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Tag: JAMB

  • Merit, catchment to determine varsities’ admission, says JAMB

    Merit, catchment to determine varsities’ admission, says JAMB

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said admission into tertiary institutions will be based on three factors: merit, catchment area and educationally disadvantaged states.

    It noted that the point system copied from its website as criteria for admission into tertiary institutions is a mere illustration.

    JAMB’s Head of Media and Information Dr Fabian Benjamin, in a statement, said the Federal Government approved the reinforcement of admission guideline as recognised by law.

    It said the point system wrongfully copied from the board’s website and circulated by some media organisations was used for illustration by the Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde.

    “Sequel to the recent workshop convened by the minister of Education on the modality for 2016 admission into tertiary institutions in Nigeria, the Federal Government approved the reinforcement of admissions guideline recognised by law.

    “This is following the cancellation of the post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). This is not the point system as widely circulated in some media.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, the board wishes to state clearly that the point system is an illustration by the registrar of JAMB.

    “It is meant to demonstrate how a few institutions were using the point system to select candidates while some of their counterparts were subjecting candidates to written tests.

    “The illustrations are contained in a paper presented by the registrar and placed on our website and was adopted by the media wrongly as the 2016 guideline for admission,’’ the statement said.

    It said the 2016 admissions would be conducted on the three existing admission pillars of merit, catchment area and educationally disadvantaged states through the following process.

    According to the statement, a list of candidates that qualified for screening into individual institutions based on the three criteria will be presented.

    It said such screening would not demand another test – written, oral or electronic.

    Candidates are to present their Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results/Advanced Level (AL) results for verification and clearing.

    It noted that WAEC, NECO and NBTE results or its equivalent are acceptable.

    The statement added: Each candidate should have a minimum five credits at SSCE, including English, Mathematics and any three relevant subjects to his or her discipline.

    It said the list of qualified candidates awaiting SSCE/AL results would be kept in view pending release of their results.

    “Any candidate that does not possess the requirements as listed above is deemed to have failed the screening.

    “Consideration of the recommended list as forward by JAMB should be completed within one month from the date of receipt of the list.

    “Any institution that has a shortfall in the admitted candidates could make up for candidates from other departments on the institution’s list.

    “Reasons for rejection of candidates on the list should be clearly stated, with proof provided alongside. This is imperative so that the public will note the correct process,’’ the statement said.

    It said the government directed that the guidelines must be strictly adhered to without any alteration.

  • JAMB: Let varsities conduct their examinations

    Before the recent statement by the Honourable Minister of Education abolishing Post UTME examinations, both the universities and JAMB had agreed that the two tests be used in selecting candidates. Following the statement by the minister, all kinds of comments have been made. Those who support the position of the minister are rejoicing that the exploiters in the universities have been defeated while the universities are angry that the JAMB examination cheats have been given an open cheque. Those who accuse universities of exploitation fail to appreciate what led to the introduction of the PUTME. It had become very obvious that some of the candidates admitted with high JAMB scores could not match their performance with the scores. For my university in particular, we have been concerned with not allowing the wrong candidates to gain admission at the expense of the good ones. If that thinking is wrong, we do not have any apologies.

    If anybody was to give JAMB a pass mark for a job well done, certainly not with what happened in this year’s UTME. Is it possible that the Honourable Minister of Education knows what the rest of us do not know? At the end of the day, only the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board [JAMB] will be able to say [if at all they will say it] what happened in this year’s Unified Tertiary Institutions Matriculation Examinations [UTME]. Right from the first day, there were lots of complaints. I know a candidate who said his system shut down up to five times and had to be restarted each time. At the end he was not sure if what he had been doing between the shutdown sessions were correctly retained by the computers.

    The first major problem was with the results of February 27, candidates which were abysmally low but were upgraded by 40% a few days after. What was the basis of across the board addition of 40 marks to all the candidates from particular centres? Is it not possible that if all went well, some of those candidates may have scored additional 80 marks or more while others may even have scored less?  The next problem was with candidates who took their examinations on Tuesday, March 1. No results were available for about three days. When eventually the results came out, some of the students I met in a particular school in Akwa Ibom State wept profusely when their results were presented to them. The same thing happened with those who took the examinations on Friday, March 4. One particular girl insisted that what she saw was not her result. I wish it was possible to access her question paper and answer script to confirm what she claimed.

