[Maribellin]

Either that, or the UK school system is very kind and generous, and tries its best to even out the playing field for all of its students by restricting access to exam papers for some (those students who would be prepared for it regardless) and leaving the door open to 'cheating' for others (those whose schools have historically scored lower on the tests, where socio-economic factors cause an inequality in access and quality of services available).

Well, that sorts of defeats the purpose of exams, surely? There's not supposed to be a level playing-field; those who revise deserve to do better than those who do not.

[Doncarlito]

I'm not familiar with these exams so I don't even know if it is much of an advantage for a student to get the exam ahead of time. They still have to prepare for the answers and I would imagine the exams are neither open-book nor take-home. So, essentially, it is one last opportunity for some students to prepare but those students who have struggled throughout school likely will not get very high marks but will likely pass with grades better than they would have obtained had they not been provided the paper in advance.

(In answer to the OP: if I was writing this exam and my teacher gave me the exam, I would take it. If I had to get it on the 'black-market' or it was offered to me by others, I wouldn't take it. Besides, if you're here reading this thread, insha'Allah you're conscientious enough to also study hard for your exam.)

May Allah (SWT) give you clarity of thought and guide you to success in your exams. Ameen.

[Doncarlito]

Well, that sorts of defeats the purpose of exams, surely? There's not supposed to be a level playing-field; those who revise deserve to do better than those who do not.

I agree but these things are not as simple as they appear and are connected to the political and economic layout of the land. Education serves some not-so-visible purposes too, especially now that post-secondary is becoming more and more accessible for a lot of students in the developed nations.

[edit: BTW, I was being a little sarcastic in my previous post. The way I see it, the purpose of education is to place people on different socio-economic levels and to ensure the reproduction of societal values (like nationalism, religion and political viewpoint). When you look globally, you will find people for whom education (as well as access to clean water and health care) is not an option (whereas we in the West easily take these for granted) - they will likely either never leave their location or, if they do, more often than not they will be a part of the lowest rung on the socio-economic ladder in their new country (with one possible way out being crime). Meanwhile, a similar situation is at play in any given society where some will always have better access than others. And, those of us in the West who have made it to some level of 'success' can chew over which school to attend and which country to move to next. There certainly are people who come from a lower socio-economic background and attain 'success' in such a model but they are exceptions, not the rule. The way education is currently set up is based on power, and I feel that power is corrupt, corrupting, oppressive and definitely not equally distributed or accessible.]

[BostonDoctorTTT]

Before you tell me that cheating in Islam is strictly haram, you should read the following to understand the context of the question.


There is an exam paper for A-levels which around 20,000 UK students sit.

The exam is conducted whenever the school chooses to do it so some schools may do it on the 21st of December, others may do it in 14th February.

Unlike most exams, the teacher has access to the exam paper, but the rules they are not allowed to reveal any of the content of the exam, but many teachers do reveal the content in order to allow their students to get higher grades.

As you can imagine, this leads to wide scale cheating, with students and teachers telling students who haven't done the exam what questions are in the exam paper.


It has got to the point where because of mass cheating, grade boundaries for this exam have inflated to 93% for a grade A, compared the usual around 80%/ and candidates who usually get an D grade in normal exams, get As in this exam by cheating.

It means student who don't cheat are at a fairly big disadvantage compared to ones who do cheat.

I have heard of someone whose teacher actually physically gave out the exam paper before they were going to sit, they took it home.


Someone has offered me to tell me the questions that came up in this exam paper (I haven't sat it yet, are neither have they-but they have been given the actual exam paper to take home.

Should I accept?

No, don't accept.

This is very bizzare. Teachers are not allowed to open the exam papers until the morning of the exam. Inspectors regularly come and check if this has been enforced

Which exam board has this exam in question been written/administered by?

.

[wllsqyuipknczx]

Before you tell me that cheating in Islam is strictly haram, you should read the following to understand the context of the question....
Should I accept?

