ERIC Number: EJ1020619
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014-Jan
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0098-6283
EISSN: N/A
A Cross-Sectional Evaluation of Student Achievement Using Standardized and Performance-Based Tests
Pinter, Brad; Matchock, Robert L.; Charles, Eric P.; Balch, William R.
Teaching of Psychology, v41 n1 p20-27 Jan 2014
Three groups of undergraduates (42 senior graduating psychology majors, 27 first-year premajors taking introductory psychology, and 24 first-year, high-performing nonmajors taking introductory psychology) completed the Psychology Major Field Test (MFT) and a short-answer (SA) essay test on reasoning about core knowledge in psychology. Graduating majors significantly outperformed both first-year groups using raw and covariate-corrected scores (adjusted for group differences in SAT-Verbal and high school grade point average). On the MFT, graduating majors scored above the 50th percentile, whereas high-performing nonmajors and premajors scored in the 25th and 20th percentiles, respectively. On the SA test, graduating majors averaged "good"-to-"excellent" quality responses, whereas premajors and high-performing nonmajors averaged only "fair"-to-"good" quality responses. Discussion focuses on the design and implementation of value-added, academic program assessments with limited data collection resources.
Descriptors: Undergraduate Students, Standardized Tests, Performance Based Assessment, Psychology, Majors (Students), Nonmajors, Essay Tests, College Freshmen, College Seniors, College Outcomes Assessment, Scores, Correlation, Achievement, Grade Point Average, College Entrance Examinations
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: SAT (College Admission Test)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A