    There was a reported case of a candidate, Ibrahim Shamwilu, from Kogi State, who was given a score of 399 out of 400 only to have it reduced to 199 within 24 hours. Another candidate was reported to have been given a score of 345 only to have it reduced to 243 the next day.

    JAMB must admit that there is a credibility problem with this year’s examination result. The papers may not have leaked – I have not heard anything to that effect but something went wrong with many aspects of the examination. JAMB must carry out some soul searching and be ready to accept that this one-chance CBT based examination is not the best thing to do now.

    I want Nigerians to look again at the following issues. Firstly, what advised the reduction of time for the examination from the usual three and a half hours to two hours and forty five minutes? Did they expect candidates taking mathematics based subjects to solve problems with an average of 39 seconds which they now allowed for each question? Secondly, by randomly selecting questions for candidates doing the same course, did they take note of the fact that some candidates may be unlucky to have a random selection that puts them at a disadvantage against other candidates? Have we agreed that good luck should now be a factor in obtaining good scores in UTME? For a course like medicine where one mark can be very crucial, must we make room for luck?I use different question papers for my students in the structural engineering courses I teach. All of them basically answer the same questions but with different data. For example, a candidate can be asked to calculate the area of a triangle with sides 5cm, 6cm and 8cm. Another candidate could be given a triangle of sides 8cm, 10cm and 15cm. In that case, a level playing ground is provided for all of them. The present CBT used by JAMB does not present a level playing ground for all candidates. If JAMB contends this I challenge them to conduct a trial examination with outside observers. Let them generate five sets of questions and give to the candidates to answer and let us then analyse the results. I watched the Cowbellpedia Mathematics Competitions for last year and this problem was also there. Some of the candidates had easier questions than others. As exciting as the quizzes were, they should not be the main basis for selecting the best mathematicians in secondary schools in Nigeria.

    Thirdly, have we brought into reckoning the issue of impersonators? In 2012, I happened to be involved in the organization of PUTME in my school. One day, I got a call from a young man that he was noticing people in a cybercafé changing photographs on the UTME results and the PUTME results. It was then that I got to know what was happening. Somebody impersonated for a candidate at UTME and also came and impersonated at the PUTME. What we did opened our eyes to how far Nigerians can go to do evil. We collected the photographs used for the PUTME by all the candidates that were admitted. During the registration exercise, we crosschecked the photograph of the person who took the PUTME with the person who came to register. The first day, more than 40 candidates were detected as having used impersonators. The most terrible ones were when boys impersonated for girls. That year, hundreds of candidates could not take up their places. That was when we came out with the term serial impersonators. If we are now saying there should be no PUTME, how do we fish out impersonators? Have we decided that our hardworking students who do not cheat should forfeit their places to impersonators simply because JAMB is the only body to conduct examinations for admission? If we let some parents know that only UTME is needed for admission, let us wait and see what will happen at the next UTME.

    I wish to suggest that we look again at this matter of university admission. JAMB has over the years tried in assisting in admitting candidates into tertiary institutions and should be commended. But in view of the large number of candidates it is now handling and the problems of ensuring level playing ground with the CBT examinations, will it not be better if JAMB just serves a clearing house for candidates to be sent to take their entrance examinations at three schools of their choice? In this case those who do not want two examinations will be satisfied. Can we also have a situation in which a candidate who so desires takes examination for admission into about three schools as against the current situation in which once a candidate misses the UTME examination, he has to wait for another one year?How many countries are doing what we are still doing? Universities are best positioned to examine and admit their candidates. What we are suffering in this country is trying to micromanage the country from Abuja. Let us note that sooner or later we will have to release people to manage what they are best suited to do.

     

    • Uko is Professor of Structural Engineering, University of Uyo, Uyo.

  • ASUU faults JAMB on new admission guidelines

    The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Ibadan chapter, has lashed out at the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) for acting beyond its powers by releasing admission guidelines for Nigerian universities.

    The union said it is the mandate of the Senate of Nigerian universities to regulate admission modalities and determine what best suits each institution.

    The ASUU Chairman at the institution, Dr. Deji Omole, stated this while reacting to the 2016 admission guidelines recently released by JAMB.

    He said both the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, and JAMB Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, are confused and inconsistent by first going against collection of administrative charges under Post-UTME by universities, but now preaching payment of screening fees in “its illegal guidelines which is designed to favour the children of the rich against the poor.”

    Omole said Adamu and Ojerinde are unaware of happenings in Nigeria universities, adding that the newly released point – based scoring system is not new as it was innovated and used at the University of Ibadan for five years and abandoned.

