Exams are around the corner, and students are studying harder, becoming more serious about their studies and lectures. The library and laboratories are crowded with different cliques and groups of students who are either reading, carrying out practicals, or having question-and-answer sessions in preparation for the upcoming exams.
It is during this period that students go on prep, burn the midnight oil, and engage in every educational activity that will help them scale through. Of course, everyone wants to excel, pass with flying colors, and move on to the next stage of life. Nobody wishes to fail exams, hence the overly serious attitude towards learning and studying, especially during the examination period.
Sadly, gone are the days when students shivered at the mention of examinations and tests. Gone are the days when students were begged to take a break from studying and engage in recreational activities to unwind.
Students of today, or rather Gen Z students, no longer bother to study and excel; to them, it is stress, and who wants such stress? Worse still, they don't care about their grades or points; all they want to see in the result booklet is a bold "P" indicating passed, and they will go to any length to achieve this without having to study or stress themselves.
Try engaging a Gen Z student in a conversation or advising them to take studies seriously, and their usual reply will be, "Education is a scam; we will find a way to pass." The phrase "we will find a way to pass" indicates that they intend to resort to examination malpractice. The level of confidence examination malpractice has given students needs to be a case study in universities. Students now boldly brag about passing exams without having to work or study—where is that done, and how?
They tend to relax and even prefer whiling away their time on social media, engaging in time-consuming, non-profitable activities. On exam day, they all dress up and head to the exam hall, moving together like a group of bees following their queen bee to their hive. This lackadaisical attitude is very common among high school and even university students.
I remember during the period of my final external examination in high school, conducted by an examining body known as WAEC; the exam was tough as it covered a 6-year curriculum. However, during this period, some students were very relaxed and unbothered because they had the confidence that teachers and malpractice would come through. In some schools, it has become a norm for students to cheat their way to passing, especially in external final senior examinations that determine admission into college or university.
Exam officials are being bribed to allow students to engage in malpractice to pass their exams. If you try to stand against it, emotional blackmailing words are often used: "What if it was your child, and your success depends on you? Wouldn't you go the extra mile to make sure your child excels?"
Some teachers, on their part, are not helping either, collecting money from students to help them excel or cheat their way through. They call it a "passing fee," but these teachers are doing more harm than good. Collecting money from students or parents to help students excel is counterproductive.
These teachers have already completed their studies, obtained their certificates, and secured jobs for themselves. If these teachers were not capable, they wouldn't have been employed in a reputable institution. So it can only mean that teachers worked and studied hard during their own time to obtain their certificates and licenses to teach because no one would want to employ a dullard as a teacher.
The Implications?
The implications of all these are evident today, with cases of graduates unable to spell their names, let alone write an application letter, not to mention granting interviews. I once saw a post on Facebook where a manager of a company shared an application letter written by a graduate. I am not exaggerating when I say that the handwriting is nothing to write home about, not to talk about the content of the letter and spellings.
Instances like this make me wonder what the world will look like in the next 5 years?
And, of course, we cannot paint everyone with the same brush; there are still good people who have refused to be influenced by the common trends in education. However, the bad still outweighs the good, and we are left wondering if this disease, "Examination malpractice," spreading constantly and rapidly in the education system will ever find a cure or treatment.
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