Back in my day, schools used to recommend bringing a watch into tests so you’d keep track of the time. But now, the rise of smartwatches could lead to a flat-out ban of all timepieces for test-takers, if the latest rule at a major university in Japan is any indication.
Kyoto University, one of Japan’s most prestigious institutions, has said that it plans to ban students from bringing watches into entrance exams, the Wall Street Journal reports. As smartwatches look less and less like futuristic mini computers strapped to our arms, like something out of Inspector Gadget, it’s theoretically easier for people to sneak them in as net-connected cheating devices.
The watch ban seems weird or lightly dystopian, but WSJ points out that Kyoto University isn’t alone. Effective this winter, “due to advances in watch technologies”, Australia’s University of New South Wales has also banned all watches from exams, be they on your wrist or on your desk.
Hopefully all test sites have functioning clocks on the walls.
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