    He stressed that the institution has moved beyond such model of admitting students.

    He said, “JAMB is acting beyond its mandate which is to conduct and release results. The Senate of universities has the right to determine the model or guideline to adopt to admit their students from the pool of candidates sent to it by JAMB.

    “Each university has standards which are not subjected to the whims and caprices of any government appointee. JAMB does not have the powers to tell universities how to conduct their screening. It is a way to cover up their inadequacies because JAMB’s credibility as an examination body is yearly being queried.

    “JAMB and its handlers are confused. Last year, they arbitrarily placed students in private universities to satisfy the needs of their cronies. These were mainly children of the poor who had not chosen those institutions. In the just concluded JAMB examinations, they awarded candidates with extra 40 marks without any justification.

    “Now, those with two sittings results will be shortchanged and those awaiting results will be disadvantaged. There will be rise in result racketeering at WAEC again as people will be purchasing grade ‘A’ since that is what will guarantee admission.

    “More miracle examination centers will spring up and JAMB and the minister would have succeeded in entrenching corruption and further kill university education in Nigeria. ASUU stands by university autonomy. JAMB cannot determine admission guidelines for universities, rather JAMB must be overhauled to make their results believable and trusted.”

     

  • University admission: Implications of new JAMB point-based system

    University admission: Implications of new JAMB point-based system

    With the new guidelines introduced by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), the admission process for entry into tertiary institutions in Nigeria has changed.  The implication of the point-based system means:

    1. Candidates can no longer go directly to the institutions they applied to seeking admission; they have to get a provisional admission letter from JAMB first.
    2. Admission letter would be issued by JAMB based on points assigned to the O Level and UTME results
    3. For O Level, one sitting attracts 10 points, while two sittings, is assigned two points
    4. The better the O Level results, the more the points (e.g. ;  A=6 marks, B=4 marks, C=3 marks)
    5. For UTME scores, candidates can get between 20 and 60 points (180-200=20-23 points; 200-250=24-33 points, 251-300=34-43 points, 300-400=44-60 points)
    6. Pont-based system for Direct Entry candidates still being developed
    7. Yes, candidates will still be screened by universities, polytechnics and colleges of education after getting a provisional admission letter from JAMB
    8. Yes, candidates will pay for the screening
    9. Cut-off marks to be stipulated by institutions for courses would be point-based

     

  • JAMB releases guidelines for varsity admission

    JAMB releases guidelines for varsity admission

    The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) on Monday announced its guidelines for admission process.

    Its announcement through its website followed a week long meeting with universities and other tertiary institutions in the country.

    According to the board, the modalities would be based on point system.

    The board, which explained   how the admission process would work for JAMB candidates and direct-entry applicants, also stated that varsities would collect screening fees from candidates at the end of admission process.

    According to the board, the new method uses a point system, which is divided into other processes, that is easy to understand.

    “Before a candidate can be considered for screening, he/she must have been given provisional admission by JAMB. The JAMB admission checker portal is going to be opened soon for this process, so praying is all you can do now,” the statement on JAMB’s website said.

    The second process, the board said, was the point system where admission would depend on the point tally of the candidate.

    It said: “JAMB’s provisional admission no longer makes much sense this year, your points tally will decide your faith.

    “The points are evenly spread out between your O’level and JAMB results to provide a level playing field for all.

    “In the first case, any candidate who submits only one result which contains his/her relevant subjects already has 10 points, the exam could be NECO, WAEC, GCE etc, but any candidate who has two sittings only gets two points. So, this means that aspirants with only one result are at an advantage but only just.”

    The board explained that the next point grades fell into the O’level grades where each grade has it’s equivalent point;  A6 marks, B4 marks, C3 marks. So, the better the candidate’s grades, the better his/her  chances of securing admission this year.

    The next point is the UTME scores where each score range has its equivalent point which can be summarised thus: 180 – 200 (or 20 – 23 marks); 200 – 250 (or 24 – 33 points); 251 – 300 (or 34 – 43); 300 – 400 (or 44 – 60 points).

    Giving a breakdown, JAMB explained that each categories contains five JAMB results per point added.

    For instance, a candidate with 180 – 185 gets 20 points, a candidate with 186 – 190 gets 21 points, adding that the point system for direct entry will be released soon.

    The board stated that fees would still be charged for screening which has replaced the Post UTME.

