Knowing What Students Know: The Science and Design of Educational Assessment

TABLE 6–1 Six Components of an A-Level Physics Examination

Component	Title	No. of Questions or Tasks	Time	Weight in Marks	Description
A	Coded Answer	40	75 min.	20%	Multiple choice questions, all to be attempted.
B	Short Answer	7 or 8	90 min.	20%	Short with structured subcomponents, fixed space for answer, all to be attempted.
C	Comprehension	3	150 min.	24%	a) Answer questions on a new passage. b) Analyze and draw conclusions from a set of presented data. c) Explain phenomena described in short paragraphs: select 3 from 5.
D	Practical Problems	8	90 min.	16%	Short problems with equipment set up in a laboratory, all to be attempted.
E	Investigation	1	About 2 weeks	10%	In normal school laboratory time, investigate a problem of the student’s own choice.
F	Project Essay	1	About 2 weeks	10%	In normal school time, research and write about a topic chosen by the student.
SOURCE: Adapted from Morland (1994).

this particular physics examination is now subject to change,⁸ combining the results of external tests with classroom assessments of particular aspects of achievement for which a short formal test is not appropriate is an established feature of achievement testing systems in the United Kingdom and

⁸	Because the whole structure of the 16–18 examinations is being changed, this examination and the curriculum on which it is based, which have been in place for 30 years, will no longer be in use after 2001. They will be replaced by a new curriculum and examination, based on the same principles.

Table of Contents

Front Matter R1-R16

Executive Summary 1-16

1 Rethinking the Foundations of Assessment 17-36

2 The Nature of Assessment and Reasoning from Evidence 37-56

INTRODUCTION 57-58

3 Advances in the Sciences of Thinking and Learning 59-110

4 Contributions of Measurement and Statistical Modeling to Assessment 111-174

INTRODUCTION 175-176

5 Implications of the New Foundations for Assessment Design 177-220

6 Assessment in Practice 221-260

7 Information Technologies: Opportunities for Advancing Educational Assessment 261-290

8 Implications and Recommendations for Research, Policy, and Practice 291-314

References 315-348

Appendix Biographical Sketches 349-354

Index 355-366