ABSTRACT
This research work is based on the identification of the causes of examination malpractice among biology students during senior secondary school certificate examination (SSCE) in Egor local government Area, Edo State. The purpose of the study is to find out the causes of examination malpractices among biology students during senior secondary certificate examinations.
The design applied a descriptive survey design. The target population for this study is comprised of two thousand nine hundred and forty-five (2945) senior secondary school biology students from thirteen (13) Government schools in Egor local Government Area. Simple random sampling technique was used to collect data from fifty-four (54) students who took part in this study. The research instrument used for the study was a closed-ended questionnaire, the questionnaire was validated by the supervisor and two other experts from the Department of Curriculum Instructional Technology, Faculty of Education. The data collected from the respondents was analyzed using frequency counts, simple percentage, mean and standard deviation.
The findings of this study indicated various causes of examination malpractice which includes: students’ laziness to study and work hard, desire among students to pass examinations at all costs, wide spread corruption and moral decadence in the society. The study identified some of the forms of examination malpractice to include: collusion, smuggling of answer scripts, examination leakages, and impersonation. Based on the findings, the recommendations made were that parents should encourage their children to read and develop the right attitude towards their studies. Also, Candidates, school administrators, and examination officials found guilty of examination malpractice should be severely punished.
