IN SOLIDARITY WITH CANDIDATES OF SEMESTER EXAMS Introduction As the world approaches a new year, students of various tertiary institutions in Ghana are bracing themselves for the End-of-Semester Examinations. The Islamic University College – Ghana (IUCG) conducts the evaluative exercise from Monday December 8 to Saturday December 20, 2014. If there is anything most fearsome in college/university education generally, it is examination. This unfortunate, self-inflicting, mental torture among students is due to misconceptions about examination. There is, therefore, the need to remind ourselves of relevant facts about examinations in all academic jurisdictions. Learning Outcomes By the end of this discussion colleague learners/readers should be able to enhance their understanding of: • Examination • Invigilation • Tension Examination Examination is simply a means of testing the level of students’ understanding, the efficacy of lecturer’s methodology, the appropriateness of the learning material, and the suitability of the learning environment. On the face value, the student and the lecturer are the principal characters in examination. But in reality, examination goes beyond mere testing the efforts of students and lecturers. It covers securitizing the inputs and outputs of all those involved in the learning process – the policy maker, the educational provider, the academic administrator, the student counselor, the fee payer. That is why all these players are interested in the success of candidates. However, for time and space constraints, the student and the teacher are the subjects of focus in this write-up. To the student, examination provides a platform for identifying areas of weaknesses and for improvement. To the teacher, it constitutes an objective basis for determining whether he or she has taught a specific section of the material properly. A word of caution her: examination is important in life, since it helps us to know what we can do and what we want. But examination is not life itself because it cannot do for us what we want. Knowing our ability is one thing, and the application of that knowledge is another. This is exemplified by the factual statement of Bill Gates: “I failed my exams in some subjects and my friend passed. Now he is an Engineer at Microsoft and I am its owner.” This implies that in the learning process emphasis should be on the acquisition of knowledge and competency and not on memorization of facts and passing examination. Knowledge seeking is intellectual sharing, but sharing is not permissible during examination. Even in academic environments where open-book examination is a norm, discussion with or copying from a colleague during examination is still disallowed. This calls for invigilation in almost all college examinations. Invigilation Invigilation is the task of providing vigilance and supervision to ensure that an examination is conducted in line with the values of honesty, integrity, and diplomacy. To carry out this task, invigilators are appointed to enforce the rules and regulations of the examination. This is to ensure that candidates avoid cheating and other forms of dishonesty. Invigilation is not a source of power to abuse but an honor of duty to discharge. Moreover, since examination centers are not war zones, invigilators should not enter there as combatants. They should rather appear there as diplomats of knowledge. The diplomatic and peaceful atmosphere for the success of examination could be guaranteed by mutual respect between invigilators and candidates. But much is expected from the invigilators. For instance, in all situations, invigilators have no right to bark at, insult, and sack a candidate from the examination hall. Let the invigilators know that these misbehaviors could, in the face of law, amount to psychological assault, which is actionable in court. All they can do is to write reports on alleged malpractices and even give the alleged offenders the opportunity to write their statements for further investigation and possible action by the Disciplinary Committee or the Board of Examiners. These practices are in line with the National Accreditation Board (NAB) policy on good governance and respect for students’ rights. When invigilation is conducted in an intimidatory manner especially by sycophantic characters with a mission to please their paymasters at all times, it could be a source of increased tension in examination. Tension Tension is a normal response to examination, viva, and other forms of academic evaluation. It is influenced by a number of factors ranging from inadequate preparation to perfectionist mentality. Two major forms of tension – anticipated tension and situational tension – have been identified by experts. The anticipated tension refers to the apprehension before the examination, while the situational tension is the one encountered during the examination. Fortunately, various techniques have been devised to deal with examination tension. Techniques of managing tension in examination Among the techniques of managing examination tension is avoidance of panic. It is natural to feel nervous in the course of examination, but getting excessively nervous is counterproductive as you will not be able to think clearly. An effective way to eliminate feelings of stress and panic is to close your eyes and take several, long, slow, deep breaths. Breathing in this way calms the nervous system. Optimism (strong hope for success), adequate pre-examination preparation, and avoidance of perfectionism are other means of dealing with examination tension. Conclusion In the light of the above discussion, it has become clear that examination should be a source of friendship not enmity between invigilators and candidates. Dear candidate, remember that in the tensed situation of examination the Lord is in control. Have faith in Him, do your best, never be a perfectionist, and success is yours. All the best of luck! PLEASE, READ THE FULL VERSION OF THIS DISCUSSION ON MY PERSONAL PAGE: ABUBAKAR MOHAMED MARZUQ ON FACEBOOK AND IN MY COLUMN: LITERARY DISCOURSE ON MYJOYONLINE.
Posted on: Sun, 07 Dec 2014 13:00:37 +0000
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