International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume IV, Issue XI, November 2020 | ISSN 2454–6186

The Social Media Platforms and Examination Malpractice among Secondary School Students: The Possible Way Out

Bello Alim Babi
General Studies Department, School of Administrative and Business Studies .Adamawa State Polytechnic, Yola, Nigeria

Abstract
The pursuit of certificates and the behavioral issues in the society amidst poor performances are identified as some root causes of examination malpractice in Nigeria. The study revealed that issues of examination malpractice through social media platforms persists as a result of the escalation of mobile phones and tablets in the hands of students which enables them easy access to the internet and the modern social media platforms such as; Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and so on. This paper essentially examined the relationship that exists between examination malpractice and the social media platforms. Descriptive method was used for data collection with the aid of simple percentage and content analysis. A total of 5 teachers out of 52 teachers were selected as the respondents in the study. This represented 19.2% of the teachers’ sample. A total number of 5 teachers and a total number of 180 students out of 1800 senior secondary three students in public schools were selected which constituted 10% of the students’ sample, by means of random sampling technique from five (5) secondary schools in Yola – North local government council of Adamawa state, Nigeria. The paper found that the relationship that exists between examination malpractice and the social media platforms include the use of WhatsApp which makes students vulnerable to examination malpractice. The paper recommended among others that; examination malpractice should be discouraged by seizing the students’ internet and social media access during examination periods.
Key words: Examination Malpractice, Mobile Phones, Social Media

I. INTRODUCTION

Social media platforms have become an integral part of the global society. Nowadays, information is at the doormat of everybody because the world is in the era of information technology.In this technological era, information is no longer left for only a few privileged people who can afford the use of land line telephone in offices and homes. Even the people in the remotest villages in Nigeria and elsewhere can access information through the cell phone, available internet and social networking sites (Barker, 2013).
Social media is defined as “the relationships that exist between network of people” (Qingya, Wei & Yu, 2011:3). Social media emerged as a term frequently used to describe different types of electronic communication platforms. The availability of high speed internet broadband connection with massive use of desktop computers, laptops, e-readers, tablets and smart phones enable millions of undergraduates to actively engage in social networking, text messaging, blogging, content sharing, online learning, and much more.