Exams are different - aren't they? Issues arising from the application of criterion-referenced assessment to examinations

Clair Hughes
University of Queensland

Keyword: examinations; criterion-referenced assessment; examination design

This paper considers issues arising from the inclusion of examinations in the implementation of an institutional criterion-referenced assessment (CRA) policy.

Effective application of CRA policies to progressive or coursework tasks (such as essays, written reports or oral presentations) is increasingly common as is demonstrated by a steadily expanding body of illustrative research literature (Ecclestone, 2001; O'Donovan, Rust, Price & Carroll, 2005; Orsmond, Merry & Reiling, 2000; Price, 2005). In contrast, a dearth of literature addressing the application of CRA to unseen, supervised, time- and often place-constrained examinations suggests that policy has been applied differently to this form of assessment.

The requirements of a recently introduced Electronic Course Profile (ECP) at the institution where the author works in a curriculum consultancy role, have highlighted the different status examinations seem to have tacitly acquired with regard to CRA policy. This paper draws on the collaborative efforts of the author and lecturers from two disciplines to illustrate possible approaches to the application of CRA to assessment by examination. It then reports on some of the positive outcomes of these activities including greater clarity of learning intentions, closer alignment of teaching with assessment to promote student learning and a more critical perspective on examination design. The experience has demonstrated that some forms of examination are less amenable than others to the application of CRA and identifies ethical and pedagogical implications of the continuing exemption of these forms of assessment from compliance with CRA policies.

The paper will also incorporate international perspectives gained from a round-table discussion on this topic chaired by the author at the biennial conference of the Special Interest Group in Assessment and Evaluation of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (August, 2006).