DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF EXAMINATION VERIFICATION SYSTEM

1.1 Introduction

An examination board is an organization that sets examinations and is responsible for marking them and distributing results. Examination boards have the power to award qualifications, such as SAT scores, to students. Most exam boards are running as non-profit organizations. Accurate automatic personal identification is becoming more and more important to the operation of our increasingly electronically interconnected information society. Formal examination can rightly be defined as the assessment of a person‘s performance, when confronted with a series of questions, problems, or tasks set him, in order to ascertain the amount of knowledge that he has acquired, the extent to which he is able to utilize it, or the quality and effectiveness of the skills he has developed. In a verification system, a person desired to be identified submits an identity claim to the system, usually via a magnetic stripe card, login name, smart card, etc., and the system either rejects or accepts the submitted claim of identity.

In an identification system, the system establishes a subject's identity (or fails if the subject is not enrolled in the system data base) without the subject's having to claim an identity (Who am I?). Fingerprint technology using biometrics employ certain advantage of eradicating the problem of examination impersonation by allowing the measure of what you are to perform the security activities of student participation in the examinations.

As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitation of the study and Definition of technical terms.

1.2 Background of Study

The Jesuits introduced written examination into their schools in the 16th century. The Definitive Ratio Argue Institution Studiorum of 1599, which was not revised until 1932, contains a code of rules for the conduct of school examinations, which were held annually, and determined whether or not children were promoted to a higher class. During the 19th century, formal written examinations became regular in universities, schools, and other educational institutions. Examinations were also increasingly employed for the selection of recruits to the civil service, and the professions, and to posts in industry and commence. Over the ages, standardized testing has been the most common methodology, yet the validity and credibility of the expanded range of contemporary assessment techniques have been called into question.

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) is a not-for-profit examination board formed out of the concern for education in Africa. Established in 1952, the council has contributed to education in Anglophonic countries of West Africa (Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia), with the number of examinations they have coordinated, and certificates they have issued. They also formed an endowment fund, to contribute to the education in West Africa, through lectures, and aid to those who cannot afford education.

The University of Cambridge Local Examinations Syndicate, University of London School Examinations Matriculation Council and West African Departments of Education met in 1948, concerning education in West Africa. The meeting was called to discuss the future policy of education in West Africa. At the meeting, they appointed Dr. George Barker Jeffery (Director of the University Of London Institute Of Education) to visit some West African countries, so as to see the general education level and requirements in West Africa. At the end of Jeffery’s three month visit (December 1949- March 1950) to Ghana, the Gambia, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria, he tendered a report (since known as Jeffery report) strongly supporting the need for a West African Examination Council, and making detailed recommendations on the composition and duties of the Council. Following this report, the groups met with the governments of these countries, and they agreed on establishing a West African Examination council, fully adopting Jeffery’s recommendations.

The legislative assemblies of Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and the Gambia passed an ordinance approving the West African Examination Council in Dec 1951. The Ordinance agreed to the coordination of exams, and issuing of certificates to students in individual countries by the West African Examination Council. Liberia later issued their ordinance in 1974, at the annual meeting held in Lagos, Nigeria. After the success of forming an examination council, the council called a first meeting in Accra, Ghana on March 1953.

In the meeting, the registrar briefed everybody about the progress of the council. In that same meeting, five committees were formed to assist the council. These committees are: Administrative and Finance Committee, School Examinations Committee, Public Service Examinations Committee, The Professional, Technical and Commercial Examinations Committee, and the Local Committee.

1.3 Statement of Problem

Investigation revealed that the problems which are encountered in the existing system is that:

1. There is occurrence of student impersonation as a result of the no pictorial representation of genuine students;
2. There is insecured authentication of students; and
3. The manual verification of student is slow and prone to error.

1.4 Aim and Objectives of the Study

The aim of the study is to design and implement an Examination Verification System using WAEC Biometric as a case study. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows to develop an application software that will:

1. Capable of tracking impersonators in the examination system using the methodology of finger print biometrics;
2. Reduce rate of corruption in the educational sector and increase the rate of self confidence on students;
3. Demonstrate the possibility of computer technology in the satisfaction of human needs; and
4. Enforce strict security measures that ensure unregistered students do not write exams for other registered students.

1.5 Significance of Study

The significance of the proposed system will add more security measures to the examination processes using finger print biometrics. Also, it will help eliminate the possibility of an imposter appearing in an examination. Also, the impersonation which has eating the educational system there by encouraging laziness among students would be eliminated and standard of student educational performance would be increased.

The system uses a finger prints biometrics this would help ensure that only registered student during registration with their finger prints are allowed into the examination hall. It would contribute in the area of stopping any activity of corruption in the educational sector among students, and student to teachers.

This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.

1.6 Scope of Study

The scope of the research is focused on the Design and Implementation of an Examination Verification System using WAEC Biometric as a case study.

1.7 Limitations of the Study

During the course of this study, many things militated against its completion, some of which are:

1. Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
2. Establishment Policies: Establishment policies posed a serious limitation as most staffs are not ready to release information needed for this project work. There were lots of information needed from the staffs of this institution to enhance the study which took them time to release or they did not release at all for security purposes, hence the scope was reduced.
3. Research material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
4. Frequent power failure: This made the researcher append more money on fuel to ensure sustainable power.
5. Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet).

1.8 Definition of Terms

Registration: This means to keep records received from the management for reference purposes.

Management: It is the co-ordination of all the resources of an Organization through the process of planning, Organization, directing and controlling

WAEC: A body responsible for conducting and issuing certificate to secondary school graduating student among West Africa.