This commissioned paper deals with appropriate assessment in senior science subjects in Queenslan... more This commissioned paper deals with appropriate assessment in senior science subjects in Queensland. The terms of reference were: To investigate the theoretical underpinnings of the two approaches to criteria-based and standards-referenced assessment in the Queensland senior science syllabuses; To make recommendations as to which approach is the more applicable in the current context; and To model the proposed approach, and provide advice about implementation.
AER 49 examines the issues raised by the ACER Research Conference 2005: Using Data to Support Lea... more AER 49 examines the issues raised by the ACER Research Conference 2005: Using Data to Support Learning. It analyses the conference papers, distils the essence of the conference 'conversations', and contextualises them in the light of a survey of the broader Australian and international literature on using data to support learning. Section 1 sets the context by providing definitions and an organisational framework. Section 2 discusses some purposes for collecting and analysing educational data, and considers the role of data in professional work. It addresses issues associated with identifying potential data sources, including consideration of the decision-making required to locate appropriate data. Section 3 records what the research says about how data can be used to support learning, and notes recurring themes. The identified themes revolve around the role of data in the interrelationships built by schools and the system; teachers, classrooms and schools; and teachers an...
This work-in-progress paper focuses on pedagogical approaches within two multi-age New Basics cla... more This work-in-progress paper focuses on pedagogical approaches within two multi-age New Basics classrooms (Years 1, 2 and 3) in two state schools in Queensland, and explores how these pedagogies encourage children to manipulate ideas and information. It depicts classroom and technology environments that enable students to solve problems and come to new meanings and understandings. Additionally, it raises issues for
The focus of the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test is on the assessment of individual and group s... more The focus of the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test is on the assessment of individual and group student performance on 49 common curriculum elements; that is, the cognitive skills that are the threads of the senior curriculum. The first part of this paper provides a general introduction to the QCS Test: its purposes, its features, what it tests and the
This brief note describes the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test, a test of generic skills learnt ... more This brief note describes the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test, a test of generic skills learnt through the senior curriculum, and how it measures achievement in skills taught across the curriculum rather than specific subject related knowledge and skill.
This study provides the first Australia-wide picture of what is expected of students taking five ... more This study provides the first Australia-wide picture of what is expected of students taking five subjects—English (including Literature), Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics and Australian History—in the final years of secondary school. The study addresses three broad questions: What is currently taught in these five subjects across Australia? This question is addressed through an analysis of the content of senior school curricula in the five subjects in all Australian states and territories. The study documents similarities and differences in approaches and in the content (subject matter and skills/understandings) emphasised in state and territory curriculum documents. What is the 'essential' content (subject matter and skills/understandings) that all students should be acquiring through these subjects, regardless of the state or territory in which they live? This question is addressed by asking selected experts in the five subject areas to make judgments about existing and m...
This article presents the findings of a study of the psychological variables that discriminate be... more This article presents the findings of a study of the psychological variables that discriminate between high and low omitters on a high-stakes achievement test using a short-response format. Data were obtained from a questionnaire administered to a random sample (N = 1,908) of students prior to sitting the 1997 Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test (N = 29,273). Fourteen psychological variables were measured including test anxiety (four subscales), emotional stability, achievement motivation, self-esteem, academic self-concept, self-estimate of ability, locus of control (three subscales), and approaches to learning (two subscales). The results were analyzed using descriptive discriminant analysis and suggested that the psychological predictors of the propensity to omit short-response items include test-irrelevant thinking and academic self-concept, with sex of candidate being a mediating variable.
ABSTRACT The nature and interpretation of differences between the achievements of females and mal... more ABSTRACT The nature and interpretation of differences between the achievements of females and males in senior secondary school studies in Australia, and the implications for policy and practice of these perceived differences, are showing signs of change. The ways ...
Theories of validity and reliability in educational assessment are explored in terms of two value... more Theories of validity and reliability in educational assessment are explored in terms of two value systems: standardisation and classical test theory, and contextualised judgements and hermeneutic theory. It is argued that both value systems have a role in maintaining validity and ...
This report describes the research component of a trial in 38 Queensland state schools of a new w... more This report describes the research component of a trial in 38 Queensland state schools of a new way of preparing young Queenslanders to meet the challenges of new times and of contributing to the Smart State. The New Basics Trial investigated the viability of a new framework for integrating what is taught with how it is taught, assessed and reported. The research program complemented two other key elements of the Trial - development of the components of the framework and its implementation in selected schools. The research activities reported here provide primary data, analyses and some conclusions about the impact of New Basics on the nature and quality of student work, approaches to teaching and learning, assessment procedures, student achievement, as well as school organisation and structure. [ISBN: 0734519672]
This commissioned paper deals with appropriate assessment in senior science subjects in Queenslan... more This commissioned paper deals with appropriate assessment in senior science subjects in Queensland. The terms of reference were: To investigate the theoretical underpinnings of the two approaches to criteria-based and standards-referenced assessment in the Queensland senior science syllabuses; To make recommendations as to which approach is the more applicable in the current context; and To model the proposed approach, and provide advice about implementation.
