THE number of pupils caught cheating in Scottish school exams has plummeted to a new low.
New figures show just 119 cases of cheating in 2014 compared to 249 the year before - a fall of 52 per cent.
The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) said the cases - from a range of exams including the new Nationals, Higher and Advanced Higher - led to results being cancelled in 94 cases.
Revision of marks, where candidates' results are recalculated omitting the section where cheating has been identified, was applied in five cases and warnings were given in 20 cases.
There were an additional 95 incidents that were investigated, but resulted in no warning or penalty being applied because there was no case to answer.
Jean Blair, director of operations at the SQA, said: "We are pleased to see that the number of malpractice cases continues to drop, but it is worth repeating that each and every instance is unacceptable and every incident will be investigated thoroughly.
"We will continue to work with schools, colleges and the teaching profession to ensure that our zero tolerance approach is applied everywhere and every time."
Despite concerns over the greater use of smartphones to cheat, SQA figures showed only 11 cases across Scotland - the same for conventional cheating with the use of written notes.
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