Success Corner!

How not to cheat in examinations

Examination malpractices have consistently remained a bane of Nigerian educational system. Most foreigners say that the academic certificates being issued to graduates in Nigeria are no more valuable than the pieces of paper on which they are printed.

Experts say the major causes of examination malpractices include lazy attitudes of students, over populated schools, and students’ desperation, especially those who see examination as a do or die affair.

Other causes are a wide-ranged syllabus in school subjects like Physics and Chemistry that teachers find difficult to cover, coupled with shortened lesson days due to more holidays in the academic calendar.

There is also inadequate preparation for examinations with students getting anxious to patronise the already corrupt invigilators and supervisors in schools and colleges.

With the trend of malpractice, the quest for creativity and resourcefulness is hampered. It wrecks great havoc on the overall lives of Nigerians as employees are engaged in unsuited jobs since the Certificates they possess are not merited.

But with possible solutions, the menace of examination malpractices can be curbed. Stakeholders must then herald the approach of ‘how not to cheat in examinations’.

-Teachers should be trained properly in their fields while holidays especially vacations could be reduced in length as students are reluctant to resume from long holidays.

-Counsellors should be employed in schools to guide students on study habits and career prospects as it will help them to be more zealous.

- Adopt good practice of continuous assessment to reduce malpractices as 40percent of the marks are accumulated from such assessment techniques.

_ Classroom number must be drastically reduced to manageable size to allow for concentration, focus and due control.

From Aisha Nuraini, student at Mariam Babangida Girls Science College, Minna, Niger state, posted via http:// www.hadizaoyas.com/tips16.html