Stakeholders examine factors answerable for mass failure of candidates in external examinations particularly within the West African Senior faculty Certificate Examination and therefore the National Examination Council among others, Motunrayo Aboderin writes
This period of external examinations may be a terribly crucial because it would confirm if this year’s results would be any higher or perhaps worse than the previous.
Speaking on factors bedevilling Nigeria’s education sector, the UNESCO Chair, Open Distance Learning, University of South Africa, Prof. Dele Braimoh, told our correspondent at a recent workshop in Lagos that an excessive amount of stress on paper qualification affects the reasoning of candidates
He said, “I suppose we've placed an excessive amount of stress on paper qualification. These candidates are told that if they don’t build all their papers, they might not enter the university. Now, it’s either they study, cram or cheat. And simply some of them really study. an outsized proportion of them simply wish to cheat their means through these external exams and obtain into the university. Their focus is on creating their complete papers.
“Once, I met a pupil who said he would get a Peugot 504 automotive when he leaves secondary faculty. Where else would he get the cash to shop for the automotive if not by partaking in fraudulent acts? The education sector is what it's as a result of the federal has commercialised education. we'd like to reorder our priorities. the govt isn't putting things right. The education sector ought to be seen as a part of nice concern. however it’s onerous for those in power to suppose during this line after they have their kids abroad.
“The ethical decadence within the society has eaten into our education system. Candidates wish to short circuit everything. there's no level of commitment once more. With this ethical decadence within the society, manufacturing candidates who see cheating as some way of life would be inevitable. Even politicians aren't serving to matters. These candidates check up on politicians and admire their extravagant life vogue. To them, having an education may be a waste of your time.”
For the education sector to be revived, Braimoh said those in power should begin to examine education because the key to achieving social-economic development.
Also, in an internet interview, the previous President, National Association of Proprietors of personal colleges, Dr. Saidu Mijinyawa, identified worry and anxiety as major factors hindering candidates from excelling.
He said, “The country is consecutively hostage with high failure rate in WASSCE and NECO attributable to fear/anxiety before and through learning and exam periods because of overblown importance of arithmetic and English over different subjects or perhaps higher than the existence of the person. this can be because of the actual fact that those that fail any of them are denied access to additional their tertiary education within the name and on the account that they need no credits in English and arithmetic.”
Mijinyawa said the stress placed on each subjects was a deliberate act by each exam bodies. “The stress on the 2 subjects has created the exam bodies and authorities use that as a method of earning their living from desperate candidates or folks who are left with no different possibility than to annually come to them for an additional registration. If it's not what they're doing, why would a large proportion of candidates fail arithmetic this year and every one candidates pass English, then next year, all candidates can fail English and pass mathematics? Why? allow us to raise ourselves why?”
In a phonephone interview with our correspondent, Mrs. Chineye Odinma of Effective International faculty, Kwara State, identified corrupt invigilators and supervisors as being partly answerable for candidates failures in external examinations.
She said, “The West African Examination Council has to re-evaluate its invigilators. a large variety of them are money-driven. They demand cash from candidates and if these candidates refuse to go with their frivolous demand, they'll fail .”
A teacher from Dansol highschool, Lagos, Mr. Oluwole Atobalo, in an onlline interview additionally listed some problems that have stood as a hindrance to the success of candidates in each exams.
He said, “Most academics aren't well grounded within the technicalities of their subjects and that they don’t cowl the syllabus. This, at the side of the frequent changes of academic policies, particularly curriculum, has contributed to the mass failure of candidates in external examinations. Also, some candidates lack the specified interest in arithmetic.”
Cosmos Obiozele, who wrote WASSCE last year, said his disinterest in arithmetic had triggered his failure. “I’ve never liked arithmetic. Even when the exam was approaching, I had no robust interest to review. I didn't place in a lot of effort like I did for different subjects, as a result of I knew i'd fail it. is also if my academics had helped me work on my worry for arithmetic, i'd have done far better.”
An ex-WASSCE candidate, Friday Darlington, identified the impatience of candidates in reading exam directions, as a serious issue.
“Candidates are perpetually in a very hurry. They don’t take their time to browse directions. Also, a number of them don’t savvy to rearrange their ideas. They don’t see transition as a crucial ingredient to a pretty essay.”
Also, the Director of faculty, Lead town highschool, Oyo State, Mrs. Taiwo Owoeye, explained in an internet interview, “I would say the high failure rate in WASSCE and NECO is as a result of an outsized variety of candidates lack a correct foundation, right from the first faculty level.
“I believe strongly that our greatest academics ought to work in our primary colleges where they'll inspire a love for learning in our kids and make sure that they get the essential things right. Some kids return into secondary faculty and still can’t spell well, as an example, or have developed a dislike for a topic because of how they were taught at the first faculty. Some additionally tend to adopt the incorrect things they learned from their primary faculty academics. Once we have a tendency to get it right at this level we'll be on the correct path to success.
“Also, there's lack of commitment on the a part of the academics. usually|this can be} often caused by their perception that they are doing not matter within the theme of things, hence they're not inspired to place in their best. academics have to be compelled to be retrained constantly and empowered to perform. academics ought to even be well paid to inspire them to offer their best,” she said.
Owoeye additionally blamed folks for the high failure rate. “Parents share the blame as several folks don't pay quality time with their kids lately. several have not visited their children’s colleges and haven't any plan how they perform at school. folks have to be compelled to monitor their kids additional and facilitate them in areas where they're weak. colleges within the rural areas are worst hit as very little or no learning takes place in colleges there, nonetheless the pupils from these areas are expected to take a seat for identical exams as their counterparts within the cities and cities.”
Owoeye said till of these challenges are curbed, there might not be a high success rate in external examinations.
A teacher from Premiere Academy Lugbe, Abuja, Mr. Eleonu Obioma, identified lack of seriousness on the a part of candidates as a serious issue. He said, “Most of them believe they'll build it in life as long as their folks are wealthy. this can be common among well- placed Nigerians. Also, the amount of acceptability of NECO leads to relation to WASSCE may be a huge hindrance. Some countries are nonetheless to just accept it for admission. At the inception of NECO, it had been additional or less politicised, some say it had been meant to favour Northern folks.
“The means forward is for the made, most particularly, to counsel their kids that they need to struggle on their own to create it in life. Also, WAEC and NECO ought to get effective supervisors.”
However, the Principal, Wellspring faculty, Mrs. Olayemi Oloriade, said the govt ought to guarantee stability of the nation’s academic policy.
