Bookstores make a boon selling exam ‘shortcuts’

With midyear exams under way in high schools, students are resorting to illegal study booklets allegedly written by teachers and found at local stationery shops. These compact booklets can be bought for SR10 to SR25. They contain only the information that will be tested during the exams, so students prefer these to reviewing the whole course. Arab News visited some stationery shops in Jeddah and found study booklets for all subjects. The author’s name was not mentioned, only the names of the subject and the stationery shop. Some booklets were handwritten, others printed. “Teachers compile these booklets,” said a salesman. “They sell them to shops for a percentage of the proceeds.” Some teachers have discouraged students from buying these booklets. They said the books might include wrong information. These teachers believe the compilers of the study booklets are only looking for financial gain. They wouldn’t care if the booklets were filled with mistakes, because students would buy them anyway, they said. A high school student said he preferred the booklets for a quick review. “They consist only of questions and answers, which is easier than going over the whole schoolbook. Most of my teachers ask us to buy them before the exams if we want to review what we have learned. They will probably gain from them, but I do not mind as I need them,” he said. Ahmed Sa’aid, father of a high school student, was found buying some study booklets for his son. He said teachers should make the effort to prepare these booklets in class and review the course for the students. “Now they won’t, because they know students will buy these booklets. It’s hard for students to study from the school book because they are complicated and very dense with information.” A math teacher at a Jeddah private school said the study booklets are usually incorrect, especially for mathematics and scientific subjects. “I bought one of these booklets and found many mistakes. I hope the Ministry of Education will fine the culprits.”