The Federal Government is set to tighten the administration of public examinations and hold individuals who facilitate cheating accountable as part of efforts to restore confidence in Nigeria’s examination system.
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja at a meeting with the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS) and other education stakeholders.
Alausa said the government would no longer tolerate practices that give some candidates an unfair advantage over students who sit for examinations based on their preparation and knowledge.
He described examination malpractice as a longstanding problem that had affected not only individual candidates but also the credibility of academic qualifications awarded by Nigerian institutions.
The minister said the reforms were being implemented in line with President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to improving standards, strengthening accountability and repositioning the education sector.
He noted that responsibility for examination integrity extended beyond students, stressing that parents, teachers, school proprietors, principals and invigilators who facilitate or overlook malpractice also contribute to the problem.
Alausa urged stakeholders to promote proper learning and discourage students from relying on examination leaks and other fraudulent means to obtain good grades.
He said measures were being introduced to strengthen the security of public examinations and ensure that candidates’ results accurately represented their abilities.
According to him, the reforms would protect students who prepare honestly from being placed at a disadvantage by candidates who gain access to examination materials through illicit channels.
In another reaction, The Minister of State for Education, Prof Suwaiba Said Ahmad, said the government had introduced serialised examination questions as part of measures to reduce the impact of leaked examination materials.
Ahmad urged private school proprietors to support the reforms and ensure that their students were adequately prepared for external examinations.
She observed that some candidates who performed well in internal examinations might record poorer results in external examinations when they could no longer rely on leaked questions.
The minister said the situation underscored the need for schools to focus on genuine academic preparation, including completing the curriculum on time and encouraging students to develop consistent study habits.
She said the ministry would continue to engage private education stakeholders as the new measures were implemented.
Ahmad emphasised that the reforms were aimed at ensuring that examination results reflected candidates’ actual knowledge and abilities rather than punishing students.
Alausa said the government would continue working with schools, examination bodies and other stakeholders to strengthen the assessment system.
He warned that continued malpractice could erode public confidence in Nigerian qualifications and diminish the value of the country’s education system.
The minister therefore called on parents, schools, teachers, students and examination officials to support the reforms and uphold the integrity of the examination process.