The Head, National Office, West African Examination Council, Charles Eguridu, has said the council is not considering adopting the Computer-Based Test mode for its examinations.
According to him, it will amount to “intellectual dishonesty’’ for him to say that the council would introduce CBT in the next five years or the near future.
He further stated that the purpose of education is not to pass examinations but to prepare people for life and unfortunately CBT cannot ensure that.
“There is what we call the cognitive domain; that is what you have learnt that you can put in your head.
“There is also what we call affective domain that has to do with your emotions.
“There is also what we call the psychomotor domain that is skills which you can express using your hands and your body.
“I am yet to see any education expert who will tell you that you can measure the psychomotor domain using CBT.
“Any test that will use computer to evaluate who will be a good carpenter cannot be a valid test.’’
He said the examinations conducted by the council took into cognizance the three domains that measured ability to recall, apply and practicalise.
He said that even in Netherlands where CBT is prominent, the country has not yet started using CBT in all it exams.
“In Netherlands … they have not been able to migrate 40 per cent.
“How many schools in Nigeria have hardware? How many schools in Nigeria have the facilities to have those computers?
“There is the additional problem of electricity and internet connectivity.
“What JAMB is doing is commendable because theirs is an admission test; it is a certification examination.’’
