OPINION: Do Ethiopian Universities the Center of Teaching or Cheating?

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Higher education in Ethiopia is really a modern phenomenon. The expansion of universities in Ethiopia began only a little over a decade ago except the founding of Addis Abeba University.

After the dictatorship regime of Derg was demised, various colleges, university colleges and universities have been established aiming at reducing the long aged illiteracy of the Ethiopian people and in long term to eradicate the forever enemy of our country, which is the poverty.

It is not this much controversial that every generation has its own national assignment which is expected to hand over to the coming generation. This implies that and every generation is responsible for and cannot escape for every good and bad thing for what it performs.

Nowadays, in Ethiopia almost there are 32 universities which produce ample of educated human resources. And having educated human resource is at the heart of both qualitative and quantitative aspect of development. Due to this, the current functioning universities are increasing their enrolment from time to time. In here one thing that we should give attention while the increment of students enrolment is the quality of education which is rendered in Ethiopian universities. But now the intention of this article is not more of the quality of education in Ethiopian universities but the alarming cheating problems of this generation in their university stay.

Education is simply positive change of behavior and capacity building and the best road where we can reach at the ladder of self esteem and self confidence. That is why EPRDF, the ruling party has been adopting policies and strategies which aim eliminating citizens from illiteracy, not only eliminating from illiteracy but also to produce the power of well educated human resource.

Currently, Ethiopia is pretty busy to meet the Millennium Development Goals [MDG] in 2015. Achieving universal primary education is one assignment of the MDG. And it becomes the best nation which accomplishes its assignment below the expected range of time from the Sub-Saharan region of the African countries. Although, the Millennium Development Goals focuses more on health related issues, to succeed this final goal there must self confident citizens who are well shaped in universities.

Nowadays, there are ten and hundred thousands of students who are attending their academic program in Ethiopian universities. And the current assessment and evaluation system of the entire universities is continuous assessment. This means being the learning and teaching process of the current universities are adapting the modular system, quizzes and short tests are given every week after one chapter is given. Probably, this might enable students to attend classes, to read more continuously and make themselves ready like soldiers who are the shepherd of their nation. But annoyingly, universities are harmed by cheating of students at examinations. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

The EPRDF education policy is negatively criticized by its poor quality provision. Certainly, the cheating culture of students during examination is one factor which aggravates the poor quality of education starting from elementary to university level. Ethiopia doesn’t only stretch her hands to God but also she stretches her hand to the new and young generation. Unlucky, as if Ethiopia stretches her hands to the young generation, she is going to fail under the cheater hands and low self confidence mentality. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

It will be nightmare that students those who don’t have confidence will not give/plant confidence to the society. Perhaps it isn’t research findings but a sort of assessment and observation, only few of students in Ethiopian universities and schools have self confidence during exams, but the majority of students are really immersed in cheating examinations. Confidently speaking, those who are engaged and cultivate bad culture of cheating at exams used to cheat starting from their elementary education and repeat this shameful culture in universities. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

I have ever read an interesting article which is entitled “Building and ruining Never Consides” written by Mebrahten Gebremariyam ex-university student of Mekelle university during my university stay. The central idea of the article is all about that university shouldn’t be the center of bad deeds but the center of good achievements. And the article comments that why universities should only confined only on teaching and learning process but also they should enlightened their students to be ethical and self-confident. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

Currently in universities cheating at examination isn’t a big issue (being it is already adapted more) and let alone the students (the proponent) of the shameful activity even teachers and instructors are not this much sensitive to reduce and kill the opportunities which let students cheating at examination. It already becomes a culture!! The writer of this article is instructor in university for two and half years. That is why he knows more how cheating is reaching at alarming situation in universities. Surprisingly, those who have self-confidence, those who fight cheating at exams and expose such things are insulted and called the local word “FARA” to mean untrained. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

The Ethiopian Higher Education Proclamation (No 650/2009) claims higher education institutions should be centers of capacity building. But this looks like a joke being how capacity building can be real where several of students are immersed at cheating at exams. How those who are cheating at exams can fight corruption, how those who are cheating at exams can be the icon of self confidence, how those who are cheating at exams can be refrain from any unlawful acts and from any unethical activities. Let me dare once and say like that! If universities and concerned bodies are not at least reducing the alarming rate of cheating of students at examinations, Ethiopia is going to suffer from the generation who don’t function properly. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

The prime attention of higher education is not producing corrupted generation but producing rational thinking and confident human resources. The prime development sector is about humans and their conscious capacity. If several of university students are skillful at cheating at exams, probably they will be ignorant and stupid enough at creativity and invention. Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!! Cheating!!!!!

It isn’t exaggeration but it might happen, when I think over the cheating culture of students at exams, I have a fear that it might occur generation gap. Our harvest depends on what we invest. Several of students are committing suicide by trapping themselves at cheating exams. Due to this, middle performance students are complaining at the immersion of more students at cheating as it has negative effect on their result to mean those who have low educational performance are imitating from those who are clever. It is obvious that it will be night mare to ensure educational quality without controlling and reducing students those who cultivate cheating behavior in academic areas. Nowadays, schools, colleges and universities are becoming the center of cheating. Why this happen is that in several universalities the number of students in a single class is beyond 50 (more for natural science due to the 30 and 70 % enrollment). And this aggravates to have cheating at exams. If so, where is the role of academic centers to shape the current generation to the pave the best direction to the future? Let’s save the generation!!! Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!! Cheating!!!!