Education authorities and stakeholders in Anambra, Ebonyi and Enugu states say recent reforms are making it increasingly difficult for so-called “miracle centres” to operate and facilitate examination malpractice among secondary school students.
The stakeholders said the three states were strengthening policies designed to improve teaching, restore discipline and ensure that students obtain their West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and National Examinations Council (NECO) results through genuine academic effort.
They spoke separately during a survey on the continued existence of examination malpractice centres and measures being adopted to tackle the practice.
In Enugu, the Executive Chairman of the State Post Primary Schools Management Board, Hilary Mgbodile, said the government had introduced measures to prevent students from abandoning their schools for external centres during examinations.
He explained that authorities now use SS2 class records to verify candidates before external examinations. Under the system, students are expected to sit their final examinations at the schools where they completed SS2.
According to Mgbodile, the policy has made it harder for lesson centres and other institutions suspected of facilitating malpractice to recruit candidates from other schools.
The state has also deployed external examination monitors to supervise examinations and reduce the possibility of invigilators being compromised. Mgbodile said monitors are provided with basic necessities, including food and water, to reduce their vulnerability to inducements.
Candidates are also screened by an external examination committee before they can be registered for major examinations. Schools must obtain approved candidate lists from the Ministry of Education and the screening committee before registration.
Mgbodile said these measures had significantly restricted the movement of students to centres where they might seek unfair assistance.
However, school administrator Ben Edeh called for wider adoption of computer-based testing, arguing that CBT had already made malpractice more difficult in examinations such as the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination.
He suggested that extending computer-based examinations to WASSCE, NECO and other major examinations could further weaken the operations of miracle centres by making it harder for candidates to receive outside assistance.
Teacher Ukamaka Okoro, meanwhile, linked some students’ reliance on miracle centres to weaknesses in teaching resources and academic preparation. She said some students and parents become desperate after spending heavily on education and fearing poor examination results.
Okoro also raised concerns about the involvement of some teachers and the use of artificial intelligence to facilitate cheating, while noting that CBT could help reduce opportunities for malpractice.
Anambra strengthens school monitoring
In Anambra, Commissioner for Education Ekene Ogugua said the state government was taking a firm position against schools being used as centres for examination malpractice.
Ogugua said he had met with principals and operators of public and private secondary schools to emphasise the importance of discipline, accountability and strict adherence to examination rules.
He also carried out unannounced inspections of selected schools during the recently concluded NECO examinations to determine whether schools were complying with prescribed standards.
The commissioner said the administration of Governor Chukwuma Soludo would not tolerate schools being transformed into miracle centres, warning school managers that they would be held responsible for maintaining discipline and examination integrity.
He said the Ministry of Education would continue with surprise inspections during internal and external examinations as part of efforts to protect the credibility of the state's education system.
Hope Ezeani, Anambra chairman of the All Nigeria Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS), pledged the support of principals for the government's education reforms.
Ezeani, who is also principal of Community Secondary School, Oraifite, said school administrators were committed to ensuring that students earned examination results through legitimate academic work.
The Executive Secretary of the Anambra State Post-Primary Schools Service Commission, Benedine Anagor, also said the commission had not recorded cases of miracle centres or withheld WAEC and NECO results in the state's public schools.
Teachers seek tougher action
Several teachers in Anambra called for stronger penalties, regular monitoring and greater parental involvement in the campaign against examination malpractice.
Mathematics teacher Prisca Chimezie described miracle centres as examination venues where candidates allegedly receive unlawful assistance to obtain results.
She said the practice undermines students who prepare honestly and creates a dangerous perception that academic success can be bought rather than earned.
Chimezie said pressure from parents and students was among the factors sustaining the practice, noting that some parents prioritise certificates over the actual knowledge and skills their children acquire.
Another teacher, Ikenna Agwasie, said some candidates contribute to the problem by failing to prepare adequately and viewing examination malpractice as an easier option than studying.
Imelda Okeke, a public secondary school teacher, advocated continuous supervision rather than limiting inspections to examination periods. She also called for stronger counselling programmes to educate students about the long-term consequences of cheating.
Question-paper leaks remain a concern
Simon Onyekachi, chairman of ANCOPSS in Nsukka Local Government Area, identified examination question-paper leakage as another factor enabling miracle centres to flourish.
He alleged that some operators rely on payments to insiders or examination officials to obtain questions before scheduled examinations.
Onyekachi said government could further weaken the centres by withdrawing the licences of schools found facilitating malpractice and prosecuting officials proven to have participated in examination-related offences.
Former Nsukka education supervisor Ann Ugwu also condemned the practice, warning that students who obtain impressive results through cheating may struggle when confronted with academic or professional responsibilities that require genuine competence.
She urged WAEC and NECO to accelerate the transition to computer-based examinations, while also blaming some parents for financing their children's participation in miracle centres.
Ugwu said the cost of registering through such centres could be substantially higher than official examination fees because candidates and their parents allegedly pay additional sums for illicit assistance.
Ebonyi calls for collective response
In Ebonyi, the Secretary of the State Universal Basic Education Board, Livinus Ezeuwa, described examination malpractice as a widespread social problem requiring coordinated action from government, parents, teachers, school administrators and students.
Ezeuwa said miracle centres were particularly prevalent in some private schools and rural communities, stressing that the problem could not be eliminated through isolated measures.
He also cautioned that CBT alone would not solve examination malpractice without broader reforms and tougher enforcement.
The Area Inspector of Education in Ikwo Local Government Area, Sunday Nweke, attributed the problem partly to declining reading habits and weakened societal values.
He called for renewed respect for education and knowledge, alongside closer cooperation among schools, families and government agencies.
The stakeholders agreed that eliminating miracle centres would require sustained monitoring, stronger sanctions, improved teaching, parental responsibility and greater use of technology in examinations.