Unfair means: Students ‘go in for smart watches, bluetooth devices’

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 25

From micro-chits to digital watches, students continue to find new ways to use “unfair means” to score or pass in college exams.

At Panjab University, which is reviewing punishment norms for cheating, students admitted that it may or may not be the last resort, and there has been an evolution in cheating methods over the years.

Certain shops outside the campus in Sector 11 reportedly ‘assist’ in these unfair means of cheating. “But of late, exam time hasn’t been the season of earnings. It has been rough after Covid got over,” shared a photostat shop owner. So to say, in simpler terms they miss the ‘hardworking cheaters’ who would queue up before the exam to get their notes copied to pass the semester.

Another shop owner said, “Only 20 per cent of the people remain dependent on micro-chits. Many shifted to online classrooms and then the cheating methods also got digitised. We get only a few customers now as almost every shop has started to make micro-copies outside the campus.”

Upon inquiry within the classrooms, no student accepted that they had indulged in unfair means, but were happy to share their observations and experiences. If some rolled micro-chits in the refill of a pen, then others wrote points on thighs, but those were old practices. Now a days many use smart phones, smart watches or bluetooth devices. “Carrying the phone is too risky. Mostly phones come handy when students excuse themselves for a washroom break. It doesn’t make big difference in exam scores, but is beneficial to the extent that it might help you pass the paper,” said a student from DAV College.

Most students in classrooms were tight-lipped, but meet them at StuC or PU market, they shared detailed anecdotes from the examination halls. The most advanced and reliable means of cheating are smart watches, according to them. But do examiners allow smart watches during exams? A Sikh guy explained, “It’s not allowed, but there are ways. Some just put an analog wallpaper to show that it’s not digital. Many remove the strap and hide it wherever it’s convenient for them to cheat from.” Thus, smart watches are definitely an upgrade from micro-chits.

A student from 2010 batch of PU recalled old-school methods, “I remember I had a Nokia E63 which was rotated in the whole classroom as it had a feature of PDF. So, pdfs of coding were resourceful if you forgot.”

Another common device for cheating is bluetooth-connected invisible ear bud, which can only be removed through a magnet from the ear after the job is done. Although rare, but it was used decades ago way before the PU examination process got digitised.