The Pen Creative World

Author: asirubabatunde

  • FAULTY RECRUITMENT PROCESS: IMPLICATIONS FOR EXAMINATION MALPRACTICE IN NIGERIA’S SCHOOLS

    Today, corruption in Nigeria permeates all sectors of the economy. The moral bankruptcy exists in every aspect of our national life, including education. Educational sector, which is the bedrock of the economy, is not spared by this ugly trend. All levels of our education system are quite involved in the nefarious practice. Corruption in the sector encompasses different dimensions and examination malpractice is an offshoot.

    Examination malpractice has been an integral part of our school system these days. The misconduct has gained prominence because it is now the order of the day in various primary, secondary and tertiary Institutions of learning. Examination malpractice as an intentional ‘foul play’, which positions a candidate at an unfair advantage contrary to official examination rules has become a topical and critical issue in Nigeria.

    The recognition of the problem, as the fraudulent means of achieving success in an examination, has signaled that the situation is inimical to educational and socio-economic development as well as good international reputation of the nation. The menace makes the evaluation of learning difficult and unreliable and certificates based on falsehood. Currently, examination misconduct is an essential problem that is multifarious in form and wide in scope.

    Some commonly identifiable techniques or strategies utilised by students include the wound, satellite, missiles, coffin, unmanned rocket, expo, pandemonium, learning to count, giraffing, discussion, ECOMOG or ECOWAS, toilet syndicate among others. Definitions of the above examination malpractice forms will not be given, because emphasis is not laid on the terms in this article.

    A host of factors have been advanced for examination malpractice in Nigeria. Inadequate examination environment, inadequate punishment for examination malpractice, materialism, shortage of manpower (teachers), inability of teachers to cover their scheme of work, precedence and antecedence (guilty cheats among teachers), false impression (on the part of students), overemphasis on certificates and examination, poor funding of education, educational deprivation of some students and so on are few variables responsible for examination misconduct.

    However, this piece focuses on recruitment as a process. Recruitment is a catalogue of activities orchestrated to obtain an adequate number of the right individuals at the right time from the right places. The entire process kicks off with job specification, followed by qualified candidates being asked to apply for the available positions. At this juncture, the recruitment authority devises parameters for selection, which enable them to sort out best qualified persons. The essence of recruitment is for an organisation to appoint the best applicants with the right ability, temperature, skills and willingness.

    A good recruitment process definitely enhances productive, progressive and pragmatic performance in any organisation. In Nigeria, both Federal and State Civil Service systems stress uniformity, standardisation and transparency in recruiting applicants. In spite of efforts at achieving all these, our recruitment systems are characterised by lack of transparency and equity; therefore, making it difficult to engage best hands for available jobs. A situation, where jobs advertised were already shared as slots among ‘people-that-matter’ or taken up by political beneficiaries or highest bidders who were never taken through any interview process, is a clog in the wheel of the nation. Influencing the outcome of interview hampers the success of the process as well.

    Therefore, the negative effect of wrong selection of applicants into public offices is undoubtedly huge. Faulty recruitment into civil service workforce or other establishments has really retarded the progress of the country. The impact of the sloppiness on the education sector, especially our school system, has been indelibly felt and almost irreparable. The carefree recruitment process has been a motivating factor for examination malpractice in Nigeria’s schools today, since the perpetrators understand full well that certificates obtained are only meant for sheer documentation as an appointment process. It is believed that intellectual scrutiny in the process has been sidelined.

    As long as the recruitment procedures remain status quo, examination malpractice will persist in our schools. Until the process is made flawless in the country, the menace is bound to advance. On this premise, it is solicited that stakeholders in the recruitment exercise across levels of government in Nigeria should imbibe the culture of appointments on merit, following the standard set by Oyo State Teaching Service Commission in 2020/2021 recruitment exercise. This will assist us a long way in arresting the menace. More so, engagement of qualified and competent teachers, education funding, building good value system, encouragement for students, adequate planning and organisation and effective coordination of examinations among others are preventive measures that could be adopted in addressing examination malpractice in Nigeria.

