ShareKUWAIT: The Education and Interior Ministries are working together to book those involved in running social media accounts that promote cheating among students, said Ahmad Al-Huwayda, official speaker of the Education Ministry.
"Minister Hamad Al-Adwani directed that anyone who tries to tamper with the integrity of the education system and attempts to take advantage of education for financial gains should be held accountable. The ministry will spare no effort in combating corruption in all its forms, such as exam fraud, which reflects negatively on the quality of the education process in the country," he said.
Al-Huwayda's remarks came following reports concerning the involvement of hundreds of high school students in various cheating practices while taking their end-of-first-semester exams. The claims are currently under investigation. The ministry, said Al-Huwayda, is closely following the results of these investigations, which are being conducted by the Public Prosecution Office and concerned authorities in the Interior Ministry, and will take appropriate legal action once the investigations fully conclude.
He added that the ministry had already coordinated with the Interior Ministry at the beginning of the 2022/2023 midterm exam season in order to follow up on social media accounts that promote cheating. The ministries perused legal measures against these accounts, he said.
In addition, Al-Huwayda revealed that 1,741 students across all educational regions and all types of public, private and religious education were caught cheating or trying to cheat using various methods, including electronic devices. He did not say whether these students were related to the cheating case under investigation.
All involved students were deprived from taking the exam or subsequent exams, based on 2018 regulations.
He emphasized that the Education Ministry and those in charge of the examination committees took all measures to prevent cheating during the midterms and ensure all students had an equal opportunity to pass their exams. The measures included banning students from bringing papers and electronic devices to the examination room. Any student violating exam regulations was punished accordingly.
Following directions from Minister Al-Adwani, the ministry, in coordination with concerned authorities, is devising a plan to tackle cheating in preparation for the coming end-of-second-semester exams, said Al-Huwayda. He added that the ministry is working with the Communications Ministry, the Communication and Information Technology Regulatory Authority and the Health Ministry to discuss the possibility of blocking telephone services inside schools, and the possibility of installing modern technical devices that would restrict students from utilizing technology in cheating. The ministry is also looking into implementing a new mechanism for conducting and distributing exams within the committees.
