All hands must be on deck to eschew examination malpractice in Oyo — Commissioner

The Oyo State Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Barr Rahman Abiodun Abdul-Raheem, has called for the support of every stakeholder in the education sector to put an end to examination malpractices in schools.

The commissioner made this call on Tuesday during the presentation of the 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 Annual School Census (ASC) report which was organised by the Department of Planning, Research, and Statistics of the Ministry of Education.

In his words, “there will be a need for us to work the need to eschew examination malpractices and all hands must be on deck on this. We keep on telling all stakeholders that in Oyo State, examination malpractice is a no-go area because we have zero tolerance for it; and in the same manner, we need every teacher in this state to compliment and then reciprocate as well the efforts of this state government in bringing about the old glory of education.”

Speaking on the presentation of data on schools in the state, he expressed joy in the improvements highlighted in some areas of school management and as well disappointment in the private schools recorded for failing to keep statutory records.

Abdul-Raheem said, “ We will go back to the drawing board and improve on what we have been doing. Thank God the situation we are, presently, is a very great improvement compared to what we met to ground, but for us, we are not satisfied until we get to the zenith.”

“I observed in the course of the presentation that some schools, particularly private schools, are not keeping statutory records. We need to sensitise them on how to go about it. And after doing that, we will have to sanction any school authority that fails to do that,” he added.

The Director, Planning, Research and Statistics in the Oyo State Ministry of Education, Dr Tunde Odekunle called for a robust collaborative effort from all stakeholders in the education sector.

While speaking on the need for data collection of schools, he advised private school owners to keep statutory records and also dispel claims that data collection is for assessing schools’ incomes and not for policy implementation.

Speaking on the importance of the report, he said, “What we have done is just to gather the data in respect of education across our state, so that we will give an insight into where the problem is and what the government needs to pay more attention to.”

Representing private schools owners, the chairperson of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), Dr. Mary Odedare, while reacting to the reports, persuaded the Oyo State government to consider giving subventions to private schools as the state benefits from the establishments of these schools across the state.

“When you look at the reports presented, you will agree with me that there is an increment in staff recruitment in private schools in the state. That, of course, is a plus to Oyo State government because we as private school owners are taking off the streets graduates that are unemployed, and it will not be out of place if the state government can look towards our direction by aiding and motivating us. Extending some of the things given to the state schools through this data to private schools will not be out of place.”

The event had in attendance directors from the ministry of education, members of professional bodies, representatives from private schools owners, Teaching Service Commission (TESCOM), the State Universal Education Board (SUBEB), National Population Commission (NPC), National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), and the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), among others.

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