Students are banned from using smartwatches in exam rooms.

Many schools around the world have banned students and pupils from using smartwatches over cheating concerns.

At first, the banned item was a small calculator. Colleges and universities were concerned that students might use it to cheat on math tests. But as the price of these devices became cheaper, they became more common, and most schools allowed them on some tests. Then smartphones brought Google into the exam room, so they were banned, along with smartwatches.

Smartwatches will be brought into exam rooms

A few months ago, the Apple Watch was expected to launch, promising to make it more mainstream than ever. A London university said the watch would pose “a problem in exams from 2015 onwards,” mainly because examiners would have trouble distinguishing between a regular watch and a smartwatch. The reason was that Apple planned to turn the device into part fashion item, part technology.

Universities around the world have begun banning all watches from exam rooms as they realise it is not feasible for invigilators to check students’ timepieces. City University in London now follows the same procedure for smartwatches as for smartphones. That means that, when entering the exam room, students are required to put their phones, watches, and bags under their desks. City University exam rooms have large clocks hanging on the walls, and students can request a desk clock to help them check the time during the exam.

According to information from City University: “Students are required to put their phones in plastic bags under their desks, we also do this with watches. Students are not allowed to wear them to the exam room or have to remove their watches in the exam room and put them in plastic bags… we have also increased the number of wall clocks in the exam rooms, purchased small desk clocks for any students who request them.”

According to ICTnews