robertogreco + comparisons   2

Be wary of test score comparisons  | ajc.com
"The first question that should raise eyebrows is who takes the tests. The TIMSS, for example, tests students who are in their “final year of school.” But the ages of students range from 17 in the U.S. to 21 in other countries…<br />
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Then there is the matter of selecting which students from these age groups actually sit down for the test. The U.S. engages in actual sampling, while other countries are highly selective. Russia and Israel, for example, administer TIMSS to native speakers only. Switzerland gives the test to students in only 15 of the highest performing regions of the country.<br />
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Moreover, little attention has been paid to how the tests are constructed. Items that appear on the test are negotiated by the participating countries. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that countries push hard for items that will mesh closely with their curricula in order to look good in the rankings.<br />
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Finally, there is the role that poverty plays in the results."
pisa  timss  testing  standardizedtesting  comparisons  schools  international  education  policy  us  global  from delicious
november 2010 by robertogreco

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