ERIC ED371957: Physics Examinations for University Entrance. An International Study. Science and Technology Education Document Series 45.

212 Pages·1992·4.2 MB·English

by  ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME
ED 371 957
SE 054 639
AUTHOR
Black, Paul, Ed.
Physics Examinations for University Entrance. An
TITLE
International Study. Science and Technology Education
Document Series 45.
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural
SPONS AGENCY
Organization, Paris (France).
UNESCO-ED-92/WS-15
REPORT NO
PUB DATE
92
NOTE
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*College Entrance Examinations; *Foreign Countries;
DESCRIPTORS
Higher Education; *International Educational
Exchange; *International Studies; *Physics; *Science
Education; Science Tests
ABSTRACT
This document is intended for anyone having the
responsibility for the policy or the practice of examination and
selection systems in physics, whether at the completion stages of
secondary education, or the entrance stages of higher education. The
book contains 13 chapters written by authors from 11 different
countries. Each chapter was written and/or edited to include the
general features of: the country's system of entrance exauination;
the results and uses for university admission; the examination
methods used; the statistical analysis of resuLts; the links with
schools, teachers, and pupils; and opinions on the quality and the
effects of using the examinations. The chapters presented, including
(1) "Introduction to the
participating countries, are as follows:
(2) "Entrance to the University of Botswana"
Study" (Paul Black);
(3) "University Entrance in Brasil" (Marcos de
(Wacek Kijewski);
(4) "The National Examination in China"
Fonseca Elia and others);
(5) "The National Examination in Egypt" (R. Kamel
(Shu-tong Cong);
(6) "The French System of Entrance Examinations (Francoise
Wassef);
(7) "National Entrance Examinations in Hungary" (Ervin
Langlois);
(8) "The Lniversity Tests in Japan" (Tae Ryu); (9)
Gecso);
"University Entrance in Poland" (Tomasz Plazak; Zygmunt Mazur); (10)
School Assessments and Central Tests" (Kjell Gisselberg,
"Sweden
(11) "The A-Level Examination in the U.K. (Ken
Gunilla Johansson);
Standard Tests the U.S.A. System (E.
Dobson): (12) School Grades
and (13) "Issues and Comparisons" (Paul Black).
Leonard Jossem) ;
ZWH
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PHYSICS EXAMINATIONS
FOR UNIVERSITY
ENTRANCE
An International Study
11
/11
4111
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Science and Technology Education Document Series (STEDS)
No. 21 Science and Mathematics in tne General Secondary School
1 Glossary of Terms used in Science and Technology Educa-
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No. 37 Educacien Matemética en las Americas VII. 1990 (Spanish)
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No. 20 Mathematics for All. 1986 (English, French in press)
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2. Photo UNATIONS
3. Photo UNESCO:D. Bahrman
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BEST COPY AVAILABLE
Science and Technology Education
Document Series n° 45
PHYSICS EXAMINATIONS
FOR UNIVERSITY ENTRANCE
An International Study
Prepared under the Auspices of the International
Commission on Physics Education
Sponsored by UNESCO
Edited by Paul Black
Education Sector
UNESCO
ED-92/WS-15
4
PREFACE
of the UNESCO Science
The document series has been established as part
the international exchange
and Technology Education Programme to encourage
and mutual understanding.
of ideas and information, cooperation
and with the collaboration of the
This volume, developed at the initiative
of IUPAP/ICSU addresses
International Commission on Physics Education
level, drawing on experiences
Physics Examinations at the College Entrance
from 11 countries.
who have to set and administer
It is hoped that Univers;'y professors,
in charge of
school systems personnel
entrance academic requiremo .s,
and evaluation in secondary
establishing objectives, curr.ular experiences
interested in assessment will find
education as well as teachers and practitioners
in this volume a useful reference.
technique, rather
There is no intention to precribe any particular content or
in which they have been
it is to discuss the issues involved and present ways
addressed in diffrent contexts and cultures.
editor of this volume, for his
UNESCO is indebted to Dr. Paul Black, the
authors of the different chapters who
leadership and dedication as well as to the
and insights. The views and opinions
have generously shared their experiences
authors and not necessarily those of
expressed herein are those of the editor and
UNESCO.
