S.A. Aina
Examination malpractice refers to the act whereby candidates engage in fraudulent practices to pass examinations.
These malpractices occur before, during, and after examinations. Sadly, this phenomenon has become a cankerworm that has eaten deep into the fabric of Nigeria’s education sector and remains a major source of concern to well-meaning educationists.
Examination malpractice is deeply rooted in our educational system, multifaceted in nature, and so entrenched that it appears almost impossible to uproot without decisive and collective intervention.
Today, over eighty percent of schools in Nigeria are believed to be involved, directly or indirectly, in highly organized examination malpractice during WAEC, NECO, and GCE examinations.
To begin with, examination malpractice often originates from officials of examination bodies such as WAEC, NECO, NABTEB, GCE, and JAMB (though the introduction of the CBT system by JAMB has drastically reduced the menace).
There is a popular saying: “If there is no crack in the wall, the lizard cannot enter.” If officials within these bodies did not compromise the system, examination questions would not be leaked hours or even days before the examination.
Some unscrupulous individuals and elite schools reportedly pay huge sums of money to gain access to examination questions ahead of time.
Consequently, their candidates become familiar with the questions long before the examination day and attempt them effortlessly.
Secondly, both internal and external invigilators are deeply complicit in examination malpractice. Ironically, those entrusted with maintaining order and integrity in examination halls often become enablers of cheating.
They collect money from school owners—who, in turn, collect from candidates—before allowing malpractice to thrive. Candidates from schools that are not fully approved or whose proprietors refuse to pay bribes often suffer grave injustice.
Such candidates are usually ostracized and denied the full examination duration. Once the favoured candidates, those who have been assisted, begin to submit their scripts, sometimes within an hour in an examination scheduled to last two and a half hours, other candidates who depend solely on their intellect are compelled to submit as well.
In many cases, these sincere candidates are unable to complete their work. This is nothing short of wickedness.
Some of my former students, who were victims of WAEC examination malpractice, recently resat the examinations through WAEC GCE and NECO GCE.
I was deeply saddened as they narrated their experiences at different examination centres. They were profiled and charged fees based on the type of mobile phones they brought before being allowed into the examination hall.
Those who came with their brains rather than money were treated like outcasts. Ironically, although candidates are officially prohibited from bringing phones into the examination hall, the reverse was the case. Phones were openly allowed so that candidates could use AI tools to generate answers.
This is grossly unfair and deeply disturbing.
Thirdly, post-examination malpractice represents perhaps the highest and most sophisticated form of cheating.
At this stage, schools and influential individuals “follow up” candidates’ scripts after the examinations. The results are often astonishingly excellent, conveniently meeting the admission requirements of prestigious universities such as UNILAG, UI, and others.
Furthermore, several factors contribute to the persistence of examination malpractice.
These include the declining reading culture among students, laziness, the employment of unqualified teachers by some schools, and the high admission requirements of certain universities.
Many students desperately seek straight A’s to enhance their chances of admission. Ironically, many of these students with outstanding WAEC or NECO results often struggle academically at the university level.
This is a classic example of situational irony. What, then, are we really achieving?
In conclusion, having examined the various forms of examination malpractice and the factors fueling it, one critical question arises: Should we continue like this? The answer is a resounding no. We cannot and must not continue this way.
Examination malpractice destroys the morale of diligent students, dampens their spirits, and sends the dangerous message that hard work does not pay.
It shortchanges students who rely on their intellect rather than their phones and undermines the integrity of our education system.
Perhaps this explains why many perpetrators raised alarm when WAEC announced plans to transition to CBT examinations.
We hereby call on WAEC and NECO to expedite the transition to CBT as a decisive step towards curbing these nefarious practices. We simply cannot continue like this.
Aina writes from Lagos. He can be reached via adeniyi4you83@gmail.com
