Malpractice

The Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) which coordinates the administrative arrangements for schools, provides a framework to support the integrity of all the external examinations taken at HCCS. JCQ uses the term malpractice for all suspected offences which breach its regulations and it does not discriminate its terminology between lesser and more serious offences. Malpractice outcomes for relatively minor offences could still result in the loss of marks for a complete paper. For example, talking during the examination about matters not related to the examination could result in the loss of marks for the whole paper. If the talking is related to the examination it could result in a candidate being disqualified from the whole qualification or even barred from entering examinations for a set period of time. In the 2023 summer series, almost 45% of all malpractice cases were related to mobile phones and other communication devices. Please be aware that simply being in possession of a mobile phone may well result in the loss of all marks from that paper. All schools which use JCQ regulated qualifications must report any incidents of suspected malpractice to the relevant awarding body. Not to report suspected malpractice would, in itself, constitute suspected malpractice by HCCS. Please note that candidates do not have a statutory right of appeal. A copy of the JCQ document "Suspected Malpractice Policies and Procedures" is available here