Examination malpractice investigated

EXAM malpractice and question paper errors are among nearly 200 incidents reported to the Welsh qualifications watchdog in the past year.

Between September 2016 and September 2017 four cases of exam malpractice and 56 question paper errors were included in 196 incident reports to Qualifications Wales.

The cases, listed in the regulator’s annual report, also include 94 “security breaches”, defined as any event where sensitive qualification and exam material is compromised.

There were also 31 process system errors, including electronic processes used by awarding bodies or exam centres, three issues concerning marking scripts and eight incidents reported as “other”.

Although these were “likely to lead to an adverse effect on students”, Qualifications Wales said most incidents were “very minor issues” or had no significant impact on students.

Most of the incidents originated outside Wales but could have had an impact on students here, the report adds. Of the 94 security breaches, four originated from exam centres in Wales.

The regulator said it had looked at action taken by awarding bodies in these four cases and was “content that students in Wales were neither advantaged nor disadvantaged”.

“In a very few cases” some of the 56 question paper errors led to candidates being unable to answer a question as anticipated, the report added.

“To set this in context, there were 2,200 question papers developed for the summer 2017 series alone. Most question paper errors reported to us were minor and did not impact on students being able to answer the questions,” it said.

“In a very few cases, there were some errors that resulted in students being unable to answer a question as anticipated. In such cases, we have monitored the action taken by the awarding body to ensure that students were not disadvantaged as a result.

“We closely monitored the actions that were taken to manage each reported incident and were content that appropriate actions were taken.

“Where an incident has affected students, we ensure that the awarding body has taken appropriate action to minimise the impact of the incident and to prevent future recurrences, wherever possible,” the report adds.

Qualifications Wales said the number of incidents reported during the summer 2017 examination series had risen compared to summer 2016. This was partly due to more exams being taken and tightened reporting guidelines.