Why an investigation into cheating on Ontario bar exams may point to a $15 billion online industry

  • 📰 TorontoStar
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 62 sec. here
  • 3 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 28%
  • Publisher: 55%

Business News News

Business Business Latest News,Business Business Headlines

Hundreds of prospective Ontario lawyers have had their futures put on hold amid an investigation into cheating on the online bar admission exams. That's no surprise in the lucrative world of “contract cheating,” experts say.

Feeling pressure to pass the Ontario bar exam, a would-be lawyer looking for advice messaged someone on Facebook about an offer to share “resources.”“I can help you ... if interested,” read the post from someone claiming to work for the National Committee on Accreditation, a Canadian legal advisory group involved in law school admissions.

The team of investigators is also looking for evidence that some already licensed Ontario lawyers may have cheated on their tests, which shifted online due to the pandemic in June 2020; the investigation is looking only at the tests after the change. Saturday’s announcement said the rescheduled exams will be “paper-based and held in-person in Toronto.”

This comes as no surprise to experts who study the global explosion of the “contract cheating” industry. At essayshark.com, topic suggestions include the health differences between vegans and meat-eaters, the effects of radiation sickness in the Hiroshima bombing, or, for more eclectic subject matter, why the themes of the Netflix hit “Squid Game” are essential today.

In addition to essay-for-hire services, online operators “prey” on students purporting to sell insider information, such as questions and answers to an exam. They use social media, such as TikTok, Instagram, and other “spaces, where profs, and people my age, the Gen Xers, we aren’t there,” said Eaton.

Cheating has risen across the global higher education sector during the pandemic, wrote Amanda McKenzie, of the Academic Integrity Council of Ontario, in an email.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 60. in BUSİNESS

Business Business Latest News, Business Business Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Focus on youth jobs may undermine $4-billion digital-adoption program, business groups sayBusiness groups say they are concerned that a new $4-billion federal program intended to upgrade the technology used by small enterprises may be undermined by its dual focus on boosting youth employment It's always businesses wanting a handout. They want experienced labour but don't want to pay for it. They want staff that's trained in their specialized systems but they don't want to train their recruits. If they don't want gov't help, fine. Leave them to their own devices.
Source: globeandmail - 🏆 5. / 92 Read more »

Quebec sugar shack owners say COVID-19 pandemic saved the iconic industrySugar shack owners credit the industry’s resurgence to an online retail platform launched in February 2021 that allows them to sell take-home versions of the traditional spring meals
Source: globeandmail - 🏆 5. / 92 Read more »