ATTITUDE OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS TOWARDS EXAMINATION MALPRACTICE AND ITS IMPLICATION ON EFFECTIVE LEARNING

ABSTRACT

This study examined the attitude of university students towards examination malpractice and its implication on effective learning. Examination malpractice, encompassing behaviours such as impersonation, cheating, smuggling of unauthorized materials, and collusion, remains a persistent and evolving problem within Nigerian higher education, undermining the credibility of academic qualifications and the integrity of the learning process itself. The study sought to examine the attitude of university students towards examination malpractice, the various methods employed by students, and the roles played by lecturers, parents, tertiary education authorities, and society at large in either enabling or curbing the practice. Specifically, the study ascertained the factors that bring about examination malpractice in higher institutions, ascertained the effects of examination malpractice on the performance of undergraduates, and ascertained appropriate control measures towards curbing examination malpractice in higher institutions. A survey research design was adopted, with data collected through structured questionnaires administered to university students and analysed using descriptive statistics. The findings are expected to inform university authorities, lecturers, and policy makers in designing more effective strategies to curb examination malpractice and safeguard the integrity of learning outcomes.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Examinations remain the primary means by which universities and other higher institutions assess whether learning objectives have been achieved, certifying students as competent and qualified in their chosen field of study. The integrity of this assessment process is therefore fundamental not only to the credibility of individual qualifications but to the broader trustworthiness of the educational system as a whole. Examination malpractice, defined broadly as any dishonest or illegal act committed by a student or other stakeholder before, during, or after an examination in order to gain an unfair advantage, directly undermines this integrity, and has remained a persistent, evolving challenge within Nigerian higher education for decades.

Nigerian research has consistently identified a recurring set of factors underlying this behaviour. An early study focused specifically on the university level found that examination malpractice in Nigeria is rooted substantially in a societal value system that prioritizes the acquisition of certificates over genuine knowledge and skills, with contributing factors including laziness, inadequate examination preparation, poor school facilities, weak invigilation, and the commercialization of education, and found that legal penalties, including sentences of up to twenty-one years imprisonment under Nigeria's legal framework, have largely failed to deter the practice (Oko & Adie, 2016). A related study focused specifically on university students, examining the case of Rivers State University in Port Harcourt, similarly documented the specific forms and causes of examination malpractice prevalent among undergraduates, reinforcing the view that the problem is deeply embedded in student attitudes and institutional conditions rather than being an isolated behavioural lapse (Amadi & Opuiyo, 2018).

More recent research suggests the problem, far from resolving, continues to evolve and, by some measures, worsen. A 2024 survey-based study of the rise in examination malpractices and its relationship to the development of Nigerian tertiary education found a statistically significant negative relationship between the two, with respondents identifying academic pressure to succeed as the single most significant driver of malpractice, followed by ineffective examination monitoring and corruption among examination officials; the same study found that respondents strongly associated malpractice with decreased academic standards, erosion of the credibility of degrees, and the production of unqualified graduates (Okoye, Ighodaro, Obainoke, & Ugege, 2024). Complementing this empirical picture, a 2024 study taking a deontological, ethics-focused perspective on understanding and combating examination malpractice in Nigeria emphasized that the problem involves almost all stakeholders in education, not students alone, and that perpetrators continue to devise new methods that outpace institutional efforts to combat the practice, frustrating attempts at effective control (Edun & Olorunmota, 2024).

Taken together, this literature suggests that university students' attitudes towards examination malpractice cannot be understood in isolation from the wider societal value system, institutional conditions such as invigilation quality and facility adequacy, and the roles played by lecturers, parents, and education authorities, all of which this study seeks to examine specifically in relation to students' attitudes and the implications for effective learning.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Despite decades of research documenting the causes, forms, and consequences of examination malpractice in Nigerian higher institutions (Oko & Adie, 2016; Amadi & Opuiyo, 2018), and despite legal penalties intended to deter the practice, recent evidence indicates that examination malpractice continues to rise and is significantly associated with declining academic standards and eroded credibility of degrees within Nigerian tertiary education (Okoye, Ighodaro, Obainoke, & Ugege, 2024). Compounding this concern, current research suggests that the methods used to commit malpractice continue to evolve faster than institutional efforts to combat them, and that responsibility for the problem extends beyond students alone to include lecturers, parents, and the wider society (Edun & Olorunmota, 2024).

