'Exam cheating is widespread'

RESEARCH FINDS 70.5% OF STUDENTS HAVE CHEATED AT SOME STAGE IN THEIR EDUCATION, AS SCHOOL EXAM SEASON DRAWS TO A CLOSE MORE than two-thirds of students admit they cheat in exams, a new poll

has revealed. The study by two French academics, Pascal Guibert and Christophe Michaut, claims to be the first major research into the extent of cheating in the French school system. The

poll asked 1,815 university students whether they broke the rules at any stage in their education so far. In total, 70.5% said they had cheated at one point or another. Cheating was the most

prevalent between the ages of 11 and 15, at _collège_, with 48.3% of pupils saying they broke exam rules. The findings come as 15-year-olds across France prepare to sit their final _brevet_

exam this morning ahead of the summer break. Some 35.6% of respondents said they had cheated at _lycée_ and 11.4% at university. The researchers found cheating became a habit - those who

did it at university had started at early stages in their education. According to the study, pupils often shared the workload and ideas among each other during the test, or took notes or

mobile phones into the exam room. One respondent told the researchers: "I cheat [at university] because the amount of information we are expected to learn is huge. The benefits outweigh

the risks and the chances of being detected are very slim." Students caught cheating at the _baccalauréat_ face a five-year ban on retaking the exams. Universities can exclude students

for anywhere between a month and five years. Lorraine Swanson - Fotolia.com