Comprehension (20 Marks)
Read the following passage carefully and then answer the questions that follow.
DISCIPLINE PREREQUISITE TO ACADEMIC EXCELLENCY
1 Nothing can be achieved where emphasis is only placed on academic training alone without commensurate attention to discipline among students in higher learning institutions.
2 Universities and colleges exist for the purpose of training well-disciplined individuals who must propel the engine of economic growth in a country. It is rightly observed that indiscipline in these institutions will affect future students. And it is unfortunate that such indiscipline comes from both students and members of staff; that in itself is not good for the country.
3 Where education at all levels fails to do so, a nation may suffer in all areas, including economic, social, cultural, political and religious spheres. Because societal values are important for the survival of any society, educational institutions must embrace discipline as one of their core values if meaningful inculcation of knowledge has to take place.
4 Discipline is vital not only to positive academic achievement which parents, lecturers and students themselves cherish and aspire to, but also to the preparations for one‟s success throughout their life. Therefore, expectations among citizens are that tertiary institutions, whether public or private, should be fully committed to providing students with a high quality educational experience and a community in which we can all live and work. This calls for exemplary behaviour among all stakeholders in colleges and universities.
5 For a long time, many people have spoken against the tendency by students in institutions of higher learning to engage in riots, causing damage to property such as university and college buildings and motor vehicles for innocent citizens. Such protests are conducted by students in an attempt to air their grievances which may be a result of delayed meal and project allowances, increased tuition fees or poor sanitary conditions within campuses, among many other reasons. Government officials and members of the public have described such acts as „lacking respect for leadership and promoting lawlessness and indiscipline.‟ This is because there is always an opportunity for those aggrieved, their leaders and other stakeholders to sit down and dialogue in order to find a lasting solution to any problem they may be facing.
6 Several stakeholders have always insisted that dialogue is the best way of finding amicable solutions to the problems affecting our universities and colleges however grave the challenges affecting them may appear. But the problem of student demonstrations does not seem to die down. Many people have come to label students in tertiary institutions as indisciplined. Strikes and go-slows that are guided by the law are an exception. But engaging in protests that clearly go against the law as well as specific institutional code of conduct amounts to indiscipline. (An adaption from Daily Mail, January 22, 2018 )
In each of the questions 1 – 9, select the best answer from the four options provided. Indicate your answer by drawing a circle around the letter on this question paper as in the example below. If you change your mind, cross out the initial choice neatly and then circle your revised answer clearly. For question 10, answer as instructed.
Example: This passage is about students‟
A behaviour.
B excellence.
C discipline.
D riots.
A - is the best answer, and it has been circled.