    “It then comes down to the fact that fees will still be charged for screening, it depends on the school as well,” the statement said.

    It also disclosed that catchment and ELDS will still be used!

    “Merit contains 45 per cent of the total candidates for a particular course, catchment contains 35 per cent and ELDS and staff lists contains the rest.

    “Cut off marks will be released by schools this year in the form of points and not marks. If a school declares it’s cut-off mark for Medicine as 90 points and JAMB grants a candidate with 250 a provisional admission but his/her total points falls short of the 90 points, then he/she will lose the admission. So, the provisional admission is just a means to an end, not the end in itself,” the statement added.

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  • Group commends FG on scrap of Post UTME

    Group commends FG on scrap of Post UTME

    A right group, Stand Up Nigeria, at the weekend commended the Federal Government for scrapping the Post Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) by institutions for candidates seeking admission into tertiary institutions.

    The group stated that the post UTME screening by higher institutions was also a loophole for corruption that allowed staffs of the institutions to admit preferred candidates by technically voiding the UMTE scores.

    The group hailed the government’s decision as a welcome development, adding that the move would boost the anti-corruption fight in the education sector as it will end the generation of revenue that does not get to the government coffers.

    Its Secretary General, Sunday Attah, in a statement on Sunday in Abuja, stated that most institutions have turned the exercise to a corrupt means of impoverishing innocent candidates.

    He described the Post UMTE as an exploitative practice to “extort admission seekers under the guise of screening them for competence.”

    The statement said: “We therefore see the scrapping of this controversial examination as a boost to the anti-corruption fight in the education sector as it will end the generation of revenue that does not get to the government coffers.”

    Attah also commended the Registrar of the joint admission and  matriculation board (JAMB), Professor Dibu Ojerinde, and his team for bringing about the change that restored the credibility of the examination body.

    He said: “We all know the state JAMB was in before Professor Ojerinde stepped in to revamp and reposition the place. Today, the confidence of the government is such that it was able to argue that there should be no need for Universities to conduct internal examinations to determine the fate of candidates seeking admissions because of the absolute confidence in JAMB.

    The Minister of Education also confirmed that JAMB has built a level of confidence in terms of conducting the UTME.

    “We know that those who favour the Post UMTE test will soon mount a campaign for its sustenance or reintroduction. The influential parents who must manipulate the admission process for their children, owners of miracle examination centres, admission racketeering cabals in tertiary institutions are a few of those that we know we put pressure on the authorities to reverse this laudable directive. But we want to put them on notice that Nigerians will not accept a return to writing Post UMTE test now that JAMB is perfecting the Computer Based Test (CBT) that renders it unnecessary to the extent that the government did the needful by scrapping it.”

    He urged Prof. Ojerinde, to consolidate on the changes he has brought to JAMB, saying he should disregard detractors who think their source of dubious wealth is being threatened by the examination body that has brought global best practice to Nigeria’s education sector.

    He appealed to the Minister of Education, Mallam Adamu Adamu, to put machinery in motion to expand the tertiary education system to be able to handle more intakes, saying this will reduce the pressure on the limited available admission spaces.

    According to Attah, this was what was exploited to introduce the Post UMTE.

    He said if the competition to get admission space continues to be fierce, opportunists will again devise a means to exploit candidates.

    He urged the Ministry of Education to take steps to monitor compliance with its directive whether in public institutions or in the privately owned schools to ensure that the Post UMTE was not reintroduced under new names or procedures.

  • Inconsistencies of JAMB examination

    At about 40 years of its existence, it had never been recorded that a mark was awarded freely by the Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) to any candidate. But the tables had since turned. In its last examination, JAMB awarded 40 marks each to candidates in  a curious fashion. Just like that. With the drama resulting from the poor organisation of the Computer Based Tests (CBT), it is yet another episode of the controversy for JAMB.

    About three years ago, a poll was taken to know if the Nigerian education community supported scrapping of JAMB. I never knew what the outcome of the poll up till today was. Nevertheless, JAMB continued to exist despite its obvious short-comings. And just recently, many candidates woke up to see their 2016 UTME results skyrocket to their wildest imaginations. Virtually everybody passed. Someone was even reported to have scored 399. It had never happened. Surely, the sentimental candidates and their allies would applaud the board but unknown to them it might be the beginning of rot to come. This might probably be a calculated ploy to make JAMB attractive to these candidates, thereby quashing every temptation to scrap the exam body.

