CIE says leaked AS Level maths paper was shared ahead of exam and vows to take action against those responsible
Cambridge International Education (CIE) on Wednesday confirmed the leak of a second A-Level maths paper that was allegedly circulated online ahead of the exam, saying it was working to determine the extent of the breach and decide next steps.
A and O Level examinations under the Cambridge system are currently being held across the country for the May-June session. Just days after an A-level Mathematics paper was canceled due to a leak, another CIE Mathematics paper was allegedly leaked on Monday, a day before the exam scheduled for Tuesday.
“We can confirm that Cambridge International AS Level Mathematics paper 52 (9709), taken in our administrative zones 3 and 4 on 12 May, was shared prematurely against our strict regulations,” CIE said in a statement.
Read: Government takes note after another Cambridge Maths paper allegedly leaked
It said it investigated such incidents “quickly and thoroughly” and was now working to understand the extent of the breach and determine next steps.
“We will share detailed information with schools on the approach to take following this breach by Friday 22 May,” he added.
CIE further said that following discussions with key stakeholders in Pakistan, and as an additional security and identification measure, it had decided to postpone the Cambridge International AS Level Mathematics Paper 32 (9709), which was due to be held in Pakistan on Friday.
“We will replace this with a new exam and communicate a new exam date within the June series by Friday, May 22,” he said, adding that the Cambridge International AS&A Level results release date of August 11 would remain unchanged.
“Our priority is to ensure that students are not harmed by this incident and we continue to take all possible measures to protect the integrity of our exams,” said Cambridge Pakistan Country Director Uzma Yousuf.
He added that “decisions about next steps are made by high-level, experienced professionals who have all the facts.”
“Our principles are: Ensure the fairness and reliability of the grades we award, so that universities and other users of the grades can continue to rely on them,” Yousuf said.
CIE called the nature of the theft “unprecedented” and said the criminals sought to undermine exams and the futures of students who depended on them.
“We are pursuing various legal avenues to arrest and punish those responsible,” he added.
“While we do not comment on individual reports of document leaks, we investigate all allegations. Despite this example, document leaks remain rare and, where there is a genuine problem, we inform schools at the appropriate time and provide recommendations on next steps.
“We ask people to only trust official statements from Cambridge and not to increase misinformation which is very unhelpful to students. We thank all our students and schools for their patience and ask them to wait for further updates,” the statement said.
The A-Level maths paper was reportedly leaked on Monday and several students claimed it had started circulating online ahead of the exam.
According to the students, the Mathematics assignment scheduled for the afternoon of May 12 had already begun to circulate on social media hours before the exam began. The candidates claimed that upon entering the examination hall, they were given the same document that had previously appeared online.
The federal government also took note of the incident and Education Minister Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui expressed concern over the repeated leaks of documents.
“Student workers cannot be allowed to suffer from such incidents,” the minister said, adding that similar cases also emerged last year and that Cambridge should further strengthen its exam system.
He also directed the Inter Board Presidents Committee to immediately convene a meeting with the Cambridge authorities and take urgent steps to safeguard the interests of the students.
Previously, a Cambridge A-Level Mathematics paper taken on April 29 had also been leaked, prompting authorities to announce a retake exam.
Following the incident, CIE announced the cancellation of the AS Level Mathematics exam (9709/12) for students in administrative zones 3 and 4 after the question paper was leaked. Non-compliance with exam standards led to the decision not to use the document for the final assessment results.
During the ongoing examination session, it was also reported that some other documents had been partially leaked.