DON’T CHEAT. I agree with brother hatelife (whose ID I wish he’d change ) you’re being tested now see if you’ll cheat or not. Not only should you not cheat, you should expose those who do. I know this one sister who is so against cheating she’d tell on her classmates for cheating! But they still loved her because before the exam she’d help them in every single way. In the end Allah SWT gave her got the top mark. May Allah SWT love her always. Amin

IMO, you and other Muslims ought to expose those teachers/schools who are helping their students cheat. If Muslims did that when the problem first started, you wouldn’t be in this situation. So do it brother, if I was there I’d certainly help you wallahu a’lam.

Don't stress out. Just study your hardest and tell Allah SWT “I’m not cheating for your sake Ya Allah. All that matters is that You’re pleased with me. I trust that if I do what You love, you will take care of me in the best way”. Make lots of dua and never lose hope. Even if question after question stumps you, don’t give up or despair, just move on to another question and say in your heart “Ya Allah I’m not giving up, I know you will help me. I’m never going to give up”. If you say it with you heart (or at least try real hard to) it works almost miraculously. I’m not making this up, it’s very true. Even if you do poorly by the Wisdom of Allah SWT, you’ll be proud of yourself for not having given up and Allah SWT will grant you that feeling and He SWT will deepen your Iman. So no matter the results, you’ll feel like a winner.

The fact that you’re so tempted just shows the magnitude of the reward in store for you if you don’t give in. Maybe because of this great deed Allah SWT will grant you a beautiful pious wife and more! Insha Allah ta’aala He SWT will. May that be so. Amin everyone.

Though shaytaan wants you to believe otherwise, there is never an excuse for cheating as if it’s the only way. See my signature. Allah SWT will most certainly make a way you never imagined. The real test behind the test is to see whether or not you believe Allah SWT controls everything, is able to do all things, and nothing happens except by His SWT permission. May you pass both tests with flying colors. Amin Barak Allah ta’aala Don’t cheat.

[Maribellin]

No, don't accept.

This is very bizzare. Teachers are not allowed to open the exam papers until the morning of the exam. Inspectors regularly come and check if this has been enforced

Which exam board has this exam in question been written/administered by?

.

With the Science AS and A-levels, there are three units: Unit 1 and 2 (which are theory-based, and the typical rules [some of which you've outlined above] apply). However, there is a practical component which forms Unit 3. The student performs the practical, then answers a paper based on it. These papers are given to the teachers several weaks ahead of time - I know this for certain with regards to AQA.

[paulaglober]

Well, that sorts of defeats the purpose of exams, surely? There's not supposed to be a level playing-field; those who revise deserve to do better than those who do not.

Exactly.

In response to the OP- No, you should not accept.

If a person has studied properly, then there is no need to fear low results and resort to cheating. Study hard, give the exam, and leave the rest to Allah.

[wllsqyuipknczx]

The vigilante sister I mentioned in my post who fights the crime of cheating by tattling(hehe), once hesitated telling because it was the teacher themselves giving the answer. Right after they practically gave the whole answer away, she told them they had done so in front of the entire class. As you’d expect, it shocked and offended the teacher but as soon as she returned to her paper, Allah SWT made her realize the answers to many questions she didn’t understand. She received the highest mark on that test. 100%True story.

If we stand by the truth Allah SWT has our back. This sister was warned she’d get beat up by her male classmates if she didn’t stop. She didn’t care she was prepared to get her teeth knocked out. May Allah SWT use her to spread justice and goodness always. Amin

So we can’t stand by and do nothing when someone is cheating next to us. If all we can do is hate it in our hearts then that’s a red flag to reassess our Iman. Barak Allah ta’aala

[wllsqyuipknczx]

This special sister genuinely cared for her classmates and always shared all her resources with them and actually told them repeatedly beforehand that she would tell on them if she caught them cheating. May Allah SWT love her very much. Please say amin everyone.