Smart Technology could worsen Exam Cheating in Schools

The head of England’s exam regulator has warned that the growing use of smart technology could make cheating in exams harder to detect, raising concerns about the integrity of GCSEs and A-levels.

Ian Bauckham, chief regulator of Ofqual, said emerging devices such as smartglasses and invisible earpieces could intensify existing problems linked to mobile phones and smartwatches during examinations.

He also confirmed that GCSE and A-level coursework is under renewed scrutiny amid growing concerns from teachers that artificial intelligence is increasingly difficult to detect in student submissions.

Speaking on an Ofqual podcast, Bauckham said the regulator must respond quickly to rapid technological change, warning that exam security risks are evolving alongside consumer tech.

Bauckham said that the regulator had to act “really fast because technology is changing fast”.

He continued: “We are all familiar with mobile phones but there are smartwatches that we are increasingly seeing on young people that are fully internet connected and so present many of the same challenges as mobile phones.

“I understand that in the pipeline there are things like smartglasses that will play text across the inside of the lens that only students can see… so we are going to have to keep on top of this.

“Our qualification system is a real national asset and we have to keep on top of this to stop this national asset being undermined, because that is not in anyone’s interests.”

Ofqual said internet-enabled gadgets “including invisible earpieces and smartglasses” are already being advertised, while cases of students being penalised for bringing mobile phones and other connected devices, including smartwatches, into exam halls continue to rise.

Last summer, Ofqual recorded 2,225 cases of mobile phone and smart device-related cheating across GCSE, AS and A-level exams, making it the most common category of malpractice every year since 2018.

Bauckham said: “Obviously, if you gain help unfairly on a mobile phone or a smartwatch or any other kind of device, you are potentially getting marks in the exam that you don’t deserve.

“The long-term consequences is that the grade you get at the end might not accurately describe the extent to which you have learned and mastered and demonstrated the content that’s being assessed.

“So you end up with grades for qualifications that are no longer reliable, no longer trustworthy.”

Bauckham also indicated that tighter safeguards are being considered for coursework at GCSE and A-level, particularly where AI use is concerned, after teachers reported that identifying AI-generated work is becoming increasingly difficult.

He said: “We’re looking very hard at that question now.

“GCSEs and A-levels are in the process of being refreshed or reformed; one of things we are asking is if there still to be coursework as part of this qualification, what do we need to put in place to make sure that the authenticity of that coursework can be guaranteed, in other words it really is the student’s own work.”

He added that while removing coursework entirely remains a “nuclear option”, other measures could include stricter referencing requirements and closer scrutiny of sources used by students.

Bauckham added: “The other thing we can do is increase what we expect by way of referencing and sources, so that you actually explain where you have done your reading, where you have got the material that you are using.

“But what you haven’t done is just open ChatGPT and say: ‘Write me 10,000 words on Henry VIII’s foreign policy, please’, but that is absolutely not acceptable.”