The Raging GCE Exam Debate (Part 1): An Anomalous Controversy

Louis Egbe Mbua

I heard the piercing sound penetrate the room, picked up the receiver and answered. It was my friend and classmate who resides in Saudi; questioning the authenticity and validity of what he termed “totally unrealistic GCE results in Cameroon” that defied well-known natural laws; and a complete violation of the much celebrated or berated; and hotly disputed Bell-Curve invention in inexplicability. In certain quarters, the Bell-Curve is considered the Holy Grail of statistical analysis while other radical thinkers have dismissed it as a great intellectual fraud. It is unclear as to who is right or wrong here. On the other hand, the incessant complaints by the older generation of GCE "Grade Inflation"; and the increasing percentage pass rate in the Anglo-Saxon educational world appears to create an atmosphere of suspicion as to the authenticity of this well-tested qualification – what the British call the “Gold Standard” of qualifications. Some posit that GCE has become easier while others explain that younger people have more learning facilities than the previous generation. Again, who is right or who is wrong is highly debatable and has been the source of vexed acrimony here in England and Cameroon.

In the days gone by in my native Cameroon, the GCE Examination was held in a much more sanctimonious reverence. People will point out to a child saying in awe: “look, that one obtained 9 subjects at the O’ Level Exams, he is going to CCAST, Bambili”; and “there is the other one, look, she's obtained 5 subjects at A Levels; she is going to University in England”. In those days, only the tinniest of minority of the total in the entire Anglo-Saxon World would approach such heights at the age of 16 and 18 for the O and A Levels respectively. In today’s digital world or post-traditionalism, a significant number and percentage of students -- that grossly violates the norm of Bell and his protagonists – far exceed excellence at a clearly younger age, especially in my native Cameroon and England. It is impossible, therefore, to ignore trends that bare close similarities in two nations 7000 miles apart, and located in two different continents; with completely different climates, wealth, and mode of living.

I was in a well-deserved holiday in the Midlands, England, in July when I got news that my nephew had passed his A Levels complete with a stunning A Grade in Further Mathematics, one of the most difficult subjects at that qualification. He is only 16! Needless, to recount that the writer sat and passed my O Levels at 16; and almost certainly indicating -- or apparent -- that I was two years behind the present generation  in intellect. I made a decision to inquire as to whether he actually obtained that subject at that grade; and how many he actually obtained; and whether it was true. The telephone discussions went after this manner:

“I heard you passed your A Levels. Is this true?”

“Well, yes”, he replied.

“Well done and congratulations!” I exclaimed over the phone; and trying to hide my astonishment mixed with great pride.

“Thank you”, was his quiet response.

“How many subjects did you sit; and how many of them did you pass?” I asked

“Well, all five subjects. I obtained an A Grade in Further Mathematics,” he said in a detached manner as though nothing had happened; and to add to my frozen bewilderment.

I asked no further questions. I also found out about my cousin in SBC, Victoria. “Oh, she obtained four A Level subjects in the Sciences”, they said. Well! That's it! I said to myself. This is Grade Inflation, I thought. Or is it?

While the intellectual world is busy explaining away – using conventional and sometimes outdated and questionable theoretical models -- the sudden increases in pass rates of young people in these examinations, there are crucial questions to answer in relation to this emerging trend. It is true that there is a natural tendency for aspects to fall within the 95-99 percent confidence limit in the Bell Curve, about 3 percent of those involved in this case would be at the top of the academic order while another 3 percent will languish at the bottom heap; scrapping the bottom of the barrel of academic attainment; the majority fitting within the bounds of normalcy in spatial distribution. However, this scenario is only possible if we assume that all situations must fit within these pre-meditated theoretical prejudices; and that all phenomena are exactly the same. Yet, if we examine the matter with the trained experienced eye of the world, we may have to agree that this is not always the case. There is no one fit all theory that may be used to explain all occurrences; as items and articles vary. That plants and artificial creations may follow established human laws does not mean that all human aspects must follow.

