From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has explained why it is not considering the option of the Computer Based Test (CBT) in its examinations.
The Abuja zonal coordinator of WAEC, Mr. Yusufu Ari told Daily Sun yesterday that the complexity of the exam and inadequate facilities are the major reasons why the exam body is putting on hold, the option of CBT.
Mr. Ari, who was speaking at the 2016 National Stakeholders Dialogue on Examination Malpractice in Abuja said, “WAEC is considering the option of CBT but faced with inadequate facilities like sufficient computer systems, steady power supply, and other infrastructure provisions must be guaranteed for the success of CBT exams.
“WAEC exam is very complex because it does not conduct exam in urban centers only. It reaches out to government and WAEC accredited schools in remote areas to conduct its examinations unlike the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) that candidates are assembled in a particular location with facilities.
“Moreover, experts in education assessment confirmed that moving candidates from their place of residence would psychological and emotionally affect their performance, thus, suggesting that the body maintains the mode of examination pending when adequate provisions are made for the successful take off of CBT,” he said.
Mr. Ari expressed the concern of WAEC on the growing cases of exam malpractice in schools, hoping that dialogue and proffer better ways of tackling the cankerworm which he said is fast crippling the quality and credibility of Nigerian education system.
“The essence of this annual stakeholders dialogue is review the performance of students as well as the effect of strategies applied in previous years to tackle exam malpractice,” he said.
He called the attention of parents and teachers to the new ways of exam malpractice, using different mobile applications and other sophisticated technologies, not forgetting the conventional systems which has been modified by the candidates.
The representative of the FCT Director of Secondary Education Board, Mrs. Oluyemi Victoria insisted that the Board is committed to maintaining the quality of education in FCT.
“The issue of Examination Malpractice worries us so much, and we remain committed to supporting the Educational Resource Center and other relevant bodies in the effort to eradicate the menace that is affecting the quality and validity of our education,” she said.