Update: 12:53PM
THE Ministry for Education has a zero tolerance policy to cheating in exams and it is investigating the case of a teacher and an exam supervisor allegedly leaking a Chemistry answer paper during the Fiji School Leaving Exam last year.
In a statement issued on Friday the Ministry stated that in relation to the allegation raised against the teacher, the case is under investigation and the officer concerned will be notified in due time of the decision.
Given that the academic year has just started, the Ministry would like to remind teachers and students that the Ministry has a policy of zero-tolerance for cheaters, the ministry stated.
All educational provision in Fiji is based upon a core of intrinsic and enduring values, some of which are, honesty, fairness and respect for truth and justice. Cheating during examinations is not a practice that the Ministry of Education will tolerate.
There are standard procedures followed in marking examination papers and in response to any malpractice discovered during the marking process.
The Ministry calls on the support of communities, religious organizations and parents to actively promote honesty and other values that are universally accepted. We need to walk the talk of honesty in our dealings with children.
The student from Seaqaqa College in Vanua Levu is alleged to have gone to the toilet during the Chemistry exam last year and met with his Chemistry teacher where he told the teacher that the paper was difficult.
The teacher managed to persuade the exams supervisor to provide the students with the answers to the paper.
The matter was detected when they found that for the multiple questions, students had the same wrong answers and the same correct answers which triggered the investigation.