The IB has admitted for the first time that Time Zone Cheating, where students who sit IB exams earlier in one time zone, then share the exam questions with students who sit the same exam later in another, is real and happening. The confirmation comes days after exam papers were shared in IB subjects including Mathematics, Business Management, Global Politics, Physics, Biology, Chemistry and Computer Science.
Cheating is defined by the IB in both the traditional sense of receiving and using exam answers to get better results, but also in sharing exam information:
“Intentional giving or use of external assistance relating to an examination, test, written assignment, presentation, or quiz without express permission of the teacher.”
This year it is argued that Time Zone Cheating in IB Examinations has taken place for the first time – and many believe on a massive scale. For example, Paper 2 Math AA HL was downloaded 18,000 times, Maths AA Higher Level questions 19,000 times and Paper 1 Business Management 8,000 times according to the South China Morning Post at the time of writing and in hours of the exams being sat.
Where is the cheating happening?
We know that students in Time Zone 1, in North America and South America, were not able to cheat. The leaks are only happening in Time Zone 2 which includes the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Asia, Oceania.
How is the IB Exams Cheating happening?
Students in Oceania and East Asia are sharing papers with later time zones. The process in many cases is that groups of students get together to download all the questions they can remember and then these are compiled into (attempts at) the perfectly copied exam papers to distribute to students in later time zones. Europe, the Middle East (including IB students in Dubai and IB students in Abu Dhabi) and Africa are major beneficiaries as they sit exams later and there is more time for the leakers to compile accurate papers. Commentators claim that Chinese students are key drivers of Time Zone cheating, although their motivations are unclear. IB papers are being reconstructed and published within hours of being sat in China it is claimed.
Where are the leaked IB papers being published?
Students are finding lists of exam questions and complete exam papers on sites including Reddit, Discord and Telegram:
Reddit – access here
Discord – access here
Telegram: access here
Are the leaked IB papers genuine?
Yes – the IB has confirmed that some are. But not all papers are genuine – and in many cases the papers are not accurate. Examples of leaked papers we located are below:
Math AA (4) (1) Math AA (1)How are students responding
Many are calling for all IB examinations to be cancelled. An example of a petition to cancel the IB Exam Results can be found here.
Why are students worried?
Students that did not cheat are worried because IB exam grade boundaries will be pushed higher and they will suffer and receive lower marks than they should as a result.
Students who did cheat – and particularly those that shared information, are concerned about the impact on their lives – and potential loss of grades, reputational damage – and being able to sit the IB in future.
What does the IB say will happen if you are caught Time Zone Cheating?
The stakes are very high and potentially legal. The IB says:
“All individuals under investigation will be given the opportunity to present a written statement where they can document their version of events. If a student is the subject of an investigation, the school must ensure that adequate support is given, such as inviting parents or legal guardians to the interviews needed to complete the investigation.
If a staff member is required to present a statement or evidence pertinent to a school maladministration investigation, they may require access to legal support.”
The consequences can be irreversible. Reading the IB Manual:
“Where cheating is proven, a grade of “N” is awarded and no further registration by the
candidate is allowed.”
In these cases anyone proven to have cheated will receive an N Grade and may never be allowed to sit for an IB Examination again with a lifetime ban.
The IB has never before admitted that Time Zone Cheating has taken place, so there is no historic precedent to refer to in order to understand what the response has or would be to Time Zone Cheating. However, the following broadly analogous example has historically been provided by the IB:
The IB has now released the following statement which we are publishing in full which directly addressing the action that will be taken:
“The IB is aware of speculation that aspects of May 2024 exam content have been shared online by students.
“In response to the significant amount of misinformation currently circulating online, we would like to reassure our community that students will receive valid, recognized and meaningful results.
“To date, there is no evidence of widespread cheating and we are confident that this activity remains at the fringes of what is otherwise a standard exam session.
“We have taken immediate action to investigate the claims and have discovered a very small number of students appear to have engaged in online “time zone cheating”. Time zone cheating occurs when students who have completed their examinations share what they can recall from memory about the exam questions on social media before other students take the examination.
“Time zone cheating is explicitly forbidden under our academic integrity policy.
“We have identified the source of this activity and are taking appropriate steps to hold those responsible accountable. Where we have identified students, the IB will open a formal investigation for malpractice, and students may receive no marks for their examinations or no grade for the relevant subject. As a consequence, no Diploma certificate will be awarded, and students can also be banned from resitting any examinations.
“We are acutely aware that IB students around the world have worked tirelessly to be ready to sit their exams and have held themselves to the highest of academic standards, and we are taking active steps to ensure that the integrity of the remainder of the exam session remains intact.”
IB Guidance to Cheating in Full
You can read the full IB Academic Integrity Policy below:
academic-integrity-policy-englishWhy is there not a problem with other Exams like British A Levels or GCSE. Are British Curriculum Students Time Zone Cheating Too?
It is believed that there are no cases of British curriculum students in Time Zone Cheating as International UK Exam Boards manage examinations to make it impossible. They do this through the ways that they set the time of examinations in different time zones, and through requiring schools to ensure that students are not allowed access to phones or other broadcast-capable equipment for specific time periods during and after examinations are held. Many argue that the IB has been lax in not putting similar systems in place for the IB, and some argue that the IB has been arrogant in assuming that IB students, because of their education and IB values, will simply always choose not to cheat.
Will the IB change the way that examinations are sat to stop Time Zone Cheating?
Almost certainly yes. This is the first time that the IB has admitted a problem and it is impossible to see how future exams could allow this. The IB has already stated, as above, “we are taking active steps to ensure that the integrity of the remainder of the exam session remains intact.”
Will students who did not cheat be treated fairly?
As above, the IB says that they will treat students fairly and ensure that no student receive a lower grade than they should or deserve, at least by implication:
“… students will receive valid, recognized and meaningful results. ”
If anyone can ensure fairness it is probably the IB – but it is hard to see if there is grade inflation caused by cheating how the IB can stop students who did not cheat losing out – unless they implement across the board grade inflation by ensuring all students achieve highly. The IB has enacted some variations of this approach during the Covid 19 Pandemic – but will they risk grade inflation to “do the right thing?” Many say the IB is again on trial – and its response, whether to prioritise fairness or stopping grade inflation, is a lose-lose game. You can read the IB response above in a different way to suggest the IB is going to protect grade inflation to ensure meaningful results – and if students who did not cheat receive lower grades than they should that is a price worth paying. We are awaiting clarity on this from the IB.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Further Information
IB exams are running between 24th April 2024 and 17th May 2024. Join SchoolsCompared.com for IB Results Days between July 5th and July 7th this year. You can read a previous SchoolsCompared.com IB results Days special run-up story on grade inflation here.
Read the IB statement on Time Zone Cheating here.
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