Views on standard/integrity of CAPE/CSEC Exams

[hummy]

Many of us are aware of the multiple choice component in CSEC and now the CAPE examinations. Questions repeat regularly and these papers are floating in the public domain. This component together with SBAs may contribute up to 50% of a final grade. Do you think that the results of this exam body can stand up to scrutiny?

[kemist]

Many of us are aware of the multiple choice component in CSEC and now the CAPE examinations. Questions repeat regularly and these papers are floating in the public domain. This component together with SBAs may contribute up to 50% of a final grade. Do you think that the results of this exam body can stand up to scrutiny?

if the highlighted part above is indeed the case, then no.

[Solachica]

In pastpapers?

[kemist]

pastpapers are ok if they only repeating a few of the mcq's (as for for cambridge a-levels).
However, MCQ's are difficult to set and therefore most institutions would repeat them year after year. So to ensure their exams are legitimate, they do not release the mcq question paper to the students.

[Solachica]

So thts why at uwi they don't leave you with the MC part of the paper Hummy, even at uwi there is coursework tht adds up to 40% of your mark and the final is 60% or 20-80 or 50-50.

[kemist]

soon most, if not all courses at uwi will have at least a 40% coursework component. the legitimacy of (written) coursework marks depends on who doing the marking and reviewing and of course not having the coursework exams leaked before hand. I dont know how the secondary school system handles these issues.

[edyle]

If too many questions are repeated too often, and exactly, then there is a problem

The issue is how much is too many, too often, and how exactly.

In particualar, it's not unexpected if say 10% or less of a give multiple choice exam of 1 year, occurred exactly, and on the previous year. Perhaps another 5 or 10% are from the year prior. Overall, you might find that 100% of the questions occurred over the previous 10 years;

then the next question is how exactly; Maybe its the same question, but the numbers are different, or the answers are rearranged; a question like that might occur every single year,: the almost exact same question, but in 10 flavours varying between the numbers in the question and the arrangement of the answers.

[hummy]

There is a MCQ component in some Cambridge A-Level Subjects - the Sciences for instance. The paper, once written, becomes the property of the student - no secrecy, a level playing field.

MCQs at UWI can be much better controlled - how many examining centres are there at anyone time. Very few, easily managed.

Now think of the number of CSEC/CAPE centres throughout Trinidad and the wider Caribbean. All it takes is one paper to be copied at a centre and the "damage" is done. These floating papers are most common in areas like Mathematics, English, the Sciences and Business. Take a poll amongstyour peers and students in the school system.

SBA/Coursework is good but a problem comes in when that work is done away from the school environment and is unsupervised - SBAs in Caribbean Studies, Communication Studies, POB come to mind. The work being presented may not necessarily be 100% attributable to the student.

[Solachica]

Most CXC subjects have SBA's now right? So maths maybe only one tht don't?

I don't know abt cape and wht it is abt.

[hummy]

Maths, Lit, English, Spanish at CSEC Level (what we call CXC) have no SBAs - there may be a few others.

CAPE is just the A'Level version of the exam. In Maths, the SBA or IA (internal assessment) takes the form of 3 tests set and administered by the teacher and moderated later by CXC. In the sciences, lab experiments form the IA. In some subjects, a research project forms the IA.

[Solachica]

Spanish at CXC still have orals? Tht is like coursework?

So cape is not one major exam at end of 2yrs like wht alevels was? They have continuous tests and when one test is over is onto next topics and then tested on tht?

[hummy]

Spanish has orals, but that is not school based - the questions come from cxc. Most CAPE syllabi/subjects are split into two UNITS - 1 and 2. Therefore, for example, there is a Pure Maths Unit 1 and a Pure Maths Unit 2. One can be written at the end of Lower 6 and the other at the end of Upper 6 OR both Units can be written at the end of Upper 6. Current Cambridge A Levels offer a similar arrangement.

[kemist]

Now think of the number of CSEC/CAPE centres throughout Trinidad and the wider Caribbean. All it takes is one paper to be copied at a centre and the "damage" is done. These floating papers are most common in areas like Mathematics, English, the Sciences and Business. Take a poll amongst your peers and students in the school system.

yep, the system is designed such that checks and balances are almost impossible.
If they have MCQ's, they should have a different question set every year.
Even in coursework, there is too much left at the discretion of the teacher - and yes I am questioning the integrity of teachers.

[Chicabonita]

CAPE is ONLY multiple choice???

[hummy]

CAPE is made of of 3 components: IA, Paper1, Paper 2

Paper 1 is usually a MCQ paper

In Maths, for instance


IA = 20%
Paper 1 (MCQ) = 30%
Paper 2 = 50%

[Solachica]

Wht is the level 2 results at cape tht I see children taking to uwi now tht results are out.

[hummy]

At Cambridge, one did 4 subjects minimum - 3 main subjects plus GP

At CAPE, one pursues a minimum of 3 main subjects plus Caribbean Studies (1 unit) and Communication Studies (1 Unit)

A main subject is made up of 2 components - unit 1 and unit 2.

For students who wrote their Unit 1 exams at the end of Lower Six, UWI will already have those records. The results of the second unit are now being submitted.

However, what are your views on the validity of these results in general?

[letric]

At Cambridge, one did 4 subjects minimum - 3 main subjects plus GP

At CAPE, one pursues a minimum of 3 main subjects plus Caribbean Studies (1 unit) and Communication Studies (1 Unit)

A main subject is made up of 2 components - unit 1 and unit 2.

For students who wrote their Unit 1 exams at the end of Lower Six, UWI will already have those records. The results of the second unit are now being submitted.

However, what are your views on the validity of these results in general?

Hummy, what are you trying to say?