Firstly, humans have the advantage of motivation and self-improvement. Although these have limits, it is true that nobody actually knows this limitation. It follows that there are always the possibilities of circumstances that break through the agreed norms of theoretical predictions; and which would demand further studies to usher fresh explanations on overachievement by a vast majority at a particular time and specific place.

In my generation, the amount of learning resources were few and scarce. Although there were books, the lack of a variety of authors and material in particularly hard subjects were a handicap to learning. Established authors were few; and that if one could not actually understand the language and style of those authors, it became an uphill battle to perform to one’s highest academic potentials since there was nowhere else to turn. Furthermore, human resource in relation to traditional subjects such as Physics and English Literature was not as prevalent as this day and age. Few went to University to study these subjects. As a result, most lecturers in these disciplines were not graduates as opposed to this era. In the UK, there has been a Higher Education explosion in the last two decades tapping in on talents who have returned to the class room to boost examination results with their skills and training. In addition, this is augmented by the coming of the digital and multimedia age of computers, internet and other electronic gadgets that speed up learning. Students may take a complete course in programming and computer hardware straight from YouTube. This was totally impossible or unimaginable even as early as a decade ago when to attain these skills required that you attend lecture in a conventional classrooms in well-defined timescales with the financial implications that might ensue.

In my native Cameroon in particular, and Africa in general, there has been a paradigm shift in population distribution to the Diaspora. Many Cameroonians who studied out of the country act as inspiration; and mentors to the younger generation, providing an extra motivational boost to their already found confidence being advantaged financially and socially. It should be remembered that a low social esteem and lack of access to finance may put young and talented people at a disadvantage. Thus, elimination of these negative factors provides a comfortable environment for learning. In this case, therefore, the Bell-Curve phenomenon may not hold firmly; because one needs but the least of talent to attain full potential. Full potential is not the exclusive preserve of only the most talented and intelligent young people. Although the writer will admit that intelligence is random and spontaneous; and that it is totally independent of social birth, it should be stated that achievement heights are directly related to financial and social status in as much as intelligence. The higher the financial status a child may find themselves; and the better the social standing of their parents or relatives, the more chances they may full-fill their full potential.

Contrary to certain misguided theories, a child’s intelligence has no relation to the social standing or financial muscle of their parentage. However, their chances of debunking the Bell-Curve theoretical assumptions increases; and that they are likely to perform outside these predictions. The following is that the wealthier the society the more likely that the future generation will be overachievers whether they are highly intelligent or not. Mean time, more intelligent children who find themselves in a socially and financially disadvantaged position have already been defeated psychologically; and must work extra hard or must receive some kind of aid to attain their full potential in life and competitive examinations. There was this case I know in Tiko, Cameroon. This primary school girl from Duala was the most intelligent girl in the entire school; but I was surprised she could not go to secondary school due to lack of finances. I do not know how she ended up but by the time I was sitting my A Levels, she was still at home with little to do. A casual observer, not knowing her potential, will obviously believe she is not intelligent; a totally false and inaccurate assessment. Exceptional cases exist where these postulates may not hold but these are only in the fringes in this case.

There is the intriguing tendency, today, to chart the Darwinian path to archive results; and to offer reasons to explain complex phenomenon. The survival of the fittest that used to belong in the jungle is now an accepted resident in the major cities of the world. In the City of London and in Wall Street of New York financial Empires, the new self-appointed titles or self-proclaimed pomposity is that of “Master of the Universe”. How humans became Lords of the Universe without having created anything within or without their own habitat here on earth is indeed disturbing. In the world where people are made to believe that they are capable of achieving everything by dint of their background and “talent” is a new trend that deserves the keenest of scrutiny. Now, we have to believe that there are people of exceptional abilities in all spheres of our existence. However, if this criteria forms the main bedrock by which we select individuals into institutions of learning and the profession, then that particular institution will obviously excel since this will create a condition of a self-full-filling prophesy; and as a result will obviously burst through accepted conventions; and further break natural laws. In most established institutions in Cameroon and to a certain extent, the UK, this is the case.