ED/92/WS/15
Entrance
Physics Examinations for University
An International Study
Contents
Editor's Acknowledgements
Introduction to the Study
1
Chapter
1
:
Paul Black
7
Entrance to the University of Botswana
2 :
Chapter
Wacek Kijewski
Wirn Kouwenhoven
21
University Entrance in Brasil
Chapter
3 :
Marcos de Fonseca Elia
Susana Lehrer de Souza Barros
Sergio Costa Ribeiro
45
China
The National Examination in
Chapter
4 :
Shu-tong Cong
57
The National Examination in Egypt
Chapter
5 :
R.Kamel Wassef
69
Examinations
The French System of Entrance
Chapter
6 :
Francoise Langlois
85
Hungary
National Entrance Examinations in
Chapter
7 :
Ervin GecsO
101
The University Tests in Japan
Chapter
8 :
Tae Ryu
125
University Entrance in Poland
Chapter
9 :
Tom asz Plazak
Zygmunt Mazur
Central Tests
141
Sweden School Assessments and
Chapter
10 :
Kjell Gisselberg
Gunilla Johansson
159
The A-Level Examination in the U.K
Chapter
11 :
Ken Dobson
183
Standard Tests the U.S.A.System
School Grades
Chapter
12 :
E. Leonard Jossem
195
Issues and Comparisons
Chapter
13 :
Paul Black
209
The Chapter Authors
Appendix
:
Editor's Acknowledgements
International
from discussions in the
The idea for this book arose
particularly its
Education. Its members, and
Commission on Physics
helped to develop the
Jossem, promoted and
chairman Professor Leonard
their
productive project. Through
idea from a discussion point to a
secured,
and involvement of UNESCO was
interest and support, the help
for his positive
due to Raphael Ferreyra
and particular thanks here are
implementation of the project.
interest in and help with the
August 1991 at
two-day workshop held in
The heart of fitis project was a
immediately after
University in Torun, Poland,
the Nicolaus Copernicus
Group for Research in
of GIREP - the International
the biennial conference
cheerfully bore the
organisers of that meeting
Education in Physics. The
them, including
additional meeting, and to
task of looking after an
and Dr. Magda
Jamiolkowski, Dr. Jozefina Turlo
particularly Professor
for the
thanks. They made it possible
Staszel, I would like to express
days of
countries involved to complete two
authors from the several
chapters which are
the foundations for the
intensive work which laid
collected in this book.
which is to the authors
last acknowledgement,
This leads naturally to the
They have accepted a
eleven different countries.
of the chapters from
English, kept admirably to
produced their manuscripts in
common brief,
with prompt
editor's queries and requests
deadlines and answered their
with thanks to the
thanks to them are coupled
courtesy. My particular
by
authors and, in several cases,
by suggesting suitable
many others who,
colleagues better
and then passing it on to
working to formulate the task
authoritative
have helped to achieve
equipped than themselves,
couple thanks with
countries. To all of these I
contributions from all of the
much
distorted their message too
of hope - that I have not
an expression
by my editing.
March 1992
Paul Black
Studies
Centre For Educational
King's College
England.
University of London,
1.1
Introduction to the Study
Chapter 1
:
Paul Black
For Whom is This Book ?
Anyone having responsibility for the policy or the practice of examination
and selection systems in physics, whether at the completion stages of
secondary education, or at the entrance stages of higher education, should
find this book to be directly relevant to their work.
It should be of more general interest to several broader audiences, as
follows :
and examiners in upper secondary schools and in
- physics teachers
the first years of university work
and roles similar to the above, but in other
- those with interests
areas of science educe tion
readers with particular interest in the study of assessment systems
and techniques
and supply
anyone who, being interested in the recruitment
interface
systems for future physicists, believes that the secondary/tertiary
is a very important -omponent of that system.
The Origins of the Study
The idea for this study first arose in meetings of the International
Commission on Physics Education. Given the importance of examinations
it was felt that a study which
on the development of physics education,
could report on practices and lead to critical and cons:,.uctive comparisons
between different countries could have an important influence on the
future of physics education.
