EXAM CHEATING PROBE

Steer Town Academy in St Ann is being investigated by the education ministry for alleged academic misconduct in this year's sitting of the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examinations.

Reports are that some students were given copies of exam papers a day before the sitting and that teachers were provided with the exam questions to prep students in select subjects.

The alleged breach reportedly involved day-school and evening-school students, some of whom had not been recommended to sit the exams.

It is also alleged that a non-academic staffer invigilated one of the exams.

Deputy director at the Overseas Examinations Commission, Sharon Burnett, declined to name the school, saying only that the oversight body had received reports.

Acting permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education and Youth, Maureen Dwyer, however, confirmed that the ministry was doing an investigation of Steer Town Academy.

Sources at the school have accused a senior staffer of orchestrating the alleged violation.

According to one source, the breaches were committed in geography, mathematics, chemistry, physics, biology, social studies, and food and nutrition.

“Those papers were opened on the night before the exams. They were given to the students and the students were able to copy the papers, practise them till in the morning,” said the source.

Principal Sharn Mongal, who did not confirm the launch of an investigation but acknowledged that questions were being asked, has said there is no truth to reports of irregularities.

“I am really amazed by all of the allegations. What is happening is that there is a concerted plot to disorientate the institution by persons who are dissatisfied with certain things that are happening at the institution or they are not able to have their own way in the running of the institution and persons have fabricated stories to that effect.

“But as far as I am concerned, my integrity stands. We have nothing to hide. We have done nothing wrong,” he said.

Another source who also wished not to be identified claimed that a series of revision classes was organised in which teachers were given a set of questions on the pretext that it was from an insider.

Students who were given the exam paper had reportedly contacted their teachers for help with the questions.

According to both sources, some teachers were not aware that they were being given the actual exam questions.

It is alleged that some teachers had confessed in the staffroom to getting the papers before the exam.

“When the teachers would have looked at the exams the following day, they would have realised that they were the same set of questions,” the second source said.

“Some of the students who denied to investigators that they had seen the papers, they actually told me that they got the paper.”

Both sources said that the school did not have a record of prolific straight A profile scores and that performance in some of the flagged exams lagged this year's.

“The irony is that the students are not the brightest of students, so that brings things into question.

“What is also ironic is that these same students would sit the City & Guild exam, which is a simpler exam, and some of these same students who got straight A profiles would fail the City & Guild exams, and some of them got a pass,” one of the sources said, adding that the school had historically scored low pass rates in some subjects.

“When you look at the profile of the students, chemistry, mathematics, biology and physics, 100 per cent pass overnight. This [is] cause for concern,” said the source.

However, the principal said that Steer Town Academy had made a deliberate thrust, including workshops and weekend online classes, to improve student scores.

Mongal was insistent that the improved performance did not result from cheating.

“We would not have known what would come on the exams,” he said.

“What we have done is that we have taken the last seven years of CSEC papers and we have graphed the exams to look at questions that are normally recurring.”

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com