{"id":247210,"date":"2026-06-04T05:00:39","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T04:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/schoolsweek.co.uk\/?p=247210"},"modified":"2026-06-04T23:09:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T22:09:10","slug":"ofqual-must-move-really-fast-on-smart-tech-cheating-says-chief-regulator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/schoolsweek.co.uk\/ofqual-must-move-really-fast-on-smart-tech-cheating-says-chief-regulator\/","title":{"rendered":"Ofqual must move ‘really fast’ on smart tech cheating, says chief regulator"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ofqual must \u201cmove really fast\u201d to tackle the threat of smart glasses and other tech being used to cheat in exams, its chief regulator has said.<\/p>\n

Gadgets like AI-enabled smart glasses<\/a>, invisible earpieces and vibrating dog collars are being advertised on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram as ways to get away with cheating in exams.<\/p>\n

Speaking on Ofqual\u2019s new podcast<\/a> Can I just qualify that<\/em>, Ian Bauckham stressed malpractice was not limited to mobile phones.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are of course other devices, there are smart watches and smart all sorts of things. There might be smart spectacles next…that will play text across the inside of the lens that only the student can see.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you gain help unfairly on a mobile phone, or a smartwatch, or any other kind of device, you are potentially getting marks in the exam that you don\u2019t actually deserve.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou end up with grades for qualifications which are no longer reliable, no longer trustworthy.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that Ofqual had to \u201cmove really fast, because technology is moving fast”, and that they could not \u201cunderestimate the challenge involved\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the things we need to do is give really strong clear messages to schools, and to the public, that it\u2019s not acceptable to have a mobile phone in the exam hall.\u201d<\/p>\n

The use of mobile phones and smart devices is the most common category of cheating in exams. It accounted for 44.3 per cent of all student malpractice cases in last summer’s exam series, with 2,225 cases reported.<\/p>\n

Phone ban \u2018easier\u2019 for invigilators<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Mobile phones are banned from exam halls, and students can risk being disqualified for bringing them in.<\/p>\n

The DfE recently announced<\/a> it would put guidance on mobile phone bans in schools on a statutory footing, which Bauckham welcomed.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile students are allowed to have mobile phones in school but not in the exam, you have a point of tension, a point of conflict.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that it would make it \u201cmuch easier\u201d for invigilators to enforce the rule.<\/p>\n

AI in coursework<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Bauckham wrote to exam boards in March asking them to strengthen their approach to malpractice \u2013 including bringing mobile phones and other devices into exams and preventing AI misuse in coursework.<\/p>\n

He added that AI has potential to be \u201ca very powerful support\u201d for teachers, but the flipside was where students\u2019 thinking is \u201coutsourced\u201d to AI.<\/p>\n

If AI is used without engaging in the thinking that is meant to be assessed in a piece of coursework or non-examined assessment, \u201cthat leads to qualification grades which ultimately don\u2019t have the real meaning, the real significance that they should have\u201d, he added.<\/p>\n

He said Ofqual was looking at the question of how to detect AI in coursework, and what to put in place to make sure authenticity was guaranteed.<\/p>\n

Potential solutions include baking in \u201ccheckpoints\u201d with teachers to discuss how the coursework was going and having that step signed off, or expecting students to explain how they used sources and referencing where they got their information from.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

But Ian Bauckham says school phone ban will make it easier for invigilators to enforce the rules in exams<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":316072,"featured_media":247206,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[463],"post-theme":[2345],"class_list":["post-247210","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-assessment","post-theme-assessment"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t