Software Implementation for Examination Processing System

1.0 Introduction

An examination result processing management system is a computerized system that aids the processing of semester assessment. According to Añulika, Bala and Nyap (2014), many schools have their own system to manage students profile and assessments. Common practice is by recording the student information in a record book. Institutions are always processing results of students as examination is a regular activity. The use of information and communication technology in examination processing is very vital as it speeds up the process, guarantees accurate computation of the results. Consequently, the management of the institution will be able to meet up with the challenge of limited time and also, the students will be able to see their result on time. It is therefore imperative for the manual method of processing examination results to be replaced with the computerized system. This is possible with the implementation of a software system that will capture semester examination details for final processing. With this system in place, examination processing jobs that took unnecessary long period of time to be processed will be completed within a short period. This will in turn boost the corporate image of the institution and greatly reduce the number of errors that arise from the use of manual method. Applying ICT to process examination result is one of the ways ICT has been applied in the education sector.

Assessment is the systematic collection, review, and use of information about educational programs undertaken for the purpose of improving student learning and development. Assessment is an ongoing process aimed at understanding and improving student learning (Palomba & Banta, 1999). Past research (Kaffash, Kargiban1, & Kargiban, 2010) has shown that integrating information communication technologies (ICT) into teaching-learning process lead to improving education assessment. The use of ICT in education sector can bring changes to the way education assessments have been done. The change have impact on assessment tasks, with new learning environments moving away from summative methods of assessment to formative approaches and open-ended products; such as reports and research papers created by groups of students (Hennessy, Harrison, Edexcel, & Wamakote, 2010). This implies that integrating ICT in education sector facilities student centered approach learning. In addition, ICT tools such as examination processing software also enables quick processing of students results as opposed to the manual system. However, many institutions have not applied ICT to help them solve the problem of assessment. It is in view of the relevance of an automated system to process result that necessitated this study.

1.1 Background of the Study

Akwa Ibom State College of Arts and Science, Nung Ukim Ikono, initially known as Akwa Ibom State School of Remedial Studies opened for classes on 17th November, 1997 with an intake of 150 students. Primarily, it was established by the Government of Akwa Ibom Akwa Ibom State College of Arts and Science, Nung Ukim Ikono, especially the Universities. The Akwa Ibom State College of Arts and Science is located in Nung Ukim, Ikono Local Government Area and has a land mass of 100 acres which was freely donated for citing Ikono Peoples High School in 1972 which is at present, the property of Akwa Ibom State College of Arts and Science. This favourable location draws the school far away from the effects of social pollution which adversely affected and led to the closure of the defunct School of Arts and Science. The Governing Council is led by the very respected Dr. Okon Dan Umoh. The Mission of the institution is to promote through teaching, research or otherwise, the advancement of knowledge and practical application to the needs of the community, state and the nation at large and the Vision of the institution is to act as a pivotal structure in leveraging synergy with the community so that the Institution could work transparently and achieve more with less in the attainment of its corporate responsibilities.

1.2 Statement of Problem

A number of problems associated with student academic record management include improper course registration, late release of students’ results, inaccuracy due to manual and tedious calculation and retrieval difficulties/inefficiency. In addition, lecturers most times find the process of computing and preparing students result to be time consuming especially in the case of a large class size. The problem is further compounded by the absence of a computerized system to aid in the computation and processing of the results of students. Also, top level management of institutions, encounter difficulties in obtaining processed examination reports from lecturers in charge due to the laborious process involved. It is in view of the above listed problems that motivated the researcher to conduct this study on examination processing system.

1.3 Aim and Objectives of the study

The aim of the study is to develop an automated semester result management system that will enable lecturers and examiners to easily compute and store semester result information for each student for easy future retrieval.

The following are the objectives of the study;

1. To develop a system that can be used to accurately process examination result details.
2. To develop a system that will be used to easily retrieve examination result report details of student academic performance.

1.4 Scope of the Study

This study covers the development of an examination processing system. The requirements include designing a user interface for the application and providing options for a user to log into the application by supplying username and password. After successful login, the user can register examination scores for each student that will be captured through a user interface, the data will be processed to give the grade and the Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) and the information can be saved to a database for future retrieval when needed.

1.5 Significance of the Study

1. This study will help examination officers to prepare accurate and timely result for the department.
2. Retrieval of information about a student academic performance will be faster.
3. It will also help in the timely preparation of academic transcript
4. Act as a source of reference for researchers whose study is in the related area.

1.6 Limitations of the Study

The following are the limitations of the system:

1. The system is not web based
2. The system does not run over a network
3. It is limited to processing record by record (one at a time) and not in batches

1.7 Definition of Terms

Assessment:

The process of determining or computing the grades of students

Process:

To work on something by executing a set of procedures in order to have a determined output.

Lecturer:

A member of a higher institution who gives lectures and also administer test and exams in order to assess the students.

CGPA:

Cumulative Grade point average

Grade:

The performance of an individual or group on an examination or test.

Score:

The total number of points earned by an individual or group in a game or test.

Automate:

To make or become automatic , to convert a process or workplace to automation by using computers or mechanical components, or utilize the techniques of automation.

Exam:

Test of knowledge or ability: a test designed to assess somebody’s ability or knowledge in a particular subject or field.

Result:

Score or an outcome, especially the final score in an exam, sports competition or the grade awarded to somebody who has taken a test

Semester:

Either of two periods into which the academic year is divided in some universities and colleges.

Management:

The organizing and controlling of the affairs of a business or a sector of a business

System:

A combination of related parts organized into a complex whole.