Leaked papers: CIE results consistent with those of yesteryear

CIE chief executive says they take security breaches seriously, and accept responsibility for it.

Following a security breach that prompted the Cambridge International Examinations (CIE), part of the University of Cambridge, to have close to 15,000 students in Pakistan retake their O' Level and IGCSE Pakistan Studies and Islamiyat exams, the results are consistent with those seen in previous years.

In a release from CIE chief executive Michael O' Sullivan, it announced that most of the 15,000 candidates opted for the second sitting, while some had opted to retake their exam during the November examination cycle.

"While it remains a source of great regret to us that this course of action was necessary, we are delighted to see that almost all of the 15,000 candidates who entered for the examination originally were able to participate in the second sitting."

The small number of candidates who had opted to take the retakes in November, will do so at not additional charge, it added.

Sullivan announced that the retakes had had been conducted successfully and that their markings have now also been completed.

"Now that the marking is complete we can see that the overall results are in line with those of previous years, confirming that the papers were no more or less demanding than usual."

The statement said that for this year's exam session, schools in Pakistan made over 200,000 exam entries for Cambridge international qualifications from 520 schools, registering a rise by six per cent since 2012.

Security breach

The CIE had asked for the May papers to be retaken after the question papers were allegedly leaked online after ‘security’ of the said exams had been compromised.

Sullivan, in his release on Monday, stressed that they take breaches seriously.

"We take security of examinations very seriously, and must accept responsibility when security is breached. "

The release added that it was imperative for the board to take strict action on the breach to uphold the integrity of their examination certificates so that they continue to be recognised as worldwide as reliable indicators of student's attainments.

"We have a duty to ensure that all students taking these exams receive a fair and valid grade."