The acting Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin, Kwara State, Dr Saeed Olorunnisola, has urged the federal and state governments to ban the use of smartphones in secondary and tertiary institutions.
Speaking at the 2nd national symposium of Mission for the Eradication of Examination Malpractice (MEEM), themed: Effects of examination malpractices on education and national development,” held at the Osun State Muslim Secretariat, Osogbo, on Saturday, the guest speaker posited that the ban of smart phone will reduce examination malpractices and enhance education integrity.
The MEEM, a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) of the Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN), B-Zone, was established to tame the tides of examination malpractices in the country.
Lamenting the distraction which social media has created for students and the opportunity to involve in examination malpractices provided by the smart phone, Saeed said, “Social media is causing distractions in secondary schools. Tertiary institution is the worst. Students don’t care any longer. Some of them are snapping notes and they will not read them. They are usually on social media.
“What we have right now is a misuse of technology and it must be taken away. We have a university that has banned their undergraduate from using mobile phones. The report we have was that it minimised and concentration was better when they took the phones away. They only use phones to make calls and send text messages. They gave them phones that cannot use the internet.
“So, I want to advocate too, because we have a place where it is working, as a matter of educational policy in Nigeria, the country should make sure there are no phones in our secondary schools and in our tertiary education.
“There should be provision of more computers than mobile phones. Since we now have 5G internet network, we have to do this now,” Saeed said.
The second speaker, who is a former director of public schools in the ministry of education, Osun state, Mrs. Adeoye Abidemi, blamed some parents who register their wards in “awkward centres,” and finance the malpractices.
She also blamed registrars of examinations, corrupt invigilators, supervisors of examinations, school administrators, cyber cafes, security officers, for the increase in the trend of examination malpractices, saying that all hands must be in deck to promote quality teaching and learning with good provision of child-friendly environment, so as to get rid of the menace called examination malpractices.
The Osun Commissioner for Education, Dr. Sunday Eluwole, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Alh. Jimoh Adekilekun, posited that leaders must be hold accountable to take decisive action to address examination malpractices.
The Amir of MSSN, B-Zone, Dr. Kolawole Moshood, said the society organised the symposium because of the belief of Muslims that success attained through dishonesty is void of barakah (divine blessing).
