Cheating scandals mar students' trust

Recent cases of impersonation, cheating and question paper leaks during exams of various boards have sparked concerns about the credibility of the examination system.

Education experts say repeated scandals are badly affecting students, parents and the reputation of academic institutions.

The latest controversy began during the ongoing Cambridge examinations when reports appeared online that a paper had leaked before the exam began. Cambridge International Education confirmed that the paper had been "shared early" in Pakistan and some other regions. The organisation announced an investigation.

Earlier, during the recent matric examinations under the Lahore Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, authorities had caught several persons appearing in exams in place of the candidates.

In one incident, four impersonators were caught at an examination centre in Kasur during an English exam.

Officials said QR code verification had exposed fake roll number slips.

Investigations had also been initiated against school staff suspected of helping the candidates involved in the incident.

During the Class-IX examinations in Pu jab, inspection teams had also seized cheating material from students in several districts, while a number of candidates had been caught cheating in a mathematics exam.

Because of repeated scandals, the Punjab education authorities had introduced biometric verification and digital checking systems this year to stop impersonation and improve transparency in the examinations.

All Pakistan Private Schools Federation (APPSF) President Kashif Mirza said incidents of paper leak were damaging the reputation of the examination system. Calling for strict action against everyone involved in sharing confidential examination material, he suggested that affected students should be given the option to retake the examination without fee.

Parents of students also expressed concern over the situation.

"I have never seen my son under this much pressure," said Sara Ahmed, whose child appeared in the AS Level Mathematics exam in Lahore. "Students spend months preparing honestly but paper leaks destroy their confidence."

Another parent, Waseem Adlam, said repeated scandals were reducing public trust in the education system. "Every year we hear about leaked papers, cheating and fake candidates. Parents pay high fees expecting fairness but students are suffering because of weak monitoring," he said.