It was clear that with very modest financial resources, any venture would
have to be limited in scope and designed to take full advantage of our
richest resource, the expertise and commitment of those associated with
the commission. The limitation accepted was to study one level of
examination. The level was chosen and defined as the examination
education, in
system which a country uses to decide entry to university
particular to degree courses in physics.
No choice could have ensured strict comparability between countries,
Chapter 1
2
given the diversity of educational systems. The advantages of the choice
made were threefold. First, the definition was largely free from ambiguity.
Secondly, the importance of this level of examination is evident, given its
influence on the lives of young people and on the recruitment of future
physicists. Thirdly, interest in it is very strong across the physics education
community because it is the interface between the school and higher
education sectors.
It was of course clear that there would be difficulties. An examination in
Physics, like any other instrument that acquires any operational
significance, cannot be understood except as a product of the social and
intellectual context in which it functions and for which it is produced. Our
study could recognise this, but its capacity to explore the contexts in depth
would clearly be limited.
At the same time, there would be an objective feature : one set of physics
examination questions can be judged as more insightful and effective than
another, even when the two are produced for identical purposes and
within the same constraints. Physicists across the world can understand
one another's questions better than they can understand one another's
societies, and many would be more interested in learning from these
products than in learning why and how they are produced and used. Thus,
there has been a tension, between producing a case study in comparative
education in physics, and producing a source book of physics questions. In
the event, a compromise has been struck.
Developing the Idea
The originally vague aim was sharpened into a design for a book, which
would comprise a set of chapters, each about the system in one country,
and some commentary. The choice of countries was made by combining
ideal criteria with practical possibility. The ideal criteria involved
representation across the whole globe, across different cultures and
political systems, across different educational systems and traditions,
across different stages of wealth and economic development. The
practicalities were of two sorts. The commission had to identify an author
or authors in each country who would be both knowledgeable and willing.
The number of countries had to be set by a compromise between adequate
range and variety on the one hand, and adequate detail per country within
the limitations on the overall length of a book. The outcome is to be seen
in Chapters 2 to 12
.
The content for each country chapter was first proposed by postal
circulation leading to the collection of specimen questions with
explanatory text. Those so involved were then invited to join a two day
workshop in August 1991, held immediately after the end of the biennial
international conference of GIREP - the Groupe International de
Recherche sur l'Enseignement de la Physique. Thus, for two days, a group
9
3
Chapter 1
University
of about twenty met on the campus of the Nicolaus Copernicus
the systems in one
in Torun in Poland and listened to descriptions of
the book,
another's countries. This led to debates about the structure of
by all
ending with agreement on a uniform structure to be adopted
within a
contributors. One author, Ken Dobson, wrote a draft chapter
model, with
fortnight and this was circulated to the other contributors as a
the formal specifications.
the eleven chapters
The outcome of the agreements made in Torun was
heavily according to
which follow. They have been edited, more or less
necessarily
need. It was agreed by the authors that the chapters should not
Nuffield
be of uniform length; some examinations, such as the
and
examination in Britain, would need more space to bring out
elsewhere. It was
exemplify features of interest which were not found
agreed that as much space as feasible should be found for sample
questions.
Structure of the Country Chapters
sections as
Each chapter has been written and/or edited into seven main
follows :
General Features of the Country System
The Results and Use for University Admission
General Outline
The Examination Methods Used
Examinations
- External
Assessments
- Internal
and Marking
- Preparation
Statistical Analyses of Results
Links with Schools, Teachers and Pupils
Opinions on Quality and Effects.
third of the
Sample questions, which would be particularly relevant to the
but are placed at
above sections, are not incorporated into the main text,
about 30% (54 pages)
the end of each chapter. Of the country chapter pages,
examination material.
are devoted to sample
in the content and
There are variations between the chapters. Variations
where the
internal sequence of the main sections have been preserved
them. It has been possible for
nature of the required explanations justified
data which are just not available in other
some countries to produce
lack. The numbers
countries, so some give details and data which others
the
of pages of exemplary material varies, between 3 and 11, across
and variety in some
chapters, largely because there is a much greater range
countries than in others. Authors were not required to. offer
bibliographies, but some did so and these have been incorporated.