‘Lowering JAMB cut-off mark unnecessary’

Following the recent announcement of lower cut-off mark for candidates seeking admission into Nigerian universities, educationist and Country Director, Development Support Initiatives, Mina Ogbanga, tells MOTUNRAYO JOEL that the move is needless
What is your reaction to the lower cut-off mark for university candidates, following mass failure recorded by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board in the last examinations?
We need to start with what the JAMB cut-off mark is and what it was. The announcement brought the mark for 2013 JAMB to 180 from the usual 190 and 240 marks that we had before. In my opinion, this shows that a huge gap is being created in our educational system. This is an indictment on students or leaders in the education sector. This gap is a multi-faceted issue. So, if we had JAMB cut-off mark at a much higher level and suddenly, it is being reduced, it shows that three things are involved.
Firstly, there is decrease in the performance of students, which makes entry into the university a big challenge. Secondly, the new cut-off mark may be targeted towards increasing the number of a certain group of students in our institutions, for example, females. Thirdly, it bothers on the general performance status. Is the system enabling enough for students to perform? If so, are the students encouraged to perform? How much concentration do students put into their academic works?
Some may say that the new JAMB cut-off mark shows a good sign, but there needs to be consistency in order to stabilise performance. I think the sudden drop of the cut-off mark shows that there is a lot of work to be done.
Minister of Education, Ruqayyatu Rufai, said the aim of reviewing the JAMB cut-off marks is to encourage candidates gain admission. Do you agree?
It is a very controversial statement, because earlier on, she said that out of the 1,735,720 students that registered for this year’s UTME, only 520,000 will gain admission. She blamed this on the low-carrying capacity of the tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Now if someone tells you before you even write UTME that universities can only accommodate a specific number of students because of infrastructure and then the person later comes back to say that the cut-off mark has been reduced so that candidates will have accessibility into the university, isn’t the person acting controversially?
The FG’s statements are controversial, going in two different directions. If she had said universities can only accommodate this number, and that they will make UTME more competitive so universities will admit the best of brains, that would have been a bit better. When the minister initially came out with the figure, I thought JAMB would then be competitive, only for the FG to drop the cut-off mark. Isn’t the FG subjecting these students to unnecessary torture?
They are being used to generate income for universities because these universities already know that they can only admit a specific number of students. Post-UTME is purely a way of generating income for universities. In my opinion, the FG is generating income for these universities indirectly, and at the same time behaving as if it cares about students’ future. By the time they write the post-UTME, they are not likely to gain admission because if you score 150 or 180 in UTME, what chances do they have of doing well in the post-UTME exam?
Let us assume that many people passed the UTME, how many of them would have their results released? If you look at the number of candidates whose results were withheld last year, it was over 60 per cent. The challenge of JAMB is becoming unbearable. Except if you haven’t taken JAMB twice, you would not understand the pain people go through.
What role will the reduced JAMB cut-off mark have on the future of university education in Nigeria?
If the cut-off mark has been reduced at this time, in the future, it could be increased. This will be based on so many factors. But in the mean time, the role of this in future is that any reasonable student will take advantage of the opportunity and work to at least attain the cut-off mark. The general outlook in Nigeria in terms of education is shaky. Recently, we were informed that Nigeria has been able to achieve Millennium Development Goal number one. But for education, we are yet to achieve anything. On the positive side, the new JAMB cut-off marks could provide an opportunity for more students to be accommodated into higher institutions. On the other hand, it could make students feel a bit relaxed.
But is there a need to lower the mark for university admission?
No, we don’t have to lower the mark. However, we are not fighting for the general cut-off mark to be between 250 and 270. What we are saying is that if you think 240 or 200 should be the cut-off, be consistent. I believe making the JAMB cut-off mark 180 would be boxing in quite a number of students who have the ability to do better. A candidate who could work hard to make 250 marks would be in the same boat with another candidate who could only score 130. We can leave the JAMB cut-off mark at 50 per cent of the total score, which is 200 marks.
Why is it difficult for students to do well in UTME?
This is an interesting question. We could otherwise ask, why do people fail? There are several reasons why students fail UTME. Students are no more reading, they seem to be paying more attention to Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and there is so much distraction in the air.
Parents are not taking time to monitor their children?. We can also blame the educational system. Are teachers qualified or trained well? All these affect students’ performance. So it’s not just a one-sided issue, there are many reasons why students fail.
What will it take for Nigeria to achieve the MDG goal for education?
The first step is to improve on our educational infrastructure. Build more schools, improve on the quality of teachers and put in place policies that will encourage quality education. Achieving these isn’t difficult. We just need to implement some strategies. Students will not excel in an environment that is not conducive for learning.
What is your advice to the Federal Government?
A typical Nigerian loves education. If you go round the world, most Nigerians have scholarly achievements. This shows that once the environment is good, Nigerian students will excel. So we urge the Federal Government to ensure that infrastructure at our various institutions are in place. The recently inaugurated boards for our higher institutions should build their capacity in order to carry out their functions effectively. Most unity schools are in the state of decay. But for the support of alumni associations, most would have been closed down.
source: http://www.punchng.com/education/lowering-jamb-cut-off-mark-unnecessary/