Exam supervisors in Luoyang have resorted to using drones in examination centers to curb cheating during the National Higher Education Entrance Examinations (Gaokao), according to a statement released in References News.
According to the state-run website, nine million young people took the gaokao on June 7, where around two million of them may not be able to pass it and get into any university.
In its June 3 report, the U.S. financial news Web portal Quartz said that cheating is a common occurrence during gaokao, which led exam supervisors in Luoyang to use drones.
The website said that the drone will try to crack down on cheaters who use earpieces and transmitters to feed examinees with answers. The earpieces are so small that sometimes they have to use magnets to extract them or have them removed surgically, according to the website.
The website said that exam invigilators in Luoyang have ordered a six-rotor drone from a technology company in Chengdu, which will detect wireless and electronic transmissions while flying at an altitude of 500 meters above the test site. The drone will then display the source of the transmission to a laptop, the website added.
Zeng Yingyong, head of the organizers of examination in Luoyang, cautioned those who plan to cheat that they would not get away with it and they be will be punished.
Another common practice in other places is to have another person take the exam for a student, but exam supervisors have found a way to verify a person's identity through fingerprint. But cheaters have also found a way to get around it by using a thin film with the student's fingerprint on it.
The report said that students caught cheating are prohibited from taking the test for one to three years, and criminal charges will filed against teachers, parents or anyone who help students cheat.