The aborted UNICAL exam

RECENTLY, a group of students in an examination hall had their academic integrity, conscience and responsibility tested, albeit inadvertently. But only one of them managed to pass the test. The incident happened at the University of Calabar, where an apparently careless examiner had handed to the students question papers on which the expected answers were printed! And exhibiting the characteristic impaired morality in the country, the students kept quiet, hoping to profit from the systemic failure. However, one of them, a female, drew the attention of the invigilators to the egregious error, but that was moments before the exam was slated to end. Perhaps she, too, wanted to go with the flow but she had second thoughts, which is commendable nonetheless. After being made aware of the error, the authorities aborted the exam and promised to announce a new date for a fresh one.

The error is regrettable, especially judging by the environment where it happened. If there is any human organisation where activities, processes and conduct are expected to approximate perfection, it is the university system. This is not just because the simplest of the processes adopted is usually the outcome of multiple empirical surveys over time but also because there are layers of mechanisms to ensure quality assurance at all times. It beggars belief, therefore, that such a clearly outrageous mistake could escape the detection radar. Typically, the average university has an elaborate exam process, but apparently, that process was not observed in this case. This is a failure of the system and the quality of exam management, pure and simple.

Procedurally, questions are supposed to be submitted to the Head of Department and even the external examiner in the case of a final exam. Even if the examiner is the head of his/her department who may not have to submit his questions to anyone else for vetting, what of his/her aides who saw to the printing of the questions? And why did the examiner develop the marking scheme at the same time as the questions, assuming that the printed answers were meant to be the marking scheme? What was the hurry about?

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Apart from the apparent failure of the system regarding the aborted exam, which was patently avoidable and therefore condemnable, perhaps more disturbing is the conduct of the students. Whereas graduates of a university are certificated upon confirmation by the authorities that they are of good standing both in character and learning, it is evident in the instant case that most of the students concerned have character flaws. Ideally, within five minutes, attention should have been drawn to the error, but the students kept mute. This doesn’t speak well of youths who are aspiring to assume leadership positions in the future. It is surprising that it took a religious conscience to speak up. Whether religious or not, people are supposed to know what is right and stand for it. Perhaps more distressing is the revelation that the students also reportedly blamed their colleague who belled the cat. They treated her like a snitch for exercising moral restraint.

Apparently, the students would have preferred to get away with their dishonesty, pretending to be who they are not academically. This development is worrisome and points to the abysmal quality of undergraduates in Nigerian universities today. Many of the undergraduates are merely fixated on graduating, rather than earning certificates through hard work and diligence. In a sense, students should also be another layer of control in the exam process, even if that is not officially intended. For instance, if the students had alerted the invigilators to the error, say within five minutes or less after the commencement of the exam, the authorities would have withdrawn the defective question papers immediately. And perhaps the exam, which some of the students must have prepared diligently for, would still have been held that same day, maybe after a few hours’ delay.

The university is a miniature representation of Nigeria. By reason of the preponderance of supposedly enlightened citizens within university communities, higher standards of character and conduct are expected from the average member of the university system, compared to the average member of the larger society. Therefore, the authorities must not treat this embarrassing incident with levity. Proper investigation is needed as there would seem to be a lot of compromise involved. The fact that the incident has put a question mark on the exam management processes in the university on the one hand and the moral standing of the students on the other makes it imperative for the authorities to interrogate extant processes and procedures. And where the appropriateness/ adequacy of the internal control system is not the issue, those who had chosen to observe the processes, procedures, and systems in the breach should not be allowed to go unscathed.

We hope that the university has already taken steps to protect the female student who alerted the invigilators to the error from likely pushback from her colleagues. She did the right thing, but her fellow students did not like what she did because her values evidently do not align with theirs. The university should handle the issue with thoroughness and forestall a recurrence.