- This topic has 1 reply, 2 voices, and was last updated 2 months, 3 weeks ago by
.
-
-
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has lauded the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB) for its successful implementation of Computer-Based Testing (CBT) in the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). He announced that the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examinations Council (NECO) will transition to CBT for their examinations starting in November 2025.
Speaking on Monday in Abuja while monitoring the UTME in Bwari, Alausa highlighted that CBT exams significantly curb examination malpractice. He disclosed that a committee has been formed to provide recommendations for ensuring high-quality examinations across Nigeria.
“I’ve just gone around with the Registrar of JAMB to monitor the 2025-2026 academic session examination,” Alausa said. “I visited several CBT centres, and the JAMB team showed me their digital operations, from their control room to how exams are monitored nationwide. I am extremely impressed. JAMB’s CBT-based exam meets international benchmarks and is foolproof against cheating.”
He added, “This exam is conducted, monitored, and coordinated with the highest level of integrity. I’m happy we’re achieving this in Nigeria. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu places great emphasis on human capital development, including education, health, and social protection. The president is working to fix all facets of the economy and strongly believes in the rule of law. JAMB’s ability to conduct an exam that meets international standards shows we’re progressing.”
Alausa outlined plans for WAEC and NECO to adopt CBT, starting with objective exams in November 2025. By May/June 2026, both objective and essay components will be fully CBT-based. “This is how we can eliminate exam malpractices,” he said. “We want our children to study, not perfect ways of cheating. When some students cheat, it disincentivizes hard-working ones. If you’re studying diligently and see others with leaked questions, you won’t be happy. We aim to eliminate that completely.”
The minister noted that he has tasked a committee, led by JAMB Registrar Professor Ishaq Oloyede, to evaluate the examination process at all educational levels and provide recommendations for maintaining global standards. “I’ll receive the committee’s report by the end of next month,” Alausa said. “They’ve been tasked to decipher the examination process for all exams at all levels of our schools and come up with expansive recommendations on how we can maintain the highest quality of examinations that meet any standard, compared to anywhere in the world. I’m hopeful and awaiting those reports. I have mandated WAEC and NECO to implement CBT from the November exams of 2025.”
Addressing the feasibility, Alausa compared the scale of the exams: “JAMB conducts CBT exams for about 2.2 million candidates annually. WAEC and NECO each have around 1.8 million candidates. If JAMB can manage CBT for 2 million people, there’s no reason WAEC and NECO cannot. I know their exams include practicals, essays, and objectives, but at least essays and objectives will be CBT-based. We’ve staggered the transition: November 2025 for objectives, and by May/June/July 2026, both essays and objectives will be fully CBT.”
Also speaking, JAMB Registrar Professor Ishaq Oloyede described the ongoing UTME as one of JAMB’s most successful, with over 1.6 million candidates participating as of Monday morning. He addressed concerns about exam scheduling and candidate verification, explaining that candidates are required to arrive by 6:30 a.m. to complete preliminary checks.
“This is one of our best examinations so far, for which we are grateful to God,” Oloyede said. “Some people make a case out of nothing. Our first session starts at 8 a.m., the second at 10:30 a.m., the third at 1 p.m., and the fourth at 3:30 p.m. Candidates need to arrive early for verification. We must check the 250 candidates invited per session, which takes about 45 minutes. If we asked them to arrive at 7:30 a.m., many would miss the exam.”
Oloyede dismissed claims that JAMB assigns candidates to unintended centers. “We’ve challenged anyone to provide evidence of a candidate posted to a center they didn’t choose. You can never find such a case because it’s unreasonable. Some candidates deceive their parents, choosing one location while claiming another. For example, a candidate might choose Sokoto but tell their parent they chose Lagos. When you ask, the boy will say, ‘I want to go to Sokoto because I want to know Sokoto,’ or something like that.”
He cited an incident where a parent mistakenly believed their child was sent to Funtua instead of Katsina. “When we checked, the candidate was assigned to Dr. Funtua CBT Center in Katsina. The parent saw ‘Funtua’ and assumed it was a different city,” Oloyede explained. “Out of 2,031,000 candidates, we have covered over 1,600,000 plus now. We have less than 600,000 remaining. By the end of today, there will be just 40,000 or 50,000 rounding off tomorrow. But we are still going to do some things because every time, we improve.”
Oloyede emphasized JAMB’s commitment to integrity, noting that results are not released hurriedly to ensure verification. “We have arrested over 40 people for impersonation, and some cases are quite funny. Some even went to our examination hall with cameras to snap the screen and send it out. They don’t know that our exam is not that type of exam. At least 40 persons are in custody, and we will ensure they are prosecuted. We don’t reschedule for anybody. If you miss a flight to the UK, will you tell the plane to come back?”
-
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.