By Yin Mon, Lai Mon:
The going rate for passing 10-standard examinations for the 2009-2010 school year in Mudon town, Mon State, starts at 100,000 kyat, student in the city claim.
Parents and student from the town explained to IMNA that teachers and high school principle are offering 10-standard students a chance to access their exam scores early, before they are official announced, for the fee of 100,000 kyat. Changing a failing score to a passing one is also possible, for the price of an additional 100,000 kyat each of the 6 exams taken.
Burma’s annual 10-standard examinations are an extremely important test within the country. Passing the exams is required for all students seeking to graduate from high school, and exam scores are also used to determine the caliber of university a prospective student will attend.
“If you want to know your children’s results [pass or fail] before the educated department announces the results, I have a contact. You have to pay me 100,000 kyat, and I will try [to get the test results] for your son” a Mudon town’s mother quoted a local educator saying to her.
A second student’s mother explained that following the exams, educators from her son’s school checked the unreleased exam grade, and them visited the homes of students who had failed exams, like her son, to straightforwardly offer exam changes for 100,000 kyat.
“Believe it, you have to pay, but you will know if your children can pass or not” this woman quoted the local principle saying.
Exam extortion is a long-tolerated practice in Mudon Town, and in Mon State in general, students and parents complained to IMNA. A student who took 10-standard examinations for a second time this year explained that following his examinations in Mudon town last year, a teacher visited his home and offered to change his exam grades. His mother refused to pay the fee required, and resultantly he failed his examinations.
Sources explained that parents often refuse to pay bribes to educators; a teacher frequently will accept funds but will later refuse to change failing exam grades.
A second Mudon town student who retook his exams this year told IMNA,
“The teacher said to me, if I paid about 300,000 kyat, she will help me [pass], I gave that money to my teacher, because I believed her, but when the results came out, I have failed, I lost my money.”
