'Russian hackers stole my homework' and other great excuses

Tech-related homework excuses are a growth area, says a new survey of teachers.

'The dog ate my homework' is probably the all-time classic excuse for shiftless schoolkids.

But a new British survey by pixmania.com shows that technology is tipping the family hound off the top excuse spot.

It found that the average teacher gets 15 homework excuses a week, with an increasing amount blaming malfunctioning technology.

The 1000 teachers survey had seen a 30 per cent increase of tech-related excuses in the last 12 months.

Top 5 tech homework excuses:

* My computer crashed and I lost it

* I finished my homework but then deleted it by accident

* I could not print it out

* My internet was down so I couldn't do any research

* I lost my laptop

Other tech excuses:

* My dad's computer was hacked by the Russians and they stole my homework

* A burglar stole my printed-out homework along with the computer

* The PC exploded when our dog went to the toilet on it

* I accidentally tipped a bottle of cider over the computer and it broke