China uses drone to hunt student cheating in entrance exam

Students were closely monitored by the device which flew over testing centres in Luoyang city in the Henan province, Central China.

According to a local website, the drone scanned for unusual signals beings transmitted by devices that some students might have smuggled into the halls to cheat in the annual test.

It however did not catch any student on the first day of the examinations.

A staff of Luoyang’s Radio Supervision and Regulation Bureau, Lan Zhigang, said the drone, which cost tens of thousands of dollars, is effective.

“A drone has its advantages. In an urban area full of tall buildings, various barriers limit the operating range of devices on ground, while the drone can rise up to 500 meters and detect signals over the whole city,” Lan said.

Students are known to be desperate to pass the test which more than 9 million high school graduates must take to determine their chances in the university.

Because those who fail will either have to wait another year to re-sit or take low paying jobs, candidates often cheat.

Some hire cheaters to sit for them while others use technology in a bid to pass.

Student Pulse gathered that those caught cheating can receive up to a 3-year ban.