Over 30 students suspended for cheating
Unam has warned that students found guilty of cheating in examinations will be expelled.
More than 30 University of
Namibia (Unam) students were suspended last year for cheating.
According to the student representative council (SRC), the cheating was due to academic pressure, which emanates from a daunting examination timetable. The Unam management is currently reviewing its policies. In future, those found guilty of cheating in examinations will be deregistered and expelled from the institution. Meanwhile, the SRC leadership has vowed to engage management to make sure the examination calendars are student-friendly.
This was revealed during the opening of the 2020 academic year this week at the Hifikepunye Pohamba campus at Ongwediva. SRC vice-president Stephanus Nguluwe said the current examination timetable makes students write modules within a too short period of time, which sometimes makes them cheat. “Last year was a difficult year for our university as we had cases of students sleeping at study centres and fainting during exams, and the vice-chancellor suspending more than 30 students for cheating. In light of that, it has come to our realisation as student leaders that a lot of students go through so much stress and anxiety during the examination period, not because they did not study, but because examination timetables are not student-friendly,” Nguluwe said.
“Students are allowed to write two modules in a day and another one the following day. As student leaders, we will engage the Unam management so that students will only be required to write three modules a week with 24 hours between the writing times.”
Nguluwe said this is to accord students enough time to prepare and pass while avoiding cheating, fainting and sleeping on campus because they are under severe academic stress.
In a speech read on his behalf by Unam Oshakati campus pro-vice-chancellor Dr Paulina Uugwanga, Unam vice-chancellor professor Kenneth Matengu cautioned students and staff against rigid thinking.
“I know some of you have been here for many years, and you have done great work and come up with great solutions in your time, but let us be smart enough to embrace new ways of doing things when the evidence supports it. We are a much bigger institution now; we are not the same as we were five, 10 or 20 years ago,” Matengu said.
ILENI NANDJATO
Namibia (Unam) students were suspended last year for cheating.
According to the student representative council (SRC), the cheating was due to academic pressure, which emanates from a daunting examination timetable. The Unam management is currently reviewing its policies. In future, those found guilty of cheating in examinations will be deregistered and expelled from the institution. Meanwhile, the SRC leadership has vowed to engage management to make sure the examination calendars are student-friendly.
This was revealed during the opening of the 2020 academic year this week at the Hifikepunye Pohamba campus at Ongwediva. SRC vice-president Stephanus Nguluwe said the current examination timetable makes students write modules within a too short period of time, which sometimes makes them cheat. “Last year was a difficult year for our university as we had cases of students sleeping at study centres and fainting during exams, and the vice-chancellor suspending more than 30 students for cheating. In light of that, it has come to our realisation as student leaders that a lot of students go through so much stress and anxiety during the examination period, not because they did not study, but because examination timetables are not student-friendly,” Nguluwe said.
“Students are allowed to write two modules in a day and another one the following day. As student leaders, we will engage the Unam management so that students will only be required to write three modules a week with 24 hours between the writing times.”
Nguluwe said this is to accord students enough time to prepare and pass while avoiding cheating, fainting and sleeping on campus because they are under severe academic stress.
In a speech read on his behalf by Unam Oshakati campus pro-vice-chancellor Dr Paulina Uugwanga, Unam vice-chancellor professor Kenneth Matengu cautioned students and staff against rigid thinking.
“I know some of you have been here for many years, and you have done great work and come up with great solutions in your time, but let us be smart enough to embrace new ways of doing things when the evidence supports it. We are a much bigger institution now; we are not the same as we were five, 10 or 20 years ago,” Matengu said.
ILENI NANDJATO
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