    More shocking was the poor organisation of the examination. Mr Dibu Ojerinde is a full-fledged Nigerian who understands the intricacies and complexities of our narrative. He also knows that power is an expensive commodity in the country and yet went ahead to pilot a computer-based examination. And despite having a whole year to plan the logistics of the examination, he demonstrated a rather unimpressive understanding of project management. And we saw that botch in the poor way the exam was conducted. JAMB would not say it was not aware of the change in the date, time and even location of some candidates without giving them prior notice. Neither would it deny the poor quality of computers and equipment deployed for the exam. The mistakes were so much that even a lazy candidate who fails would still have justifiable excuse for not measuring up.

    The news reached them that Use of English questions of candidates who sat for the exam on Monday and Tuesday did not match their options. To prevent uproar, they decided to award the candidates free 40 marks. Where in the world do examiners give their candidates free marks? Shouldn’t JAMB of all bodies even be the one to condemn such act? Or did they even know how wrong it was, in the teaching profession to give out fee marks? All these put together raise question on the UTME’s credibility and even the efficiency of its organisers.

    It should better be noted by the rejoicing candidates, who of course passed the camouflage cut off marks by JAMB, that it might just be another year of no admission for them. JAMB has employed the tactics used by our private schools to “push” pupils. Candidates as a burden on JAMB have now been pushed to the tertiary institutions. But time will tell how that turns out. The scores obtained even by the candidate who was a mark away from 400 seem not to be justifiable.

    Mr Dibu Ojerinde has tried in making over N8 billion for the Federal Government while millions would still continue to scramble for smithereens of admission spaces. I had expected more than the scolding given to the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, Babatunde Fashola, Ibe Kachikwu and many others be given to Ojerinde and his JAMB. But that was not the case. JAMB will continue to go unpunished for its sins. It has silenced some of its critics with heavy duty scores and free 40 marks.

    For those who have been swept by “hurricane JAMB” this is not the time to call for scrapping. Besides, it cannot happen for now, JAMB has the numbers. This is the time for us as a serious community to truly define our educational system. We cannot afford to always use the brigade approach to execute vital projects as this.

  • JAMB: Furore over computer based test

    JAMB: Furore over computer based test

    Taiwo Alimi, captures the changing faces of JAMB at 38, and issues around UTME’s Computer Based Test.

    TOYIN, 17, left her abode at Alagbole, a bubbling suburb of Ogun State, at exactly 5:30 am in order to get to the quiescent settlement of Magboro, Ogun State before 7 am. High in spirit and with extra bounce to her feet, she was to sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), her first attempt, on the fateful Saturday morning of February 27, 2016.

    When she returned home at 9:15 pm, she looked depressed and dejected as she dragged her feet wearily in frustration, for she was unable to do the Computer-Based Test (CBT), though to no fault of hers.

    She recounted her ordeal: “I had eagerly looked forward to my first UTME. It is the only thing standing between the university and me,” started the young school leaver who got straight As in the 2015 West Africa Senior Secondary School Certificate Examinations (WASSSCE) “I had spent countless nights reading and getting ready for the exams. My parents also paid a private English tutor to brush me up. I was ready.”

    Toyin got to the CBT centre  along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway early enough and joined hundreds of other candidates for the 2016 CBT, as put together by the organising body, the Joint Admissions Matriculation Board (JAMB). What luck! She thought, to be among the first set of students to jump-start the exercise at her centre. But what she got was a baptism of fire.

    “I began to feel uneasy and hungry when the organisers had not called us in by 11 am. That hunger turned to apprehension and anger when they came out at 1 pm, to inform us that they were having problem with the server.” By this time, the crowd of students and parents had tripled with the addition of the 12 noon and 3 pm examinees.

    Left at the mercy of innate desire, scotching sun and awful general condition, the multitude of young, bold and restless candidates, mostly teenagers, could no longer control their emotions. At first, they reacted in hush grumble. But their mumuring soon grew harsh and then, they started throwing objects into the building and at the organisers.

    “JAMB officers were the first to disappear from the scene before security men forcefully dispatched us. I left for home when it became dark and apparent that no one could sit for the exams,” Toyin recalled. A week later, Toyin returned to the place to do the CBT alongside over 700 others. But that first impression of JAMB, she said, ‘left a sour taste in my mouth, and brain.”

    JAMB has always been an institution of contrasts. It has always looked for new ways to invigorate its prime product, the UTME, which is responsible, since 1978, for placing teeming teenagers and adults into Nigeria’s universities, polytechnics, and other institutions of higher learning annually. Sadly, it is yet to deliver its winning recipe, even with its latest CBT formula.

