Debate of the week: Cheating in exams

Cheating in GCSE and A-level exams has increased by six per cent in the last year. A report from Ofqual, the UK qualifications regulator, says that more than 4,400 people were caught cheating in their exams last year in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is likely that further candidates cheated but were not caught.

It seems as though today's technology is partly to blame. The main way pupils cheat is by using their mobile phones or other technology. With the Internet just a button away on most young people's mobile phone, it might be easy to Google an answer whilst the invigilator is looking in the other direction.

Worryingly, "exam cheat equipment" is sold openly online. This equipment includes concealed ear-pieces which would allow candidates to receive information in an exam hall.

However, technology is only partly to blame. The candidates bear the ultimate responsibility for their actions. Just because we rely on technology to help us with our daily chores does not mean that we should use it to replace our brains.

If exam candidates are unable to tell the difference between right and wrong then it is up to parents and teachers to instil the following value in them: cheating can never, ever be right. What use is an A if you know that, unaided, you only deserved a D?

There can be no substitute for diligence, preparation and study. At First Tutors we believe in equipping pupils with what's required for real, tangible success in exams and beyond.