SAITAMA -- An academic skills test for around 10,000 third-year junior high school students in this east Japan city was canceled abruptly after exam questions were possibly leaked, the Saitama Municipal Board of Education and others have revealed to the Mainichi Shimbun.

The association of municipal junior high school principals, which organizes the test, is investigating the cause of the potential leak. It called off the exam scheduled for Nov. 6 the previous day, after determining that "doubts about fairness and impartiality may arise."

According to the education board, it received an anonymous letter claiming to be from a parent. When officials opened it on the morning of Nov. 5, the letter stated that "images of the exam questions are circulating among students."

The letter also included said photos, and they were confirmed to be of the actual test questions after the education board contacted the association. In response, the association decided that afternoon to cancel the exam, and informed students and parents via email.

The "Saitama municipal junior high school principals' association academic test," which includes assessments in five subjects -- Japanese, mathematics, science, social studies and English -- is used for purposes including academic guidance, and as a reference for admissions decisions by some private high schools. The exam was scheduled to be held once each in September and November 2024, and January 2025, targeting students at all 58 municipal junior high schools in the city, along with Saitama University's affiliated junior high school.

Papers with the test questions were distributed to schools in late October, with instructions to keep them under lock and key. The association is currently surveying how each school stored the test materials, including whether locks were used. The association is also considering whether to postpone or cancel the academic test altogether.

Makoto Oguma, association head and principal of Saitama Municipal Nisshin Junior High School, said, "We sincerely apologize for causing anxiety among children and parents. We will do everything in our power to ensure that students can make fair and impartial decisions about their future without any disadvantage."

(Japanese original by Hiroki Masuda, Saitama Bureau)