    By Asiru Babatunde

  • The Stages of Man’s Financial Life

    The Stages of Man’s Financial Life

    Life is not fair to anyone. What man amases from life is a product of his determination and resolve. This informs the chasm between the rich and the poor. Nobody is born rich or poor. What we give to life is what life throws at us. Specifically speaking, some individuals, especially at old age, do experience poverty. Why and how does this happen to them. In simple terms, the manner in which they handle all-important stages of their human existence immensely contributes to the excruciating financial conditions.

    Human life contains three cardinal phases: early, middle and late. The early is the determining stage, which is called learning phase. This stage of life is the bedrock of man’s financial life. It is the stage characterized by freshness, vigour, acquisition of ideas and knowledge as well as skills. A stage when man goes to school to acquire knowledge and skills that enable him to be fit in the society where he lives in and respected among peers and mates. By virtue of the acquired experiences, man either secures a paid job or starts a personal business. In some cases, a combination of both is not impossible to be possessed by man.

    Middle stage, otherwise known as earning phase is a juncture when man translates all the knowledge and prowess acquired in learning stage into pecuniary gains. This is usually made possible through salary or wage collection, known as renumeration, or profit making. The relationship between man and money is a decider of destiny in this regard. If money is wiser than man, a challenge emanates, but if man is wiser, financial security, financial freedom and financial stability will be guaranteed to the maximum. This is because a solid financial base must have been built through circumspect spending, meticulous strategic savings and investment portfolios.

    The last stage is the yearning stage, which is in sharp contrast to the first one. It is the opposite of stage one, because it is featured with debilitating state, inactive and ineffective services rendered. This is a result of ‘wear and tear’ phenomenon. Retirement from active service takes place at this point. Man might be without any jobs. However, if man is jobless, it is an indicator that he has no investment portfolio whereas if he is business-inclined, he must have definitely appropriated business strategies and ideas acquired over the years. In order to ‘retire’ his retirement, he keeps the business going and money continues to work for him on this note. On the other hand, man who has no business investment portfolios might be confronted with poverty – stricken situations such as begging and dependence on others for survival. Embarrassment of old age may be inevitable. This can be avoided though.

  • Survival Strategies in the Face of Economic Recession in Nigeria

    Survival Strategies in the Face of Economic Recession in Nigeria

     

    The current global economic issues occasioned by the ravaging Corona Virus Disease which started in late 2019 (COVID-19), have generated a lot of concern among the inhabitants of the world. Many economies are now feeble, porous, and in dire crisis. Specifically, the current economic recession in Nigeria has significant negative implications on the citizens of the country generally. The contributing factor to this is that the nation has a mono-product economy I.e the economy concentrates only on the production of crude oil.

    Are there ways of surviving in this situation?

    The following are, therefore, valuable strategies that can be adopted to deal decisively with the challenges:

    1. Every Nigerian need to figure out what the future holds. They ought to work out a modality for achieving something substantial on the aspect of skill acquisition. They need to exploit areas of interest and skills to their advantage. Enough of being docile in the face of the present economic realities. Every Nigerian need to think through and come up with an action plan for the future to make headway.

    2. Surviving in these harsh economic conditions calls for being inventive, creative, and innovative because this is one of the major ways to weather the storms of the economic situations facing Nigeria. The youth, especially, need to be strategic in their thinking, methodical in their reasoning, and logical in their decision-making process.

    3. Another strategy is diligence.

    This is necessary at this juncture. Work should be done with all sense of responsibility. Taking responsibility or self-provision is key on this note. No Nigerian should expect anybody to provide for them, apart from the major dependants. Nigerians should be economically intelligent enough to fend for themselves as they should be engaged in one venture or the other.

    It is high time every Nigerian began to seek assistance in terms of information, counsel and direction on how to run their own business or trade from relevant individuals who have achieved success in that regard. Running private businesses is one of the key strategies in order to translate from scarcity to economic prosperity.

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