A ban on students wearing metal-coated clothing items such as brassieres and accessories at the upcoming national college entrance exams in northeast China's Jilin Province has led to criticism from some students, parents and teachers.

Metal-coated clothing banned at college exams

The province is trying to keep out electronic cheating devices. Some takers of the all-important exams try to get such devices through metal detectors that are used widely during the exams.

Also, the province is telling students with metal in their bodies from dental work or plates, pins, and screws implanted during surgery to bring statements from medical providers to the exams, which will be held this Friday and Saturday.

Some students said the measures violate their privacy. "We feel like animals being tested at a quarantine inspection station," one posted.

The measures, dubbed by the media as the "strictest security check in history" is being criticized by some for placing undue stress on students, The Beijing News reported yesterday.

A dress code handed out by one teacher advised female students to wear sports underwear and plastic sandals instead of metal-coated bra sliders, hooks and rings that could set off metal detectors.

No punishment or other consequences have been reported for those who don't comply. Typically, a person carrying such items are given a secondary check when metal detectors go off.

Supporters of the measure say it shows the province is determined to keep the exams fair. They say some students might go so far as to put a device in a tooth filling. The exams are regarded as a destiny-shaping for high-schoolers. More than 9 million candidates are to take this year's exams.

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