EXTRA: Philippines students wear ‘anti-cheating’ hats during exam

Photos of some college students in Legazpi City in the Philippines wearing “anti-cheating” hats to the examination hall have surfaced online.

In the now-viral photos, the students could be seen donning different amusing headgear to avoid peeking at each others’ papers during the exam.

The headgear was made from recycled materials such as egg boxes, cardboard as well as Halloween masks, and motorcycle helmets.

Speaking with BBC, Mary Joy Mandane-Ortiz, who initiated the idea, said the concept has been “really effective”.

The teacher said the method was introduced during her school’s just-concluded mid-term exams.

The professor of mechanical engineering at Bicol University College of Engineering said she originally asked the students to make a simple design out of paper.

Mandane-Ortiz said the students, however, took the idea a step further by creating innovative complex headgear in “just five minutes” using wastes around them.

Speaking on the impact of the idea, Mandane-Ortiz said her students performed better in their exams this year than in the past.

This, according to her, was because the students were forced to study hard knowing that they would not be able to cheat in the exam hall.

The professor said several of her students concluded their tests early, adding that none of them was caught cheating this year.

The strategy has continued to elicit a wave of mixed reactions across social media platforms.

It is understood that Mandane-Ortiz got the idea from a similar technique said to have been adopted in the past in Thailand.

The development is also said to have inspired other schools and universities in the country to embrace a similar strategy to curb malpractice during exams.