Rwanda’s education authorities have revealed how examination cheating is detected as 7,188 students face investigation over suspected malpractice in the 2025/26 national examinations.
Dr Bahati Bernard, Director General of the National Examination and School Inspection Authority (NESA), said suspected cheating is identified both during examinations and later during the marking process.
The first method is catching candidates with prohibited materials in examination rooms.
“Sometimes students sit national examinations while carrying prohibited items, such as papers containing answers or phones,” Dr Bahati said.
When such materials are found, officials seize them as evidence and prepare a report documenting the incident, he said.
The second method involves analysing students’ answers during marking.
Dr Bahati said teachers involved in marking are expected to identify unusual answer patterns that could indicate malpractice.
One warning sign is when several candidates from the same examination room provide identical answers to the same question, particularly when they make the same mistake.
“You may find children from the same room answering a particular question in the same way, and all of them get it wrong. You find that they all gave the same wrong answer,” he said.
The revelation comes after the Ministry of Education reported that 7,188 students were suspected of involvement in cheating or helping others cheat during the 2025/26 Primary Leaving and Ordinary Level national examinations.
The ministry said investigations are ongoing and that final decisions will be made after the process is completed.
Authorities have warned that students and others found responsible for examination malpractice will face sanctions under the regulations governing national examinations.
