During an IB economics exam today I gave students 2 minutes in the middle of the 80 min exam to get up and talk to their peers.
The mood lightened, positive energy was restored, and students later said that it helped.
Because students were writing long responses to questions, I doubt there is much need to worry about cheating.
On balance I would say “the juice was worth the squeeze”; the benefits outweighed the cost.
Has anyone else tried this? #edutwitter