Coursework can encompass a wide range of activities, including practice, experimentation, research, and writing (e.g., dissertations, book reports, and essays).
In contrast to exams, students may be allotted several days or weeks to complete coursework, and are often allowed to use text books, notes, and the Internet for research.
Easily accessible websites have given students opportunities to copy ideas and even complete essays, and remain undetected despite measures to detect this.
[citation needed] Coursework was removed from UK GCSE courses and replaced by "Controlled Assessment", much of which must be completed under exam conditions, without teacher assistance and with access to resources tightly controlled in order to reduce the possibility of cheating.
[2] However, this too has been largely removed and replaced by mainly exam-based assessment as part of a general GCSE reform.