Causes, Effect And Solution To Exam Malpractice In Nigeria. Cheating has become a big problem in our schools, and instead of studying, students are focusing on ways to cheat.
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Half of all students in Nigeria have been affected by cheating on exams. They didn’t pass a subject or an exam because of this cheating.
And guess what? Teachers or lecturers are part of the problem in 70% of these cheating cases, sometimes even the Principal. It’s really sad, but that’s what’s happening with cheating on exams in Nigeria.
Cheating on exams is like a bad disease that has taken over our schools in Nigeria.
In this article, we’re going to talk about why this cheating happens, what problems it causes, and how we can fix it in our schools in Nigeria.
One big problem that comes from cheating is that students don’t do well in school.
Doing poorly in school can mess up a student’s natural abilities, their growth, and even the jobs they can get in the future.
Cheating on exams can also make students feel bad and not want to try hard in school. This problem can follow them and affect how they do in the future.
But before we talk more about why cheating happens, what problems it causes, and how to fix it in Nigeria, let’s quickly explain what cheating on exams means.
What Is Examination Malpractice?
Cheating on exams means doing something on purpose that is not allowed during an official exam.
Or you can think of it as doing something wrong or bad when taking an exam so you can pass.
This bad behavior is a big problem in our schools today. Many students are always trying to find ways to cheat on their exams.
Lots of students are cheating on exams these days, which is why it’s a big problem in our community.
Now, let’s talk about why students cheat on exams in our Nigerian schools today.
Causes Of Examination Malpractice In Schools
There are many factors that cause examination malpractice among students in Nigeria and other countries.
Some of them are:
1. Fear of failure.
2. Laziness of students.
3. Lack of self-confidence.
4. Poor quality teaching.
5. Bad school management.
6. Poor parental upbringing.
7. Peer pressure.
8. Inadequate study materials.
9. High level of poverty.
10. Bad government practices.
11. Teacher’s attitude to work.
12. Poor supervision.
As you can see, all these factors can cause students to engage in examination malpractice in school.
However, I am going to explain some of these factors and how they impact examination malpractice in our schools today.
1. Fear of Failure
Many students engage in examination malpractices because they are afraid that they will fail the exams.
When they should spend quality time reading their notes they are panicking about the examination. The fear of failure is one of the major causes of illegal acts in exams today.
2. Laziness of Students
Yes, it is hundred per cent true that many students are very lazy in their academic careers.
They are lazy to read and study notes, do their home works and assignments, and carry out the tasks given to them by their teachers or lecturers.
Laziness will make any students go the extra mile (illegal ways) to pass exams.
3. Poor Parental Upbringing
You will agree with me that poor parental upbringing is one of the major causes of examination malpractice in Nigeria today.
Many parents do not have time to train their children in the right way because of work and busyness. And the parents who have the time to teach their children taught them in the wrong way.
Lack of proper home training has caused some students to engage in examination malpractices because they don’t find anything wrong with it.
4. High Level of Poverty
Indeed, poverty makes some students engage in examination malpractices because education and schooling require parents to spend money on their children.
Some parents could not afford to buy textbooks, novels, and other necessary materials for their children. This leads to the students cheating in examinations.
5. Bad Government Practices
The government is the body controlling the educational sector from nursery schools to tertiary institutions.
If the government engage in some bad practices, it will affect the education sector.
A corrupt government will produce corrupt officials. This will lead to students engaging in examination malpractices.
Why? Because teachers, lecturers, and education officials are involved in these illegal practices too.
6. Teacher’s Attitude To Work
Here is another cause of examination malpractices many people are not talking about.
Teachers’ bad attitude to work enhances the high rate of examination malpractices in Nigeria.
Some teachers or lecturers are indeed lazy to teach students in class as they ought to.
For instance, some teachers or lecturers have not covered the quarter (1/4) of the syllabus they are supposed to teach for a term or semester.
