The Federal Government has announced ongoing plans to fully transition all examinations in Nigeria to 100 percent computer-based testing (CBT) by the year 2027.
Henzodaily reports that this development was announced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, during the inauguration of the Committee on Improvement of Quality Examinations in Nigeria, held in Abuja on Thursday, January 23.
Alausa stated that the committee has been assigned the critical task of addressing significant challenges within the education sector, standardizing examination practices, and ensuring both fairness and quality in assessments.
He underscored the government’s dedication to combating prevalent examination malpractices and improving the overall quality of educational evaluations in the country.
The minister noted that addressing examination leakages necessitates a comprehensive approach, as students are not the sole offenders in these malpractices.
He pointed out that parents also play a role in perpetuating examination malpractices by encouraging their children, while teachers, school principals, and examination supervisors are equally responsible for the increasing incidence of such misconduct in the nation.
“So, we’re planning that by 2027, all our exams will be computer-based. We will work so hard to ensure that that happens. We have to use technology to help our endeavour.
“The committee will also be working with local swapping of candidates.
“There are multiple participants in exam practices. From the student to parents, teachers, principals, to even people regulating and supervising exam conduct.
“During this change, a lot of areas of compromises will happen. There will be people investigating and regulating the exams,” the Minister stated.
Alausa delineated several objectives that the committee was established to accomplish, which include the eradication of examination leakages, tackling identity theft in assessments, and enhancing the supervision of examinations.
He emphasized the necessity of transitioning to computer-based examinations by the year 2027 and addressing the issue of local candidate swapping during assessments.
He indicated that this initiative would be facilitated by the government’s significant investment in education under the leadership of President Bola Tinubu, with a pronounced emphasis on human capital development.
Additionally, the minister revealed that examination certificates would now incorporate three essential identifiers: national identification numbers, photographs of candidates, and birthdates, to ensure the integrity of the results.
He characterized examination malpractice as an escalating concern, cautioning that its continuation would jeopardize the efforts of dedicated students who are striving for self-improvement.
“I’ve mandated all the registrars of our examination bodies, such as WAEC, NECO and NAPTEB that by their next examinations scheduled for May, June and July, there will be three identifiers on the certificates they issue.
“These identifiers will be the national identification number of the candidates, picture of the candidate on the certificates and their date of birth.
“By having these three identifiers, we will ensure almost 100 per cent certainty in identifying candidates,” he stated.
Responding, the Chairman of the committee, Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, thanked the Federal Government for the confidence reposed in him and other members of the committee in carrying out the national assignment.
Oloyede, who is the Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), pledged to carry out the assignment dutifully and promptly.