Teacher guilty of whispering exam help to pupils

A teacher who whispered prompts to pupils sitting a GCSE French speaking exam has been found guilty of unacceptable professional conduct.

Veronique Matchim provided "improper assistance" while working as an agency supply teacher at Abbey Grange CofE Academy in West Park, Leeds, in April 2024, a misconduct panel was told.

She admitted the allegations before the panel and accepted her behaviour amounted to conduct which may bring the profession into disrepute.

Matchim avoided a ban from teaching after the panel decided she had not entered the exam with a plan to cheat and had shown some "insight and remorse", but was barred from involvement in exams administered by the AQA board until after 2026.

The panel heard that during the exams, Matchim's role was to ask questions and participate in roleplays with students.

Audio from the assessments were recorded and provided to the AQA exam board.

Four instances were identified by the AQA where Matchim could be heard whispering French words to pupils, which they could use to answer the questions she had asked, the panel was told.

During an investigation by the school, the teacher twice denied in interviews that she had helped students, but later admitted whispering prompts.

The professional conduct panel of the Teacher Regulation Agency (TRA) barred Matchim from involvement in AQA examinations until after this year.

Meanwhile, any involvement by Matchim in examinations until after those in 2027 must be supervised, the TRA ruled.

The TRA added that it considered the publication of the adverse findings it had made was "sufficient to send an appropriate message to the teacher as to the standards of behaviour that are not acceptable".

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