Yet they set out questions on every topic in the syllabus for the students in the exam. How do you expect them to pass? Some of the students will settle to cheat in exams.
Right now, you might be asking yourself if examination malpractices have effects on students?
Yes, it does. So, what are the effects of examination malpractices on students?
Effects Of Examination Malpractices On Students
Here, are the effect of examination malpractice on students
1. Erosion In The Faith System
The first effect is the erosion of faith in the system. This is because the system is perceived to be unfair.
If the system is unfair, the students will not take the governing rules and regulations seriously.
In such a scenario, students tend to forget all about the values that the system teaches, e.g., honesty, fairness, etc.
2. It Causes Irresponsibility
The second effect is that students may feel that they do not have to follow all the rules of examinations just because they are being forced to do so as it has no relevance to their lives.
They may even go to an extent of saying that the teachers are only making them follow certain rules and regulations so that they can benefit from it, i.e., get better grades.
3. It Breeds Laziness
The third effect of examination malpractices will be on students’ performance in examinations themselves.
The students may start feeling that there is no point in studying hard as there will always be someone who will help them and do all the hard work for them.
4. It Affects Student’s Study Habits
The fourth effect of examination malpractices can be very negative to a student’s academics.
This can create a domino effect, whereby the stress creates a mental block that affects the student’s study habits, and the results are not satisfactory.
This can affect their future as well as their present and in many ways, this could mean the difference between success or failure in life.
5. Inability To Defend Results And Certificates
The fifth effect of examination malpractices on students is that it could affect their future employment opportunities.
They might not be able to defend their results and certificates before their employers leading many graduates to become unemployable.
6. It causes Incompetence
Examination malpractices lead to poor grades. As a result of this, the individual will lose trust in himself/herself and will not be able to perform well in future assignments and tests.
This leads to incompetence and incompetence leads to poor grades and failure in courses which could not only affect his career but also his plans and goals.
7. It Affects The Integrity Of A School Or Institution
Examination malpractices do not only affect students but also the school.
If there are too many cases of examination malpractices that are not addressed by the school it will affect the school’s competence and it will lose its ability to attract more students.
Now, that you’ve known what examination malpractice is, the causes, and the effects on students. Let’s quickly check the solution to it.
Solutions To Examination Malpractices In Nigeria
What can we do to eliminate these illegal practices in Nigeria? Here are some of the solutions to eradicate the problem of examination malpractices in Nigeria:
1. Good Parental Upbringing
“Charity begins at home,” they say. If we are going to eradicate examination malpractices, it must begin at home.
Parental upbringing contributes a lot to these illegal acts in exams.
So, it is the role of the parents to give their children proper home training and teach them against examination malpractices.
A student with solid home training will not engage in these improper activities in exams.
2. Punishment of Students
Another practical and effective solution to examination malpractices in Nigeria is to punish students found engaging in any illegal acts during exams.
Other students will take caution when they know there is severe punishment for any illegal or misconduct during exams.
This will help to reduce examination malpractices gradually in schools today.
3. Good School Management
Good school management includes good quality teaching, good equipment and facilities, a conducive environment, adequate study materials, and so on.
This will help students pay more attention in class and be more serious with their studies.
4. Increment In The Salaries Of Teachers
Teachers and lecturers should be appreciated for their hard work and rewarded equally.
This will make them have the right attitude to work and carry out their duties accordingly.
Also, an increment in the salaries of teachers will reduce examination malpractices in Nigeria.
5. Government Should Encourage Education
The government has a role to play in eradicating examination malpractices in Nigeria.
The government should encourage and spend more on education. It should provide more facilities and equipment and other necessary things for schools.
Examination malpractice is very alarming in Nigeria. This act is reducing our national integrity and values. Students now invest so much time into finding new ways and new measures to carry out examination malpractice, we need to reduce or eradicate this acts from our schools. The government, teachers, parents, and students have roles to play in eradicating these illegal acts in schools during exams.
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