Blame parents for examination malpractice, educationists

[MrVan]

Some educationists have blamed parents for examination malpractice and mass failure in the examinations conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and other examination bodies in the country.

The educationists were reacting to the mass failure recorded in the recently released JAMB and NECO results, and the number of  candidates caught trying to cheat during the examinations.

Prof Dibu Ojerinde, the registrar of JAMB, recently displayed to newsmen foot wears embedded with cell phone that were seized from candidates during the 2012 UTME conducted on March 24

According to Dr Clementinah Owokade, a former Deputy Director, West African Examination Council (WAEC), said some parents often induced teachers to help their children to cheat in examinations.

"If students can be encouraged to learn, knowing that no one would assist them during exams, they would definitely study,'' she said.

Owokade also suggested additional motivation for teachers to make them reject financial inducement from parents who encourage malpractice.

She called for collaboration between schools and officials of the Ministry of Education to monitor examinations.

Also commenting, an official of the Lagos State Examinations Board, Mrs Yemisi Oguntimehin, agreed with the idea that malpractice started with the knowledge of parents.

"Parents are certainly behind the problem because they encourage their children to pay agents for special examination centres where malpractice are at the highest level,'' she said.

Mr Gerald Emejom, an English teacher in a private school in Lagos, also blamed parents who, he said, pay exorbitant fees to examination agents to assist their children.

"These parents pay as much as N60,000 to agents who negotiate with invigilators and supervisors,'' he claimed.

A Mathematics teacher in a public school in Akure, Ondo State, Mrs Juliet Tedheke, also expressed sadness that students have evolved new ways to cheat, despite JAMB's anti-malpractice measures.

She told NAN on telephone that laziness on the part of the students and the economic situation of the country had forced people to engage in malpractice for money. (NAN)

Vanguard Nigeria