    According to JAMB statistics, 1.5 million candidates registered for the 2016 UTME, and each coughed out an average N5000. Suffice to add that UTME is written every year, meaning JAMB has a steady flow of income as well as the opportunity to play god while defining the destiny of Nigerian youths.

    JAMB first introduced the CBT method of writing UTME in 2013, and conducted the examination in 2013 and 2014 using three modes-dual-based tests, Paper Pencil Test (PPT) and CBT with candidates having to choose between the devil (written test) and the deep blue sea (CBT). In 2015, the board went full scale CBT, which continued this year. It changed for a singular devil’s alternative of CBT, at least for most states of the federation that are IT compliant.

    From February 27 to March 19, tens of thousands of students, who thought they would simply walk into JAMB’s CBT centres, punch in their answers and within hours receive their results via mobile phones, got the rude shock of their lives. This simple assumption became a complex task as experienced by Toyin and many other candidates.

    Real issues

    They talked about harrowing experiences at many centres. The problems vary from power failure, poor internet connectivity, late start, inadequate computer sets, among others. In some centres, it was a combination of two or three of these problems, leading to emotional and physical stress on students and their parents.

    CBT managers, who are mostly cybercafe owners contracted to manage the facilities (Internet- ready computers) for the examination, also had their own tales of woes to tell. At a centre visited by this reporter in the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway area of Ogun State, chaos personified the mode and scene.

    Over 500 candidates and about a 100 parents crowded the major road and adjoining streets leading to the lone CBT center in the neighbourhood. The Nation’s investigation revealed that the centre accommodates 750 students daily, and they are distributed evenly in three batches.

    The CBT centre is located in a large school hall tucked inside one of the adjacent streets and a no-go area for students who have to wait out on the nearby streets, shops and residential houses that played host to the unwanted visitors as long as the exams lasted. One of candidates, Dotun, said he came with her mother and both have been waiting for her turn for four hours.

    “I’m supposed to write my papers at 9 a.m, so I got here at 7 a.m with my mum.,” She cast a quick glance at her wristwatch before corroborating her son, “It is already 12 noon and we are still waiting.”

    Dotun complained about the emotional and physical stress that the long wait has caused him. He noted that it might affect him when he eventually gets in to do the exams. “We were not allowed to enter the hall, and no provision was made for chairs to make us comfortable. We have to patch on wherever we find. Right now I’m tired and frustrated and that condition applies to many of my friends and candidates you see here.”

    About an hour after our discussion, invigilators came out to call in the next batch of examinees. Dotun was among them and he followed about 200 others towards the hall. He was back four hours later, feeling more frustrated. He related what happened inside.

    “When we got in, the generator had packed up and they (organisers) were trying to fix it. Of course, there was no public power and so we had to wait for them to finish the repair. That went on for about an hour and after we started the papers, my computer tripped off twice and I had to start all over again. It was a harrowing experience and the truth is that I don’t know what to expect.”

    Lekan, 19, who came from Ojodu Berger, shared a near similar tale. “I was to write my papers on day one, being a Saturday, but after waiting for five hours, we were told that we could not do ours because their generator malfunctioned. At first, we were not told anything we became restive and threatened to vandalise the place. So, I’ve been coming here every day because they said we would be accommodated another day.”

    One of the parents who came with his son, Mr. Tajudeen Semiu, summarised his experience thus: “JAMB is yet to get it right. I came with my son because of his ill health and he has been in there, (pointing to the exam hall) for more than four hours now. After much persuasion, one of the invigilators confided that the centre was having power problem. He said they are waiting for another generator because the former one developed a problem and not working. I’m afraid now for my son’s health because this experience is too rigorous for him.”

    The issues

    At another Lagos centre at Abule Egba, off Abeokuta Expressway, electricity issue cropped up. Sade, a secondary school leaver, who is having his second CBT experience back to back, said JAMB must step up its game. “JAMB is making the exam centre scary for us (candidates). At this center, some of the computer backups were faulty and whenever power went off my computer would shut down. Same problem occurred last year (2015) and I could not even sit for it. This time around, I had just 30minutes to round off when power went off and I had to reboot and refill my answers in 25 minutes. JAMB must take power problem serious if it must continue with CBT.”

