ECE Board Examinations: Examinees allege there was leakage

CEBU, Philippines – At least 15 Electronics and Communications Engineering graduates in the Visayas and Mindanao, who took the recent board exam in Cebu are asking the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) to investigate the alleged leakage in the examination.

The graduates, who requested to anonymity out of fear, sought the assistance of the media yesterday, a day after the exam, citing information shared to them by some of the examinees.

They, however, assured to cooperate should there be formal investigation on the matter.

A copy of the supposed leakage shows several questions in the math subject that allegedly came out during the examination last Sunday.

According to them, at least 13 questions from the "leaked-questionnaire" in Math came out during the board exam. The leaked questions comprise 26 percent of the 50-item test for the subject.

The graduates said the percentage is already big enough to help those who got the leakage to pass the exam because the passing percentage is only 70 percent for each of the four subjects -- Math, General Engineering and Applied Sciences, Electronics Engineering and Electronics System and Technologies.

They allegedly got the leaked-questions from another board taker, who reviewed at Excel Review Center.

According to them, the questionnaire was showed to those who reviewed at Excel during their final coaching day.

The complainants said they did not believe at first until last Sunday when they found out that some of the questions in the board exam were exactly the same.

They were also surprised that most of the questions that came out in the EST subject were standard, which they claimed that Excel reviewees knew it beforehand.

In fact, some Excel reviewees were jubilant after the test last Sunday claiming that they are 80 percent sure of passing the board. The board exam in Cebu was held in the University of Cebu Main Campus and in the Southwestern University.

Engineer Santos Cuervo, vice president of Excel Review Center, denied the insinuations that their review center obtained a leakage from the Board of Electronics Engineering that prepares the questions.

The Board is chaired by Engineer Sylvia Marcelo.

Marcelo was not available for comment as of press time.

Cuervo admitted having provided their reviewees with take-home questionnaires with corresponding answers but denied those were leaked-questions.

Cuervo said if it was true that some of the review questions they provided came out during the board it was just coincidence.

He explained that it was possible that the examiners who prepared the board exam questions used the same reference as them.

"Posible na nga nagkapareha tungod kay may mga questions nga kopyahon lang og largo sa reference book," Cuervo said.

Cuervo said this is not the first time that such incident occurred during board exams.

"It already happened in the past, kami gud sa Excel kusog mi mo-research. Mo-palit gani mi og on-line reference kun wala dinhi sa Pilipinas," Cuervo said.

Cuervo urged those who claimed that there was a leakage in the board exam to file the appropriate complaint before the PRC. He said they are willing to cooperate should there be a formal investigation.

Cuervo also claimed that the complaints maybe orchestrated by their rival review centers.

The graduates who exposed the alleged irregularity, however, said they were not prodded by anyone to complain. They only want fair play.

Some of those who complained graduated with honors in respected universities in Cebu, Visayas and Mindanao.

In fact, one member of the group was a national quiz-bowler.    

They have decided to come out before the release of the results to avoid accusations that they are doing it because they failed. In fact, they expressed willingness to re-take the exam even if would pass should the PRC order a retake. -/NLQ (FREEMAN)