The cases of exam cheating in the country have become a stumbling block in the education sector and have raised doubts about the system. It has been a common practice among students and pupils to plunge deeply into exam cheating vices, and no amicable solution has been found to contain the menace.
Most of the candidates have been performing well in national examinations but they employ the wrong mechanisms. However, whenever they join the higher education institutions, they don’t want to pursue the courses they were awarded according to their performance.
What is the role of the education stakeholders in Kenya? The main bodies have a responsibility to crack down and deal with all examination irregularities.
Examinations are an essential segment in any academic setting but our education system is equipping candidates to pass examinations, but not to be productive and innovative. Employers are having a hard time with graduates whenever they are employed in an organization.
If our education is not questionable why is it that the government and the private sector are awarding tenders to experts from foreign countries instead of looking for local manpower. Let us nurture competent talents and innovators who will compete with international experts who come in the country and utilize our resources to benefit themselves.
There are some initiatives that are being fueled by Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i to ensure that sanity is restored in the education sector including changes in the management of Kenya National Examination Council, abolishing of prayer days and visiting days during the examination period, and tough penalties to those found engaging in examination cheating.
It is the responsibility of the society as a whole to report any incidences of exam irregularities or any suspect cases that can lead to it. As we are approaching the examination period, we expect all regulation and measures that were made by Matiang’i will restore the good image of the education sector in the country.