ASSESSMENT OF JAMB COMPUTER-BASED TEST (CBT) ON SS3 STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC READINESS FOR UNIFIED TERTIARY MATRICULATION EXAMINATION IN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COLLEGE JOS, PLATEAU STATE, NIGERIA

ABSTRACT: The study assessed the JAMB Computer Based Test (CBT) academic readiness of final yearstudents for 2019 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in Federal Government College, Jos,Plateau State, Nigeria. Two research questions and one hypothesis respectively guided the study. A descriptivesurvey design was employed to solicit the opinions of the respondents. The instrument used a closed endedquestionnaireusing a 20 item construct questionnaire in a 5-point Likert rating scale was administered to 156respondents, spread across the four departments, randomly selected from a population of 250 students. Thequestionnaire was validated by three experts in English Language, Test and Measurement and ICT respectivelyfrom the Faculty of Education, University of Jos, Plateau State. The pilot testing using Cronbach Alpha methodwith internal consistency reliability index of 0.82 coefficient was obtained. The data collected was analyzedusing percentage, mean, standard deviation and independent t-test aspect of the Statistical Packages for SocialSciences (SPSS) version 25. The results of the findings indicated that the students were academically ready forthe 2019/2020 JAMB Computer Based Test UTME. The respondents were mainly located within the agebracket of 16-18 prescribed for admission into tertiary institutions. In consonance with these findings, the studyrecommended the need for more computer experts, adequate computers, internet connectivity and solar energyto avert epileptic power supply during examinationsto meet the demand of increased population. Massivetraining of students arealso needed to create mass awareness of the recently introduced National IdentificationCard by JAMB for 2019/2020 UTME examination.

Keywords: ICT, CBT, JAMB, UTME,SS3 Students, PPT