As many Vietnamese enter Japan to work by pretending to be students, frauds such as proxy test-taking prevail in Vietnam in Japanese language tests, which student visa applicants are required to take.
The Justice Ministry requires people hoping to study in Japan to submit documents to prove that they have at least a base knowledge of the Japanese language to confirm their ability and willingness to study in the country. The minimum acceptable level is N5 -- the easiest of the five levels of the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) conducted by the Japan Foundation and others. The JLPT N5 is the level of proficiency in which one can understand short and easy conversations. In addition to the JLPT, there are nine other authorized Japanese language tests conducted by private organizations.
In 2018, more than 60,000 people took one of these Japanese language tests, each of which are taken by more than 3,000 people a year in Vietnam. The Yomiuri Shimbun has uncovered cases of fraud for three of these tests. According to organizers, proxy test-taking stands out as the most common method among these fraudulent cases and forged citizenship documents are used as identification.
A Tokyo-based educational material company in Hanoi conducted one of the three tests two years ago, and it was discovered that 60 people -- 15% of all test takers -- were proxy test-takers and automatically failed the test. A proctor noticed that some of the documents had been altered and were further examined. As a result, it was found that the photos on their identification cards had been replaced.
A company official said: "Proxy test-taking cases are still found almost every time. It is very likely to be a well-organized operation, and it is difficult to detect carefully forged documents."
Each testing organization has made their checks more rigorous. However, in addition to proxy test-takers, the methods for cheating have become more sophisticated, such as receiving answers wirelessly from outside a testing facility. Under these circumstances, only a portion of cheating cases can be discovered.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
