Exam malpractice is an increasing issue in Ghana that poses a danger to the integrity of our educational system.
The fact that students commit several types of academic misconduct, such as plagiarism, impersonation, and exam paper leaks, is no longer news.
But the latest information provided by the West Africa Examination Council [WAEC] regarding the new approach students have taken can only be characterized as surprising.
According to WAEC, they have discovered a new form of exam misconduct in which candidates try to affect their exam results by placing money and contact information in their answer booklets.
Exam misconduct of any kind has been prevented thanks to procedures put in place, according to John Kapi, Head of Corporate Affairs at WAEC, who made this known.
According Mr Kapi, “Supervisors and invigilators are to search candidates thoroughly to ensure that they do not have in possession mobile phones or any other foreign materials in the examination hall.
Proprietors of schools, teachers and all other persons not involved in the conduct of the examination are not allowed at the examination centres.”
It is crucial to emphasise that cheating on exams has serious consequences for society as a whole as well as for the students.
It erodes public confidence in the educational system, compromises the integrity of the curriculum, and lowers the calibre of graduates generated.
Additionally, it results in a lack of trust in Ghanaian graduates’ abilities, which lowers their competitiveness in the international job market.
All of these are reflective of the level of moral decadence in the country today. It is no longer news that Ghana, in recent years, has witnessed a decline in moral values, and this decline has far-reaching consequences on every facet of our national life.