The right approach: Sukkur IBA creates a ray of hope for honest students

Model examination centre at Public School Sukkur boasts students who say no to cheating

SUKKUR: Despite the fact that the police have been deployed inside and outside each SSC-I and II examination centres in Sukkur since last Monday, no one seems interested in stopping the rampant cheating that goes on during the exams. Amid this disappointing situation, the model examination centre, established by the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) Sukkur, at Public School Sukkur has become a ray of hope for students who voluntarily have said, "No to cheating".

In 2014, the dean and director of Sukkur IBA, Nisar Ahmed Siddiqui, established the model examination centre where students attempted their papers without even thinking of cheating. For Siddiqui this was an experiment that proved successful, as the students realised that passing examinations through cheating was not good for them. In 2014 only Public School students sat for their examinations at the model examination centre but in 2016 students from 16 schools are sitting for examinations at the centre.

These schools are the Public School, Hira Public School, London Cambridge School, Superior Model School, Beaconhouse School, Oxford Grammar School, Queen Mary School, My School, School of Excellence, Misali Model School, Leaders Academy, Smart School, The City School, Mohsin Public School, Al-Jannat Model School and Angel's Model School. In SSC-I, 684 students are sitting for the examination at the centre, of which 481 are male candidates and 203 are female. Similarly, in SSC-II, 528 students are sitting for the examinations, of which 367 are male and 161 are female candidates.

After her Biology-I paper on Wednesday, a student, Jaweria of Public School, told The Express Tribune that while there is no doubt that students get good marks after using unfair means in the examinations but when they go for entry tests they fail to clear it. "Sitting for examinations at this particular centre means students have to work hard," she said. "We are the future of country and should work hard to acquire knowledge," she added. Another Public School student, Zubair, was confident that he did well in his exam and said, "Enough of cheating and producing good for nothing students". This method should be applied throughout the country to produce an educated lot of people, he added.

Shazia from Oxford Grammar School expressed her dislike for cheating in examinations and said, "What is the use of getting an education when we know nothing?" According to her, the copying culture has ruined our generation and therefore this is right time to say no to cheating. "I wouldn't have opted to cheat, even if I had a chance to do so," said The Smart School's Iqra.  Iqra Shaikh of School of Excellence said this method would draw a line between students who rely cheat and those against it.

"Today students from 16 schools are sitting for examinations at our centre and I am hopeful that next year more schools will be added," said Public School principal Ali Gohar. "We could accommodate around 5,000 students here," he claimed. A total of 23 blocks were established, with two invigilators and one supervisor for each block. The centre is also being visited by faculty members and director of IBA Sukkur, as well as by professors from various colleges.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 31^st,  2016.