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Using standardized test results to assess student learning
Author(s) -
Cooper Elizabeth L.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
assessment update
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1536-0725
pISSN - 1041-6099
DOI - 10.1002/au.3650080305
Subject(s) - citation , test (biology) , standardized test , library science , sociology , psychology , mathematics education , media studies , computer science , paleontology , biology
One method used by Alabama's Snead State Community College (SSW to measure student learning is to compare student scores on placement exams, taken before core course work, to results from evaluation exams, taken upon completion of core courses. All incoming freshmen are required to provide scores from American College Testing (ACT) assessment tests or take the ACT Assessment of Student Skills for Entry Transfer (ASSET) placement tests for English and mathematics. Following completion of academic core classes common to all associate degree programs, student performance is then measured by the Collegiate Assessment of Academic Proficiency (CAAP) tests. The decile rankings of SSCC students' entry scores are determined in relation to those of their peers from community colleges nationwide and are then compared with decile rankings on the CAAP test. The data are arranged in a four-quadrant grid according to the following critrla: quadrant one students score low on both entry and exit, quadrant iwo students score low on entry but high on exit, quad,ant three students score high on entry and lower on exit, and quadrant four students score high on both exams. In a sample analysis of SSCC students, a total of 44% of SSCC students showed positive change (quadrant two), 22% maintained their rankings (quadrants one and four), and 34% showed negative change (quadrant three). Finally, these data are analyzed to determine common factors among student quadrants to provide college planners with data to improve student success. (MAB)