On this interview with Funmi Ogundare, the brand new Head of the Nationwide Workplace, West African Examinations Council, Dr. Amos Dangut, defined the steps taken by the council to deploy expertise for the profitable conduct of computer-based West African Senior College Certificates Examination for personal candidates and plans to have interaction with the federal government to supply the enabling setting to be deployed in colleges. He additionally defined why all stakeholders, together with mother and father, should rise to their duties to stamp out examination malpractices
Since assuming workplace, your first task was to make sure the conduct of the computer-based West African Senior College Certificates Examination (WASSCE) for personal candidates. What’s your evaluation of the examination?
It wasn’t our first time conducting a computer-based check. We used it for our recruitment course of. We’ve a flair check division which has additionally examined some candidates in sure organisations utilizing that methodology. We’ve WASSCE in two diets: for personal and college candidates. It’s the first time we had been deploying Cb-WASSCE for personal candidates in massive scale testing of that nature on this a part of the world. I’m not conscious that some other African nation has deployed it in this kind of examination. Because the main examination physique, with the assistance of God and devoted workers who had been enthusiastic, we had been in a position to obtain it. It was thrilling. It gave us a way of fulfilment and accomplishment as a result of through the years, now we have been strategising, hopeful and ready for the day once we will truly deploy it. We truly deployed it within the first sequence of the WASSCE held between January 31 and February 17. The expertise was superb, and the method was seamless, and we may see the keenness in every single place. It had the true semblance of what an examination ought to be. When you’re wanting on the conduct of the examination, you’re looking at a standardised examination which is able to begin concurrently in every single place. All of the venues had been air-conditioned, and the candidates wrote the examination in a conducive ambiance. When you’ve got a regular examination setting, it brings out the most effective from the candidates.
Have been there any challenges?
All of the examination centres accredited by the administration group met the stringent standards. There have been both laptops or desktops with inverters and turbines. So we had energy provide. There have been no situations throughout the nation that had any challenges.
With the feat you achieved with the personal candidates, do you intend to increase the identical initiative to high school candidates, and do you see different West African international locations taking after what you’ve got performed?
The examination is terminal for candidates who’ve accomplished their secondary faculty and wish to make up for the examination. I’ve gone to a number of boards, seminars, workshops and conferences the place another analyzing our bodies are additionally warming as much as undertake the identical initiative. Ours actually began a great distance again, and we had a number of time for preparation. On whether or not will probably be deployed to high school candidates, we don’t actually have management of that discipline as a result of candidates are owned and managed by the federal government.
The federal government present the setting for educating and studying, together with the tools. As an illustration, within the CB-WASSCE that we performed, we offered all tools. For the college candidates, the federal government and college house owners must equip the setting with amenities for such exams. WAEC helps in growing training requirements wherever we function. We’ve simply completed conducting this examination. The report is on my desk. We’re going to distil it. We play an advisory function to training stakeholders. We’re planning to have interaction with the federal government and we’re going to focus on with them our expertise with the personal candidates examination and encourage them to supply the enabling setting to be deployed in colleges. Till they provide the peace of mind and the go-ahead, we are able to’t try this for varsity candidates.
When are you hoping to launch the results of the WASSCE?
We’ve a coverage that from the date of the final examination, the outcomes might be launched 45 days after the conduct. As a part of the dividends of expertise, processing might be simpler and quicker. What we did diminished occurrences of examination malpractices. By the point we collate situations of irregularities, you will discover out that there might be a major lower in malpractice. One other characteristic of this examination is that the time we course of vastly diminishes. So moderately than have 45 days to launch the outcomes, we’re going to do it inside a shorter interval. We’re taking a look at 30 to 35 days to launch the outcomes in comparison with the 45 days once we had been doing pen and paper. We’re a technology-driven organisation, and as we communicate, we try to churn out extra improvements.
What plans do you’ve got in direction of bettering educating, studying and high quality of evaluation?
The benefit of it’s that we do an evaluation of studying and that of training. We assess how a lot you’ve got learnt and the abilities such that you would be able to take into account evaluation as studying. So you possibly can both do the evaluation for studying or as studying. What we do itself helps educating and studying. Within the course of, educating and studying are developed and strengthened. As an illustration, when a scholar is being assessed, within the course of, she or he is studying. The lecturers concerned within the evaluation are additionally constructing their capability. So what we do helps stakeholders within the training sector to enhance. We additionally intentionally supply capability constructing for secondary faculty lecturers and lecturers within the college system thrice in a 12 months. We coordinate them earlier than they begin marking our exams. The capability constructing workshop is aimed toward refreshing them on what to mark. We additionally maintain specialised coaching for them. The federal government or colleges invite us to coach their lecturers within the facet of supply within the artwork of evaluation.
Does the coaching additionally contain curbing examination malpractices?
We practice the examiners who mark our exams on learn how to detect and report malpractices for applicable sanctions. One other manner of curbing examination malpractices that’s potent, is sensitisation, as a result of we discovered that some college students don’t even know what represent malpractice. Though legally, ignorance will not be an excuse. At a lot of our boards, we talked about examination malpractices, on our web site, we sensitised in opposition to it. We’ve revealed on our syllabuses what constitutes malpractice and learn how to keep out of it. We additionally sensitised colleges, lecturers and oldsters. We do it at many boards together with organising highway stroll exhibits in addition to media. Nonetheless, we’re restricted in reaching each candidate, that’s the reason we additionally have interaction lecturers and principals to hold it to their varied colleges. Sadly, some lecturers or principals simply get the doc containing the knowledge and fall asleep, and on the finish of the day, the scholars cheat. It beats my creativeness that those that now we have adequately sensitised immediately, are recalcitrant and nonetheless cheat. I do know that if mother and father actually train and educate their kids in the proper manner, we received’t have examination malpractices. So we maintain resting within the hope that oldsters and all stakeholders will rise to their duties.
Would you say that there was a drop within the studying tradition?
I’d say there’s a metamorphosis of the studying tradition. In these days, you possibly can solely sit down and start to learn however as we speak, you learn in every single place. So the studying tradition to me, is extra when it comes to utilizing devices, however while you discuss carrying the standard ebook to learn, sure, there’s a discount in studying tradition.
What number of states are at the moment owing WAEC?
We had a problem with two states. Nonetheless, they’re already redeeming their money owed. What’s left will not be a lot. We’re already recovering our debt.
A former commissioner of training within the northern a part of the nation stated paying WASSCE charges for college students was a waste of sources as a result of their college students weren’t doing effectively within the exams. What’s your tackle this?
Correct planning prevents poor efficiency, so additionally, when you don’t plan effectively, you intend to fail. Was all of it college students within the state that failed? What occurred to college students who handed? Was all of it colleges that failed? For you to have the ability to inform whether or not they’re doing effectively or not, it’s rubbish in, rubbish out. When you haven’t put something within the heads of the scholars, what would be the end result? So, for anybody to say college students don’t do effectively, I imagine that they need to return to the drafting board. It’s not solely in WASSCE that individuals fail, additionally they fail in all types of exams together with inside exams, however I’ll let you know that WASSCE is a desired product. It has the worldwide trademark on it. Individuals who put together, do effectively. Faculties that do their work effectively move. Governments that encourage correct educating and studying with proper amenities, do excellently effectively. Many state governments previously who say they’d not take WAEC exams once more, have come again and are paying. So, there is no such thing as a state authorities as we speak that has barred its college students from writing our examination. All states, together with the FCT, are presenting their college students.
What’s the manner ahead for WAEC?
We’re within the twenty first century. We’re all the time shifting forward of time. We search for methods that can guarantee entry and assist the event of the nation.
