NAGRAT calls for probe into AI cheating claim in 2023/24 WASSCE
Teacher Union, the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) has called for an investigation into the claim that some students who sat for the 2023 WASSCE used Artificial Intelligence to answer questions of the examination.
Speaking in an interview monitored by Thisterm.com, the President of NAGRAT, Angle Carbonu said the West African Examinations Council after the probe to make public how students were able to use AI in answering the questions.
“It sounds strange to me that some of the names that I’m hearing are the schools where the students had the opportunity to use AI. These days, mobile phones can do anything. But before a student enters the examination hall, the student is searched, and any foreign material is taken.
And it’s against the rules to allow any student to go into the exam hall with a mobile phone. At what point did the students access the AI information on the mobile phones? Did the students see the question ahead of time for them to be able to get onto AI sites, solve it, memorize it, and come to the exam hall to reproduce it?” Mr Carbonu quizzed.
The NAGRAT official added “I will need more information to put some value on those accusations. Sometimes what happens is that one or two students in a center are being identified as compromising the sanctity of the examination.
Therefore, everybody collectively is punished. That also ought to be looked at critically because innocent students should not suffer for the ills of a few. The sheer number of WASSCE withheld results is worrying to me.”
He further asked if some teachers have also been identified to have compromised their professionalism in an attempt to aid students in writing the exam. adding that such information needs to reach the leadership of the Teacher Unions.
Carbonus’s comment comes after a spokesman for the West African Examinations Council disclosed examiners of the just-ended WASSCE detected some candidates resorted to Artificial Intelligence in the International examination.
Speaking on Citi FM’s Eyewitness News show monitored by Thisterm.com, a spokesman for WAEC, John Kapi said they realized that answers given by some candidates were not humane and thus suspected the use of Artificial Intelligence.
“One candidate typed in the question, and the response was that ‘I’m not familiar with the term you have used,’ and the candidate wrote the same response in the answer booklet.
Another candidate wrote, ‘I cannot detect the term you have used.’ This is a clear indication of the use of Artificial Intelligence.” the official of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) told the host of Citi FM’s Eyewitness News.
A total of 447,204 candidates, made up of 211,834 males and 235,370 females drawn from 975 public and private Senior High Schools entered for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for School.
This figure indicates an increase of 5.8% compared to the 2022 entry figure of 422,883. The WASSCE took place at 834 centres. A total of 60 subjects, comprising 4 core and 56 electives were made available to candidates to choose from.
The 2023 edition of the WASSCE for School Candidates commenced on Monday, July 31, 2023, with the Visual Art Project work. The international examination administered at 834 examination centres ended on September 26, 2023.