Telegraph exposes exam 'cheating'

07 Dec 2011

 There's an apparently strong investigative story in tomorrow's Daily Telegraph which alleges that in seminars run by some exam boards teachers are being told which questions will come up in future exam papers.

The newspaper's website carries video from a WJEC-run seminar in which one representative of the exam board appears to admit that what he is doing is 'cheating' and would fall foul of the exam watchdog, Ofqual.

Teachers pay a fee to attend these seminars.

More on the story here: www.telegraph.co.uk/education/secondaryeducation/8940781/Exam-boards-how-examiners-tip-off-teachers-to-help-students-pass.html

 The evidence certainly suggests that the growing demands for schools to boost their league table standing is putting pressure on teachers to teach to the test, with a focus on teaching exam technique rather than covering the whole syllabus.

The Education Secretary, Michael Gove, has ordered an investigation in to the Telegraph allegations but perhaps he should  also look more widely at the consequences of high-stakes testing, in which league table scores are becoming more important than delivering a broad curriculum. 

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