2nd Test Standardisation
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KenR
2nd Test Standardisation
Most LEAs or Grammar School offer alternative 2nd 11+ exam dates for those children that have a bone-fide reason, such as illness, for missing the 1st test date. I understand that this is a completely separate paper.
I wondered if anyone could explain to me how the Exam moderators standardise/normalise across the 2 tests and 2 sets of papers to produce a single consolidate set of standardised scores?
They can't just use the same pass mark as the tests may differ significantly in the degree of difficultly, also the ability profile of the 2 sets of candidates may be quite different?
Do they get use a control group of children from a different LEA for example to take boths tests so the results can be compared? Are there any LEA examiners out there that know what happens in practice?
My own son recently sat the KE Grammar School tests in Birmingham which was set by the University of Durham CEM. I know for the Camp Hill boys school there were about 1,200 applicants for 91 places for the Sept 2005 entry. So competition is very tough and there must be quite a concentration of children around the pass mark.
I wondered if anyone could explain to me how the Exam moderators standardise/normalise across the 2 tests and 2 sets of papers to produce a single consolidate set of standardised scores?
They can't just use the same pass mark as the tests may differ significantly in the degree of difficultly, also the ability profile of the 2 sets of candidates may be quite different?
Do they get use a control group of children from a different LEA for example to take boths tests so the results can be compared? Are there any LEA examiners out there that know what happens in practice?
My own son recently sat the KE Grammar School tests in Birmingham which was set by the University of Durham CEM. I know for the Camp Hill boys school there were about 1,200 applicants for 91 places for the Sept 2005 entry. So competition is very tough and there must be quite a concentration of children around the pass mark.
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Essex girl
2nd Test standardisation
Hi,
Take a look at my post (the last one so far) in the Chelmsford County High/Colchester County High section of this forum. It may be that things are different in your area but I expect that it is a similar situation to here.
Take a look at my post (the last one so far) in the Chelmsford County High/Colchester County High section of this forum. It may be that things are different in your area but I expect that it is a similar situation to here.
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Guest
Ken
My daughter also sat the test for Camp Hill recently and I believe that the test for children who were absent is different. I have no idea how they standardise these tests across the two groups of children. I think some parents believe that doing the test late gives them an advantage (I have heard through gossip and rumour). I don't know why this is. The University of Durham believe that they have it all sorted through their reliability testing. They test the reliability of all of their tests through sampling results from groups of children and then analysing the results statistically - they should reflect the normal distribution. Of course, statistically it will be reliable in the same way that any external test should be reliable. It is that same as comparing GCSE results across two years - each test should be equally as difficult, but often we say at school - Oh, that was a good paper. It depends what you are good at.
However, on a more reassuring note, my other child is already at Camp Hill and everyone that I know in her year and other children who I know at the school and at Five Ways and Handsworth, sat the test on the day.
I think it may be more stressful for children to sit late, as they will have heard from friends how terrible the test was, or how easy it was (then they find it difficult!).
The wait is awful - the Foundation probably already know if your son is going to the school, but they can't tell you. My daughter started in the year that they changed the system of admission and we were all geared up for our letter on 14 Feb. We then got a letter from the Foundation saying, sorry the council hasn't got its act together - we know the results, but we can't tell you for another 2 weeks. Talk about stress.
My daughter also sat the test for Camp Hill recently and I believe that the test for children who were absent is different. I have no idea how they standardise these tests across the two groups of children. I think some parents believe that doing the test late gives them an advantage (I have heard through gossip and rumour). I don't know why this is. The University of Durham believe that they have it all sorted through their reliability testing. They test the reliability of all of their tests through sampling results from groups of children and then analysing the results statistically - they should reflect the normal distribution. Of course, statistically it will be reliable in the same way that any external test should be reliable. It is that same as comparing GCSE results across two years - each test should be equally as difficult, but often we say at school - Oh, that was a good paper. It depends what you are good at.
However, on a more reassuring note, my other child is already at Camp Hill and everyone that I know in her year and other children who I know at the school and at Five Ways and Handsworth, sat the test on the day.
I think it may be more stressful for children to sit late, as they will have heard from friends how terrible the test was, or how easy it was (then they find it difficult!).
The wait is awful - the Foundation probably already know if your son is going to the school, but they can't tell you. My daughter started in the year that they changed the system of admission and we were all geared up for our letter on 14 Feb. We then got a letter from the Foundation saying, sorry the council hasn't got its act together - we know the results, but we can't tell you for another 2 weeks. Talk about stress.
