At the Central Bureau for Driving Skills (CBR) in Eindhoven, a man was caught this week with a ‘cheating vest’ during a theory exam. But it is not the only way in which pupils, students and exam candidates try to screw things up. A Top 10 of ingenious cheating methods: from a note in your socks to a smartwatch.
1. Mobile
Translating German or French words becomes very easy with Google Translate. Getting a big 10 with your mobile phone is not difficult. That is why nowadays the number 1 rule applies to every test or exam: hand in telephones. Nevertheless, people are still caught looking for the right answer to their phone call.
2. Smart watch
Gone are the days when you could only use a watch to tell the time. With a smartwatch, there is in fact a mobile phone on your wrist. But it is sometimes difficult to see whether it is an ordinary watch or a smartwatch. At some schools, all watches have therefore been banned during tests and exams.
3. Neighbour.
Classic copying has been a thing of the past at the CBR since 2014. Since then, exam candidates have been shielded in their own cubicle with a camera and a mirror. At many schools you also sit separately at your own table during the final exams, but during an ordinary test you can usually peek into your neighbor in a cramped classroom. Let’s just hope he learned.
4. Photos
Still easy, fellow students from another class who have taken the same test earlier in the day. In the past, the questions were quickly passed around orally, from one class to the next. Nowadays it is customary to send photos of the test with Google Glass or a smartphone.
5. Calculator.
We used to be happy if we could make the words ‘lol’ and ‘hihi’ with a calculator. However, modern calculators have a complete memory, where you can store notes. Schools often have these calculators put in a special exam mode for exams, where a light starts flashing and you can no longer access the memory. But hiding a note on the lid near your calculator is still possible.
6. Binas.
A so-called binas is often used in science subjects. This is a reference book, which can be used in subjects such as chemistry and physics. Such binas contain tables with units and information about chemicals, among other things. Of course, you can sneak notes in your binas and hope the teacher doesn’t check the book beforehand.
7. Plaster.
Take a large plaster and write on the inside, for example, the German cases. During the test, you carefully pull off the plaster. Ouch, a bit painful but sometimes it seems to pay off.
8. Water bottle.
Students are often allowed to bring a water bottle with them to an exam. Students make good use of this. They carefully peel off the label, write notes on the inside, then stick the label back. Sometimes complete labels, including design, are copied, but instead of ingredients there are notes on them.
9. Painted nails
It’s a lot of fiddling, especially if you have long nails, but you can still put a lot of information on it. Words, dates, anything that’s hard to memorize. There are complete manuals on the internet on how to use transparent nail polish.
10. Classics
Text on the bottom of your shoes, on the inside of your hand, on an eraser, a note in your pencil case. These old-fashioned ways are still used in the classroom. But cheating continues to develop, given the cheating vest discovered at the CBR.
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