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COVID-19: ‘NECO must conduct exams on health standards’

NECO

THE National Examinations Council has been advised to conduct its examination across the country in line with the new public health standards.

The Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr Benjamin Kalu, said this in a statement while commending the appointment of new NECO Registrar and Chief Executive Officer, Prof Godswill Obioma.

Kalu said the responsibility of adapting home grown solutions to ensure inclusiveness in examinations would require innovativeness and insight of a leadership possessing extensive local and international experience.

The federal lawmaker said that he believes that Prof Obioma, would put his “wealth of academic achievements and contributions to education policy reforms” to bear in reshaping the council.

Kalu noted that despite several challenges already confronting the council, adapting to a covid-19 and post covid-19 era will be the single greatest challenge of NECO in a world that has been forced to re-imagine its way of life.

He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic and post-COVID era would mean a lot of changes also in the education sector.

The lawmaker added that the council registrar had a responsibility to restore the integrity of the examination body and drive the council through the COVID-19 crisis.

Kalu said: “Following the fourth United Nations Educational Scientific Cultural Organisation COVID-19 Education Webinar organised on April 9, 2020, to examine the coping strategies currently considered by various countries to manage high-stake exams, it has become clear to me that unique homegrown solutions are required for the peculiarities of our own challenges.

“As UNESCO’s Head of Education Research and Foresight, Mr Sobhi Tawil, put it, we have been imposed on, globally, an experiment in remote learning. We are all managing different ways that we can.

“NECO’s leadership must figure out exam delivery modes complaint with new public health standards and technological realities while remaining inclusive and accessible to the millions of Nigerian children in rural areas.

“This responsibility will require the innovativeness of a leadership possessing extensive experience. Obioma’s breadth of experience, wealth of academic achievements, as well as contributions to education policy reforms will be useful in national and global contexts immediately.”

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