To Sabotage Exam At School, Ahmedabad Girl Faked Covid-Surge News

A week ago, a purported ¡°news report¡± went viral, suggesting that 13 students of Udgam School had tested positive for Covid after Class XII students were called to the school for practicals.

An investigation by the school has revealed that the fake news was the handiwork of a Class XI student who was not prepared for offline exams. So when it was learnt that the school authorities had sought permission from the Ahmedabad City District Education Office to conduct the final exams offline, the girl panicked.

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¡°The girl created a fake news item, fabricated and photoshopped, and circulated it across the school¡¯s groups,¡± trustee of Udgam School for Children, Manan Choksi said. ¡°The parents of the student in question approached us and consented to any action being taken against her. But we have decided not to file any police complaint against the young girl, who has now expressed remorse for her act.¡±

The school authorities spent a tense period tracing the author of the fabricated news item. Officials said they first checked with all the students who had attended school before the post was circulated to ascertain if there were any Covid cases.

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¡°When no student was found to be down with Covid, we traced the origin of the post,¡± said Choksi. ¡°After a lot of calls and after sifting through social media groups, we reached the girl who is a Class XI science student.¡±

The girl reportedly told her parents and school authorities that she was not prepared for offline exams and had decided to put out a fake post to discourage authorities from conducting the exams on the campus.

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Exam phobia real, experts say

Ahmedabad: City-based psychiatrists have noted an upward trend when it comes to students complaining about the lack of concentration and examination phobia.

Dr Hansal Bhachech, a city-based psychiatrist, said that some students could not comprehend everything in online classes, but could not communicate that fact to teachers. ¡°Thus, the supposed lack of preparation is pointed at the pandemic. The phobia means that the student believes he or she will not be able to perform according to expectations,¡± he said. ¡°Some students have also shown a genuine phobia about the pandemic itself as they did not wish to join the classes or take exams offline.¡±

Dr Nehal Shah, another city-based psychiatrist, said that anxiety is often manifested as body ache, headache, or fatigue. ¡°We are now seeing students of Class X with such symptoms and believe that the number might rise,¡± he said. ¡°The lack of concentration is another issue with which students and parents approach experts.¡±