Thread: Standardized Tests?

right. i prob should know but don't. last time i was in a gov school i heard the tests were written by the thai teachers and were pretty much gibberish. i looked at some of the answer sheets and they were utter gibberish (maybe my fault?).

what are the current tests like for prathom, mathayom, university?

i've just read this load of shit and i am still none the wiser really...


http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006...l_30001992.php

ANALYSIS
O-Net, A-Net debacle does not justify changing the system

Some kids are in tears, their parents are upset and all fingers point to the A-Net and O-Net as the culprits for all the confusion and delays.


The frustration has now led to a serious discussion over whether the plan to have O-Net (Ordinary National Educational Test) and A-Net (Advanced National Education Test) scores as university admission criteria should be scrapped.


However, the concept behind the O-Net/A-Net university-admission system is not at fault here. Rather, the problem lies in a mixture of human and technical errors during the implementation.


Therefore, it would be unwise to turn back to the old entrance-examination system in which a student's chance to enter his or her favourite university depends solely on central university-entrance exams, which are quite academically difficult.


In the old days, these challenging tests were blamed for pushing students to cram schools - and paying less attention to their regular classes. On top of that, the tests widened the gap in educational opportunities among students. Those from rural areas and poor families did not have a chance to attend cram schools, many of which successfully prepared students for the central university entrance exams.


Authorities then came up with the new university-admission system in which students' grade point average (GPA) from senior-secondary years counted towards their chance to enter university.


To prepare for the new system, GPA was included as a university-admission criterion a few years ago.


This year was the first time that the Office of Higher Education Commission (Ohec) stopped holding the central university-entrance exams and prepared to use the O-Net and A-net scores together with the GPA and grades for some relevant subjects, as admission criteria.


The O-Net and A-Net are very much like national tests that have been in place for years to evaluate the overall academic performances at each level. But there are also considered much easier than the central university entrance exams, in which only a handful of students scored over 80 per cent.


University lecturers designed the questions for the central university entrance exams while secondary schools' teachers formulated the questions in the O-Net/A-Net. "The central university entrance exams are unnecessarily difficult," Ohec secretary-general Pavich Thongroj said.


The O-Net/A-Net and central university exams are also different in that the A-Net had sections for open-ended questions. For nearly three decades, the central university exams had only multiple-choice tests. Despite some differences, the O-Net and A-Net are not a bad idea. All the mayhem simply stems from technical and human errors.


When the National Institute of Education Testing Service held the O-Net/A-Net the first time this year there was no Plan B for any unprecedented problems that might have arisen. When the problems did arise, the testing service was unable to tackle them.


The testing service also forgot to think carefully about how to score millions of answer sheets in the open-ended question sections.


"There are certainly problems in the scoring system. Still, these are not grounds to rush back to the central entrance exams," Pavich said.


Pratya Vesarach, who chairs the University Presidents Council of Thailand, said changing the university-admission system back and forth would only serve to confuse students even more.


"I think it is much better to solve the problems in the O-Net and A-Net such as scoring software, GPA inflation at some schools and the open-ended question section," he said.


After all, so many students the rural areas and poor families are hoping to enter their favourite universities though they may never be able to register for an extensive course in a cram school.


Will authorities simply stop considering these students just because of the human and technical errors that can both be fixed and prevented?


Chularat Saengpassa


The Nation

so i wanna know.

what you got?

wish i had marbles. the mind marvels. whilst i garbles.

The P6 government test here is utter nonense. 100% multiple guess based on memorised phrases. its set up in such a way to encourage cheating. It is solely based on kids ability to read but virtually all kids in Pratom have never been taught to read. cheating is rife. if the government had the balls to set tests here that actually involved speaking, reading for meaning and writing you would see that the vast majority of students know virtually no English at all.

I've taught the university entrance exams to Matayom 6 students for years. The ONET/ANET exams are very similar to the the exams that proceeded them. Still there are no listening or speaking components to the tests. The one essay section (discuss the lyrics to Que Sera, Sera)they had in 2006 was done away with in 2007 because there was no way to have a computer to mark it. I used to have the statistics for the exams, I'll have to look them up if anyone is interested; but the success rate was appalling. Over 200,000 took the exam last year and about 160,000 scored less than 50%. In, fact nearly half scored less than 30%. The English section was one of the easier sections. The math and science scores were even lower. I can't speak for the other subjects, but English did not appear that complex. You should get about 25% just by randomly circling answers. The nationwide averages weren't much higher than that, so I guess students have learned nothing in school.

Originally Posted by Ben Dover

I used to have the statistics for the exams, I'll have to look them up if anyone is interested; but the success rate was appalling.

yeah, i am interested. get to it. i need to know this shit.

sounds like an f-ing joke to me.

BenDover, yes I saw these results printed in out annual school book. 60% of students scored less that 30% on the 0-net mathematics exam. The exams are a joke though. they just test whether students can fill in a dot or not (or tick a box). Very very few students succeed in these exams. To discourage random guessing, they should penalise students (1/4 a mark) for incorrect answers. This is done in some universities here (SIIT) and also in mathematics competitions. Watch their marks drop even lower! It makes me not feel so bad about our EP. At least our kids are learning to think for themselves! It destroys the myth that "The Thai program is better" that many students have.

Originally Posted by Loner

BenDover, yes I saw these results printed in out annual school book. 60% of students scored less that 30% on the 0-net mathematics exam. The exams are a joke though. they just test whether students can fill in a dot or not (or tick a box). Very very few students succeed in these exams. To discourage random guessing, they should penalise students (1/4 a mark) for incorrect answers. This is done in some universities here (SIIT) and also in mathematics competitions. Watch their marks drop even lower! It makes me not feel so bad about our EP. At least our kids are learning to think for themselves! It destroys the myth that "The Thai program is better" that many students have.

And here lies the nub of the problem here. horribly low expectations. i find Thais very clever and dedicated if their learning is a challenge. the whole face thing here is used in education as a smokescreen. Schools have a duty to create a culture of speaking with confidence, writing and reading for enjoyment. they fail miserably in most cases because its easy for principals to get rich quick by conning parents and not challenging their teachers to develop. if the government set real exams it would force schools to develop. However they seem too busy collecting their lttle envelopes for finding mishaps with paperwork or worse still ferrangs who haven'y correctly clocked in and out. no plan, no vision and a load of students studying night and day trying to comprehend the nonense.