    Like a recurring decimal, poor organisation and facilities are issues that marred JAMB CBT in many centres leading to poor results and many cancellations as experienced by some candidates who had issues with their results. Give it to JAMB, the results came swiftly and faster than previous ones as attested by the candidates, but not without misgivings.

    Kayode, who sat for his CBT at Anthony Village center said he got his result through a text message at midnight while Toyin got hers at 11:02 pm, same night of her exam. Nurudeen scored 211 and his alert came in at 2:04 am the following morning. However, complain trailed in some quarters. Bello, who punched his CBTin Abuja, received a not-seat alert, same for Oreoluwa who had hers in Ibadan. Another candidate Foluke, 17, in Ejigbo-Lagos, on first check, scored an aggregate of 156 and when the she rechecked, she had 196.

    In a swift reaction, JAMB Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, has come up to hammer some centres following public protests in Lagos and Abuja by candidates and their parents over what they described as the many problems facing the CBT. The board had to cancel these centres following complaints of poor facilities provided by the centres’ administrators in Lagos. JAMB laid the blame on the doorstep of managers of the centres for failing to live up to the contractual agreement. Prof. Ojerinde informed that the board expected diligence and efficiency from all the centres following dutiful and careful selection.

    However, investigation carried out by The Nation revealed that the centres did not enjoy the huge financial and technical expertise available to JAMB. Ade, (not real name), 49, operates a cybercafé in a municipality along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and managed a CBT centre in Ogun State. He faulted JAMB financial obligation to the centers, informing that it is grossly inadequate. “For what we have to provide to ensure that CBT exams are successfully conducted in each centre, JAMB is paying us peanuts.

    For each candidate, JAMB promised to pay N600 and I have to obtain everything to make the examination work. We are to provide the computers,” he stated. This reporter counted 250 computer systems in four halls. I made these special desks in compliance with zero tolerance for exam cheats and malpractices. Then, a high band internet connection is part of the bill we had to bear. Also we had to contend with power generation,” he said.

    Ola had to engage the services of two 150 kilowatts generators for the duration of the exams. “For each, I paid N25, 000.00 daily rent, and then, I had to pay for diesel to power the generators.” For the halls rented for the exams, he paid N350, 000.00. “So, what do you think is left from the N2,400,000 that JAMB is paying me for 4000 candidates? He queried.

    Another contractor, Mike (not real name), who spoke on phone from Iju-Lagos said JAMB did not advance any money in order to alleviate the huge spending in preparation for the CBT, to them. “I am indebted to many people now and to make it worse, I am yet to get any money from JAMB three weeks after. It was after we protested that the money was too small that they now compensated us with JAMB Registration Centres for the next year’s CBT exam. JAMB offered to pay N700 for each registered candidate,’ he explained.

    Way out

    Some stakeholders, however, feel different, though, a majority believed in the efficacy of CBT if properly annexed. They, however, think that the hues and cries of students and contractors are genuine. While declaring his support for JAMB’s CBT, former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Peter Okebukola, lamented the hitches recorded at this year’s CBT and called on JAMB to do more.

    “The demerits of a full-scale CBT have been loudly canvassed to include weak technological infrastructure to support CBT on a large scale in Nigeria at this time and the low level of ICT literacy among potential UTME candidates. Irregular power supply is another important element in the arsenal of people shooting down the idea of a full-blast CBT.

    “With all the glitches which popped up during the conduct of the 2016 UTME, my recommendation is for JAMB to regard the deadline of 2016 for stopping the paper and pencil mode as the ‘yellow card’ and set 2018 for the ‘red card’ when there will not be any form of paper and pencil testing. The two-year grace period will allow JAMB to dot its ‘I’s and cross its ‘T’s. It will allow JAMB to do an accurate census of centres that can conduct near hitch-free CBT and clean up all the bugs (errors) in the software for the CBT delivery system,” he argued.

    In spite of these flaws, Prof. Okebukola added: “We need to be far-sighted in our approach and pitch our position on a number of emerging scenarios. We are training undergraduates for an ICT-dominated 21st century and hence should encourage all those who wish to take advantage of university education in Nigeria to be prepared for such a world through improving their computer-literacy skills before they obtain the form for the UTME. I queue up stoutly behind those who want the CBT to stay.

    “There are two key advantages of not going back on the CBT mode of conducting UTME. First, it will catalyse the attainment of a higher degree of computer literacy by potential undergraduates of Nigerian universities. Secondly, it will reduce to the barest minimum, cases of examination malpractice in the conduct of the UTME.”

