Factors Influencing Examination Malpractice in Secondary Schools in Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to investigate factors influencing examination malpractice in some selected secondary schools in Cross River State, Nigeria. A sample of one thousand two hundred (1200) students were selected across the three educational zones of Ogoja, Ikom and Calabar using stratified, random sampling techniques. Pearson Product Moment Correlation Analysis was used to test our null hypothesis of no significant relationship between educational facilities and number of teaching staff on one hand and examination malpractice on the other. The results showed that educational facilities and availability of teaching staff significantly influenced examination malpractice in secondary schools in Cross River State. The data also showed that because most schools lacked instructional materials, adequate numbers of teachers and administer all examinations, students study under very congested classrooms for lectures and examination. This contributed a great deal to examination malpractice. Recommendations were made to reduce the spate of examination malpractice in the country’s educational system.