CHAPTER ONE
1.0       INTRODUCTION
The term ‘‘examination’’ or ‘‘test’ has been defined as an instrument or systematic procedure for measuring a sample of a person’s behaviour with a view to evaluating that behaviour against standards i.e. in comparism with a given domain of performance tasks (criterion-referenced) or against norms i.e in comparism with others in the group (norm-referenced) (Gage and Berliner, 1979, Gronlund,1985).
Geography’s role is specifically stated in Section 4(6A) where geography has been listed as one of the core subjects at the Senior secondary level (now section 5(25A)). Students are expected to select ;One of Literature-in-English, History, Geography or Religious Studies as the core subject. Geography has also been grouped as part of the body of elective subjects. Therefore, every student will be expected to select three of those subjects depending on the choice of career up to the end of the second year and may drop one of the non-compulsory subjects out of the nine subjects in the last year of the senior high school course. The geography curriculum has special feature which include:
a.       The provision of a geography curriculum that is based on the choice of suitable and relevant themes,units, contents, teaching materials, sstudents’ activitiies, teaching aids and evaluation.
b.      The reductionn in the scope and content of the subject matter of senior secondary school geography without loosing the high quality required at that level.
c.       The inclusion of innovative elements into the teaching of syllabus through the emphasis placed on ther practical geography throughout the 3-year course and the introduction of geographic principles, concepts and skills that are relevant to current trends in the discipline and useful for solving environmental problems.
1.2BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Education is noted as an instrument of change by different experts and professionals in the field of education. Education has been defined in various ways to emphasize different aspect of this crucial concept.  According to Obafemi Awolowo “education is that process of physical and mental culture whereby a man’s personality is developed to the fullest.  Also, Alfred North White says that “education is not just the acquisition of the art of the utilization of knowledge.  This is the concept of education for functional living within one’s milieu, the art of utilizing knowledge for one’s benefit and for the betterment of the society.
Educational activities in Nigeria were first carried out informally.  This was known as indigenous education where the aim was to transmit the cultural heritage of the society through generations).  After which is the Islamic education which came to Nigeria around the 14th century following the arrival of Islamic Religion. The arrival of the Europeans in 1842 (the arrival of the Wesley Missionary Society) was the beginning of Western Education.  The western education later-on metamorphosed or led to Nigeria developing her own educational system that suits it.  This subsequently brought about the 6-3-3-4 system of education (though there were others before it i.e. 7-5-3 system) which was developed in 1969 (the 1969 National curriculum conference), which implies six (6) years of primary school, three (3) years of  junior secondary, three (3) years of senior secondary’ and at least four (4) years of tertiary education.