    Mr. Shodunke Oludotun is the National President of the Association of Tutorial School Operators. He led the candidates in Lagos to protest the poor conduct of the examination in March. The educationist also agreed that CBT should continue because it has addressed the challenge of malpractices, including impersonation. He, however, asked for an alternative in the event of system failure.

    “I’m not calling for a closure on CBT, but for JAMB to be more proactive and supportive of those they have contracted the UTME to. If they collect so much money from candidates every year, they must ensure that these candidates are made comfortable and at ease when they are writing the exams. That is the responsibility that they have to take more serious,” he said.

    “All I want is for JAMB to allow me do my UTME exams without stress and get my result promptly, then I can move on to pursue my dream at the university; anything short of that is like playing god with my destiny and that of many Nigerian youths. It will come back to haunt us (Nigeria),” Toyin warned.

  • Educationist seeks scrapping of JAMB

    National Chairman, Education Reformers Association of Nigeria (NRAN) Dr Femi Oyewole, has called for the cancellation of JAMB-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination conducted between February 27 and March 17 in over 500 centres nationwide.

    He spoke at the seminar organised by NRAN in collaboration with EMCOY Favour Group of Schools, Ogba, Lagos in which he is also the proprietor.

    If the examination were allowed to stay, thousands of candidates who would have secured admissions into various higher institutions this year would be denied of such opportunities, he contended.

    Oyewole explained that there was nothing wrong with UTME exercise per se adding: “This one conducted by JAMB was not only poorly organised but shows some of their staff were unskilled and deficient in carrying out the project.”

    In view of the development, Oyewole said NRAN would be heading to the National Assembly next week to challenge the exam and persuade the lawmakers not only to cancel it, but to also move a motion for JAMB dissolution.

    “JAMB is no more relevant to our education system, as it was in our time. As an educationist and a cleric, I feel bad seeing JAMB as a mere extortionist body to candidates and their parents. Let every higher institution conduct its own entrance examinations, as it once was before JAMB,” he stressed.

    Oyewole said further: “The forthcoming debate (by the National Assembly) that JAMB results should have a lifespan of three years during which a candidate could tender such for admission into higher institutions, is unnecessary. The right thing is for JAMB to be dissolved; the board’s performance is getting poorer every year and has become a cog in the wheel of the nation’s education progress.”

    He expressed disappointment over the attitude of some private schools that perennially owe their workers salaries. According to him, it would be difficult for a teacher who was not paid at the end of the month to give right directions to the students.

    He called on the Lagos State in particular to sanction any private school that defaults in meeting its obligation to its employees.

  • Don’t scrap JAMB – Rector

    Don’t scrap JAMB – Rector

    The Provost, Federal College of Education Okene, Kogi State, Dr Ajayi Iyela has condemned calls in some quarters for the scrapping of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

    He stated this in Okene over the weekend; saying instead of scrapping the board, the federal government should allow it to continue the responsibility of conducting entry examinations into tertiary institutions in the country.

    According to him: “Instead of scrapping JAMB, it is better for the examination body to continue to exist and the issue of post UME being organised by tertiary institutions in this country should be stopped because it is a duplication of effort”.

    He insisted that JAMB was doing wonderfully, adding that the recent computer based test it introduced has gone a long way in eliminating cheating.

    He said, “I think if there are little hitches in their operation, it should not be enough to call for the scrapping of the examination body. It is laughable when some people even advised that JAMB should revert to the use of pencil and erazer in writing JAMB test. This agitation will end up taking us backward while some countries even within Africa will be far ahead of us.

    “The use of computer based test employed by JAMB did not only reduce cheating  it has also eliminated the so called miracle centres where candidates in the past got high scores, but cannot defend it when given admission”.

    While calling on the people to advise JAMB on how best it can improve in performance, the provost attributed the “unreliable nature of JAMB scores” in the past to the analogue method employed, which he said was characterised by all manner of malpractices.

    He added, “The analogue method of writing JAMB examination paved ways for candidates to hire people to write the test for them. But today, and with the introduction of computer based test, shoddy deals is almost gone out of the system and this is an indication that institutions of higher learning organising post UME do not have reason for it.

    “I was at Kabba town in the western senatorial district of Kogi State during the recent JAMB examination where computer was used. Honestly it was not possible for any candidate to cheat. If the examination body can maintain this, the complains of unreliable JAMB scores will be permanently put to rest.”