International Baccalaureate taking ‘appropriate and timely measures’ to remove online posts containing leaked exam questions after outrage
- IB says investigation has found ‘students engaged’ in ‘time-zone cheating’ activities but did not disclose how many were involved
- Those responsible will receive no marks for their exams or grades for the relevant subject, spokesman says
The IB said on Monday its investigation found that “students have engaged” in “time-zone cheating” activities. It noted on Sunday it had discovered “a very small number” of students had engaged in the practice and there was no evidence it was widespread.
“We understand technology enables sharing and distribution which amplifies the number of students posts might reach, before posts can be removed,” a spokesman said in a reply to the Post on Monday.
“Appropriate and timely measures are being taken to remove all related posts and render consequences to the students involved.”
Time-zone cheating involves students who have taken an exam sharing the questions with candidates in another part of the world who have yet to sit it. The practice is explicitly forbidden under IB policy.
There will be no award of diploma certificate and involved students will be banned from resitting the examinations
While the Swiss-based IB did not reply to a question on the number of students found cheating, the Post found the leaked materials had been downloaded more than 47,000 times as of Monday afternoon.