Everybody within the neighborhood knows that empty-headedness is her major deficiency. She was a punctual student famous for always accompanying her peers to school. Her primary and secondary schoolmates were sure that they won’t regret gambling their thoughts in thinking that she won’t further. Paradoxically, this soft-spoken damsel graced with flare–sapid skin has never been obsessed with any other thoughts like the aspiration to become a Ph.D. holder. Fifteen years later, she appeared on the national scene like a missionary ghost on a short-time mission as a pompous Judge of the apex court who always delivers infamous rulings based on legal hocus-pocus technicalities. Judge Isabella whose credibility of academic qualification remains a mystery once said in a speech delivered at Children’s Day that those students who lack the gift of learning should use their common sense to identify and interact with teachers that can help them pass through the hurdles of schooling.
Students who seek help in all ways instead of studying
PICTURE OF A TEACHER INVIGILATING EXAMS: Source: Premium Times
Judge Isabella is a human being that only exists in the citadel of my imagination. Notwithstanding, her fictional story is an embodiment of the historic reality that is witnessed in most places of the world. Particularly in Nigeria, a growing number of learners in its learning environment across all tiers of learning believe that it is impossible to excel academically without getting some unspeakable help from teachers. Most students have accepted as true the myths that it is impossible to write and pass national examinations such as West African Examination Council (WAEC), National Examinations Council (NECO), and Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) without seeking other so-called alternative ways order than studying. In fact, most Nigerian students believed that passing exams through other crocket means is easier than studying. This is one of the factors that are responsible for the depreciation of sound education and the conception of the myth that schools are no longer fostering intelligence which I have already demystified in another article.
Teachers who become student’s co-agents of malpractice
These students are quite aware that it is impossible to successfully carry out any form of examination malpractice without being helped. However, the growing trust in so-called alternatives to studying by students indicates that many others are aiding such acts. Just recently, a report that was released by a panel constituted by the Oyo State Teaching Service, Commission (TESCOM), stated that six teachers from two schools were demoted due to their involvement in examination Malpractice. It is true that some of the teachers, who indulged themselves in such high unprofessionalism, do so as individuals. However, it is now a known fact that there are schools that have made malpractice part of their norms. Such schools are currently been referred to in Nigeria as Miracle Examination Centres. And in every Miracle Center, most of the teachers are anointed and empowered to become miracle workers.
Schools that serve as miracle Centres
According to a report by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), the education sector is the fourth among the five most corrupt institutions in Nigeria; malpractice is one of the top three factors that account for that. There had been several reports on malpractice in Nigeria which suggest that the involvement of schools in this pernicious practice is fast on the increase. In 2014, Anambra state alone reportedly clamps down on about five hundred miracle Centers and just three years later the Delta State Government reportedly uncover not fewer than eighteen thousand. Reports such as this show how this oncogenic carcinomatous pandemic is growing and suggest that those who ought to curtail it have either failed in doing what they ought to or are doing it lackadaisically.
Ending the Involvement of Schools and Teachers in Malpractice
This alone is an indication that this crime has continued to flourish because of the active participation of those who ought to frown at it. Therefore, any government (or agency) that is truly committed to curbing the menace of examination malpractice must begin by developing a policy that would ensure that only those who are trained and qualified to be educators become teachers or school administrators. And bodies that are saddled with the responsibility of assessing people’s knowledge need to learn how to blend their modalities with modern technology, such as adopting Computer based examination, that’ll promote the transparency of their assessment and protect the integrity of the body.
Making malpractice appear unattractive to stakeholders
In conclusion, it may not be out of point to presume that everybody knows that examination malpractice is wrong; but the growing numbers of its perpetrators suggest Otherwise. More people are been misled into thinking that the negative effect of engaging in this crime is nothing much. Thus, there’s a need for continuous sensitization of all stakeholders on the real damage that this menace does to the value of education. Also, employers of labor should be encouraged to reduce the emphasis laid on certificates and focus more on the individual’s ability.
References
Kasali, S. (2023). JAMB: Level of exam malpractice has decreased drastically — Registrar. Tribune Online.https://tribuneonlineng.com/jamb-level-of-exam-malpractice-has-decreased-drastically-registra.
Acmc, E. S. C. (2021). Examination Malpractice In Nigeria: Causes, Effects & Solutions. Bscholarly.https://bscholarly.com/examination-malpractice-causes-effects-solutions-to-examination-malpractice-in-nigeria/
SERAP. (2019). Police most corrupt institution in Nigeria, reveals SERAP survey – SERAP Nigeria. http://serap-nigeria.org/2019/03/26/police-most-corrupt-institution-in-nigeria-reveals-serap-survey/
