaflet can be used by teachers as a way to provide assurance that all the work submitted is the student’s own.”

 

To view 'Authenticating coursework, A teacher's guide' leaflet - click here...

To view'Coursework, A guide for parents' leaflet - click here...

 

Malpractice statistics CCEA examinations 2000 – 2005

Year

GCSE

GCE

overall

2000

3

2

5

2001

10

2

12

2002

10

7

17

2003

14

5

19

2004

41

6

47

2005

33

20

53

 

Penalties for malpractice

The major examinations awarding bodies in Northern Ireland and Great Britain come together under the umbrella of the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ). The various member bodies of the JCQ including CCEA subscribe to an agreed set of rules and regulations governing examinations malpractice.  Some common penalties that may be applied by an exams body such as CCEA are set out below.  The actual penalty applied is chosen after careful consideration of each case of malpractice.

  • warning
  • loss of marks gained for a section
  • loss of all the marks gained for a component
  • loss of all the marks gained for a unit
  • disqualification from the unit
  • loss of all the marks gained from all components/units in a single qualification taken during the series.
  • disqualification from the whole qualification
  • loss of all the marks gained from all components/units in all qualifications taken during the series
  • disqualification from all qualifications taken in that series
  • barred from entering for one or more examinations for a set period of time

 

Media enquiries to Ruth Maguire on (028) 9026 1216, Mobile 07796947993. E mail rhmaguire@ccea.org.uk

ENDS

 

Note to Editors

CCEA is the Northern Ireland Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment.

CCEA places learners and those who have a concern for their educational and personal development at the forefront of its thinking. CCEA's mission is:
"To enable the full potential of all learners to be achieved and recognised"

What we do

CCEA is a unique educational body in the UK , bringing together the three areas of curriculum, examinations and assessment.

Advising Government – on what should be taught in Northern Ireland ’s schools and colleges.

Monitoring Standards – ensuring that the qualifications and examinations offered by awarding bodies in Northern Ireland are of an appropriate quality and standard.

Awarding Qualifications

– as Northern Ireland’s leading awarding body we offer a diverse range of qualifications, such as GCSEs, including the new GCSE Double Award specifications in vocational subjects, GCE A and AS levels, Entry Level Qualifications, and Graded Objectives in Modern Languages.

- CCEA also offers a range of Awards and Certificates in Education, Training and Skills (ACETS) targeted at learners who want to get
the knowledge, understanding and skills needed
to hit the ground running in the world of work.