A VSO went into the examination hall to observe how exams
were conducted. The Finals , for Year 3 students.
There were over 200 candidates but not enough tables and
chairs to go round; those without would have to sit the exam some other time
(unspecified).
Shortly after question
papers had been given out, a student
drew the attention of the supervisor to the fact that the papers now being pored over, were for an exam the following day, not the
current one! Papers were hurriedly collected in and supervisors went off to
find the right ones, leaving the
students unsupervised but having first instructed them to remain in the hall in complete silence.
Twenty minutes later the supervisors returned with the correct paper and
blasted the students because they were not in silence. A girl who had been
sitting on a desk was slapped across the head and told she would face a charge
of examination malpractice!
The exam resumed with three students sharing one question
paper. They were told not to lean across each other or this would also be
considered malpractice and the students concerned would face automatic dismissal
from the exam hall and disqualification from the examination.
In so many dealings between people there is no sense of a need
for an apology or even an explanation or a need to respect the person being
spoken to if they are considered to be in any way of lower status. In this society, status and hierarchy lie
embedded in the root .
For the past two nights we have had no power or water. Our
sleep has been regularly interrupted not only by waves of heat but by the noise and fumes of the
generator owned by the bank manager who lives next door which is positioned not
far from our window. He leaves it running all night long with no thought of the
effects on his neighbours. ‘This is Nigeria!’ is his response when tackled
about it. In a society where a bank
manager is of infinitely higher status than a teacher – or anything else in
civilian life, nobody will put up much
of an argument.
No comments:
Post a Comment