Amid concerns over the deteriorating performance of students in the recently conducted Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), stakeholders have expressed concerns over the pervasive influence of social media, poor parental control and others.
The Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) recently announced the release of the 2024 UTME results with 77 percent scoring below 200.
Apart from a few students who scored above 300, the majority of students did not perform well.
According to JAMB, over 1.9 million candidates sat the examination, which took place in all the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.
The board noted that “8,401 candidates scored 300 and above; 77,070 scored 250 and above; 439,974 scored 200 and above, while 1,402,490 scored below 200.”
While the average mark should ideally be 200 out of 400, the fact that 1,402,490 candidates fell below this benchmark raises significant concerns among stakeholders.
Sharing his thoughts on the high failure rate, an educationist, Isaac Moji, expressed disappointment while blaming social media influence on the students.
Moji, who said there might be other things to blame for this JAMB mass failure, said the top list is social media.
According to him, children who should be busy with studying are always on social media as content creators on different platforms, while neglecting their education or giving little time for it.
Also speaking, a stakeholder in the educational sector, Sholape Gold Adedapo decried the low rates of academic performance in JAMB.
She said this should be a major concern not only for those in the educational sector but for parents and society at large, saying that a lot of factors are responsible for this massive failure.
“It is of concern that, as a nation, why are we not growing academically? Why are we retrogressing?
“The unfortunate part is that some of these schools are not good enough and this era has been a disaster academically.
“I think we are falling apart already. So, it will take time for us to rise again. So, there should be a synergy between the teachers and parents and also what they’ve taught the children.
“When the children get back home, the parents should also take it up as there should be a continuum. But parents don’t have time. We are under-snowed with our activities and we believe these children will be fine.”
This is just as others have attributed poor attitude of parents towards education, poor supervision of schools, and poor facilities in schools to the mass failure.
The owner of a Computer -Based Testing (CBT) centre who identified himself as Mr. Chris urged parents to up their game in supervising and ensuring that their wards concentrate and improve their study habits.
He also lamented that the JAMB’s act of lowering the cut-off marks for students, may also affect the upcoming candidates not to be serious with studies, knowing fully well that no matter the scores they may secure admission.
“JAMB cannot also be exonerated. JAMB sets the standard for admission in Nigeria and we have watched as JAMB has continued to lower the cut-off marks for students, thereby, providing the opportunity for weak candidates to scale through the hurdle,” he added.
Meanwhile, JAMB has maintained that no nobody failed the 2024 UTME as being insinuated.
The JAMB spokesperson, Dr. Fabian Benjamin said, “It’s a selection examination like recruitment as such no fail pass. It all depends on the subscription and availability.”