This raises important questions about the specific attitude university students themselves hold towards examination malpractice today, what particular methods they employ, and how effectively existing control measures address the problem, questions that require direct engagement with student perspectives rather than relying solely on institutional-level or societal-level analysis. Without a clear understanding of how university students themselves perceive and rationalize examination malpractice, and how this attitude translates into effective or ineffective learning, universities and policy makers risk continuing to rely on control measures that fail to address the underlying attitudinal drivers of the practice. It is this gap that the present study seeks to address.

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study is to examine the attitude of university students towards examination malpractice and its implication on effective learning. It also seeks to find out various methods employed by students, as well as the roles played by lecturers, parents, tertiary education authorities, and society at large. Basically, the study seeks to:

1. Ascertain the factors that bring about examination malpractice in higher institutions.
2. Ascertain the effects of examination malpractice on the performance of undergraduates.
3. Ascertain appropriate control measures towards curbing examination malpractice in higher institutions.

1.4 Research Questions

1. What is the attitude of university students towards examination malpractice?
2. What factors bring about examination malpractice in higher institutions?
3. What are the effects of examination malpractice on the performance of undergraduates?
4. What appropriate control measures can be adopted towards curbing examination malpractice in higher institutions?

1.5 Research Hypotheses

Ho1: There is no significant relationship between students' attitude towards examination malpractice and their academic performance.

Ho2: Factors identified as causes of examination malpractice have no significant effect on its prevalence in higher institutions.

1.6 Significance of the Study

This study will benefit university administrators and examination bodies by providing evidence to guide the design of more effective control measures against examination malpractice. It will benefit lecturers, by clarifying their role in either enabling or curbing the practice through invigilation and assessment design. It will benefit parents and guidance counsellors, by highlighting the societal and value-based factors that shape student attitudes towards malpractice. It will benefit students themselves, by fostering awareness of the consequences of examination malpractice for effective learning and future credibility. Finally, the study will serve as a reference for future researchers examining academic integrity and examination malpractice in Nigerian higher institutions.

1.7 Scope of the Study

This study is limited to examining the attitude of university students towards examination malpractice, the factors contributing to it, its effects on undergraduate academic performance, and appropriate control measures for curbing it within selected Nigerian universities.

1.8 Limitations of the Study

Given the sensitive nature of the topic, some student respondents may have been reluctant to disclose their actual attitudes towards or involvement in examination malpractice, potentially affecting the accuracy of some responses. Time and resource constraints also limited the study to a manageable sample of university students rather than a nationwide survey.

1.9 Definition of Terms

Examination Malpractice: Any dishonest or illegal act committed by a student or other stakeholder before, during, or after an examination to gain an unfair advantage. Attitude: A settled way of thinking or feeling about a particular subject, in this context, examination malpractice. Effective Learning: The genuine acquisition of knowledge and skills by a student, as distinct from the mere acquisition of a certificate or qualification. Undergraduate: A university student pursuing a first degree, prior to graduation. Invigilation: The supervision of students during an examination to prevent malpractice.

REFERENCES

Amadi, E. C., & Opuiyo, A. R. (2018). Forms and causes of examination malpractice among university students: A case of Rivers State University, Port Harcourt. International Journal of Innovative Education and Research, 6(1), 37–41.

Edun, T., & Olorunmota, O. M. (2024). Deontological perspective of understanding and combating examination malpractice in Nigeria. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 8(4), 418–431.

Oko, S. U., & Adie, R. I. (2016). Examination malpractice: Causes, effects and possible ways of curbing the menace. A study of Cross River University of Technology. International Journal of Managerial Studies and Research, 4(1), 59–65.

Okoye, U. P., Ighodaro, H. F., Obainoke, E. F., & Ugege, E. J. (2024). Rise in examination malpractices and the development of tertiary education in Nigeria. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 8(11), 2054–2067.