AER 49 examines the issues raised by the ACER Research Conference 2005: Using Data to Support Lea... more AER 49 examines the issues raised by the ACER Research Conference 2005: Using Data to Support Learning. It analyses the conference papers, distils the essence of the conference 'conversations', and contextualises them in the light of a survey of the broader Australian and international literature on using data to support learning. Section 1 sets the context by providing definitions and an organisational framework. Section 2 discusses some purposes for collecting and analysing educational data, and considers the role of data in professional work. It addresses issues associated with identifying potential data sources, including consideration of the decision-making required to locate appropriate data. Section 3 records what the research says about how data can be used to support learning, and notes recurring themes. The identified themes revolve around the role of data in the interrelationships built by schools and the system; teachers, classrooms and schools; and teachers an...
This work-in-progress paper focuses on pedagogical approaches within two multi-age New Basics cla... more This work-in-progress paper focuses on pedagogical approaches within two multi-age New Basics classrooms (Years 1, 2 and 3) in two state schools in Queensland, and explores how these pedagogies encourage children to manipulate ideas and information. It depicts classroom and technology environments that enable students to solve problems and come to new meanings and understandings. Additionally, it raises issues for
The focus of the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test is on the assessment of individual and group s... more The focus of the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test is on the assessment of individual and group student performance on 49 common curriculum elements; that is, the cognitive skills that are the threads of the senior curriculum. The first part of this paper provides a general introduction to the QCS Test: its purposes, its features, what it tests and the
This brief note describes the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test, a test of generic skills learnt ... more This brief note describes the Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test, a test of generic skills learnt through the senior curriculum, and how it measures achievement in skills taught across the curriculum rather than specific subject related knowledge and skill.
This study provides the first Australia-wide picture of what is expected of students taking five ... more This study provides the first Australia-wide picture of what is expected of students taking five subjects—English (including Literature), Mathematics, Chemistry, Physics and Australian History—in the final years of secondary school. The study addresses three broad questions: What is currently taught in these five subjects across Australia? This question is addressed through an analysis of the content of senior school curricula in the five subjects in all Australian states and territories. The study documents similarities and differences in approaches and in the content (subject matter and skills/understandings) emphasised in state and territory curriculum documents. What is the 'essential' content (subject matter and skills/understandings) that all students should be acquiring through these subjects, regardless of the state or territory in which they live? This question is addressed by asking selected experts in the five subject areas to make judgments about existing and m...
This article presents the findings of a study of the psychological variables that discriminate be... more This article presents the findings of a study of the psychological variables that discriminate between high and low omitters on a high-stakes achievement test using a short-response format. Data were obtained from a questionnaire administered to a random sample (N = 1,908) of students prior to sitting the 1997 Queensland Core Skills (QCS) Test (N = 29,273). Fourteen psychological variables were measured including test anxiety (four subscales), emotional stability, achievement motivation, self-esteem, academic self-concept, self-estimate of ability, locus of control (three subscales), and approaches to learning (two subscales). The results were analyzed using descriptive discriminant analysis and suggested that the psychological predictors of the propensity to omit short-response items include test-irrelevant thinking and academic self-concept, with sex of candidate being a mediating variable.
ABSTRACT The nature and interpretation of differences between the achievements of females and mal... more ABSTRACT The nature and interpretation of differences between the achievements of females and males in senior secondary school studies in Australia, and the implications for policy and practice of these perceived differences, are showing signs of change. The ways ...
Theories of validity and reliability in educational assessment are explored in terms of two value... more Theories of validity and reliability in educational assessment are explored in terms of two value systems: standardisation and classical test theory, and contextualised judgements and hermeneutic theory. It is argued that both value systems have a role in maintaining validity and ...
This report describes the research component of a trial in 38 Queensland state schools of a new w... more This report describes the research component of a trial in 38 Queensland state schools of a new way of preparing young Queenslanders to meet the challenges of new times and of contributing to the Smart State. The New Basics Trial investigated the viability of a new framework for integrating what is taught with how it is taught, assessed and reported. The research program complemented two other key elements of the Trial - development of the components of the framework and its implementation in selected schools. The research activities reported here provide primary data, analyses and some conclusions about the impact of New Basics on the nature and quality of student work, approaches to teaching and learning, assessment procedures, student achievement, as well as school organisation and structure. [ISBN: 0734519672]
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Papers by Gabrielle Matters