Ingenious Exam Strategy: How One Teacher Outwitted Cheaters

Students assuming their professor was 'too old' to notice modern cheating methods were caught red-handed after he devised a brilliant plan to catch them.

This took place during a final exam in the engineering faculty at one of the most recognized universities in the United States.

One student shared, "As everyone sat down and started the test, half the class went to the bathroom, and more kept going during the exam. It was way more than usual."

That same student initially thought they must be looking for exam answers on their phones. "Only after leaving the exam hall did I remember that there was one specific question unrelated to what we'd learned in class, and it had two parts. Part A was fairly easy, but we had no clue how to solve the second part. I guess that was the question that tripped everyone." Some students simply left this question blank since it was worth just 5 points out of 100.

After all the exams were submitted, the professor emailed all university students, explaining the tricky question. "This is my 'devilish' method to catch those who got a little outside help and ended up on site X, which revealed the answer."

The student who revealed the professor's tactic explained he knew students used the bathroom as an excuse to search for answers on their phones. "He intentionally made part B of the question unsolvable so students would look up the answer that appeared online. He created his own account and responded to the question with a piece-riddled solution. At first glance, it seemed like the answer. But realistically, it's very unlikely anyone would make the same assumptions and errors 'independently.'"

The professor, who suspected this, successfully tracked the cheating students.

While in high school, exam cheating might 'go unnoticed,' not at the university and certainly not this time. Out of the 99 exams submitted, 14 students fell into the genius professor's trap, having written the exact answer their professor posted online. Following this critical error, all received a total score of zero (!), and their names were disseminated to all the university's department faculty.

Simultaneously, the university dean was informed that these students violated the academic commitment they signed. In contrast, all students who did not cheat received full credit for the fake question.