Types of examination malpractice as perceived by teachers of secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria: implications for counselling practice

Abstract

The menace of examination malpractice is very alarming in Nigeria and it has constituted strong concern for researchers. This study therefore investigated the types of examination malpractices as perceived by teachers of secondary school in Lagos State. Moderating variables such as gender, subject taught and length of years in service were also examined. Descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. A total of 600 respondents were selected in three senatorial districts were selected using a three-stage sampling procedure which comprised simple random and purposive sampling techniques. The instrument used for data collection was a questionnaire titled “Types of Examination Malpractice Questionnaire (TCEMQ)’’. The validity of the instrument was established by five experts in the Departments of Counsellor Education, University of Ilorin, Nigeria while, the reliability of the questionnaire was determined using test re-test method and a correlation coefficient of 0.87 was obtained. One Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and t-test statistical tools were used to analyze the formulated hypotheses at 0.05 alpha level. Result showed that the types of examination malpractices as perceived by teachers of secondary school in Lagos State are dubbing, sorting, girraffing, expo, writing on the body, use of sign language, use of cell phones among others.The testing of the hypotheses showed that there was a significant difference in the types of examination malpractice as perceived by teachers of secondary schools in Lagos State based on gender, subject taught and length of years in service. By implication, counsellors should enlighten candidates on the need to cultivate good reading and study habits and they should shun any form of examination malpractices. Counsellors should liaise with Examination body officials to come up with more strict policies that would block all types of examination malpractices.