Cheating in exams now a sophisticated art

POSTSCRIPT Roger Crutchley

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twas Oscar Wilde who once observed: “Exams sir, are pure humbug. If a man is a gentleman he knows quite enough, and if he is not a gentleman, whatever he knows is bad for him.”

Sitting exams is undoubtedly one of life’s more unpleasant experiences, which most of us cannot avoid. There can be nothing worse than that horrible sinking feeling when you look at the question paper and your mind goes totally blank. You know you are stuffed. Well, that’s my sorry experience anyway.

People approach exams in different ways. Some hide themselves away and study for weeks on end, while a fortunate few are so gifted they can just stroll into the examination room confident of passing. The majority of us probably bravely attempt a bit of revision, give up after half an hour and head off to the pub.

Then there are those who adopt unorthodox methods to improve their performances, an exercise otherwise known as “cheating”

Which brings us to a report in last Sunday's Bangkok Post that the authorities are tackling sophisticated gangs in Thailand specialising in helping people cheat in exams. Using advanced electronic devices, they are capable of passing on key information to those sitting examinations.

It will come as no surprise that this particular sort of mischief is not exactly new. It goes on around the world of course, but the happenings in Thailand are usually more entertaining.

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