Sekedar masukan, bahwa sistem EBTA (dalam hal ini di Amerika Serikat) ada positifnya, di samping negatifnya; juga betapa etika/kejujuran diperlukan, justru karena sulit dikontrol secara rinci. Salam, A Rusli 23 Jul 99 >Date: Thu, 22 Jul 1999 16:09:39 -0400 >From: Michael Edmiston <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Subject: Re: Exit tests >Sender: "[EMAIL PROTECTED]: Forum for Physics Educators" > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Reply-to: "[EMAIL PROTECTED]: Forum for Physics Educators" > <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Organization: Bluffton College > >Arnulfo Castellanos-Moreno says: "I did not understand. Why do you >need exit tests?" > >Many colleges and universities in the United States are "accredited" by >some organization that certifies the college meets certain standards. > Some public universities also have to follow guidelines set forth by >their state governments. > >There is a fairly strong push in the United States to prove to the >public that the students in colleges and universities get what they >paid for. This means colleges are being forced to perform some type of >assessment program to guarantee that the average student is receiving a >quality education... or at least receiving the type of education the >college advertised it would deliver. > >Some people believe one of the best ways to demonstrate this is by the >use of exit exams. If there would be a standard exam that all physics >graduates would take, then if our average physics graduate performs >near the national average on that exam, we might be able to sleep be >tter at night knowing that our physics program is okay. > >I believe there are all kinds of problems with this premise, but for >the time being our college administration is forcing us to give exit >exams. > >Especially in small colleges where the number of physics graduates is >anywhere from zero to ten per year, the statistics are terrible. A >good class might make it look like our physics program is outstanding, >and a poor class might make it look like we should "pack it in," i.e. >abolish our physics program. > >My son (beginning his last year in high school) is getting recruitment >literature from many colleges. Some of these colleges have begun to >advertise their students' performance on specific exit exams such as >the Educational Testing Service Major Field Test. I think this is very >dangerous territory, but it is bound to happen if people keep demanding >quantifiable assessment. > >One school was bragging about their science program and said that last >year's graduating biology students averaged above the 90th percentile >on the ETS biology exam. (They didn't mention what happened in other >years, and they didn't mention what happened in chemistry or physics.) > One year we had six outstanding chemistry graduates and their ETS >average would place our chemistry program at the 99th percentile. The >next year there were four mediocre chemistry graduates and their ETS >average would rank our chemistry program at the 40th percentile. Can >we advertise the 99th percentile number and ignore the 40th percentile >number? I certainly wouldn't, but I think some admissions departments >are doing just this. Actually, now that we've got chemistry data from >about 6 years, we believe our chemistry program is pretty average. But >we knew that (gut feeling) before doing any organized assessment. > >Michael D. Edmiston, Ph.D. Phone/voice-mail: 419-358-3270 >Professor of Chemistry & Physics FAX: 419-358-3323 >Chairman, Science Department E-Mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Bluffton College >280 West College Avenue >Bluffton, OH 45817 > > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Arnulfo Castellanos Moreno [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] >Sent: Thursday, July 22, 1999 12:19 PM >To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Subject: Re: Exit tests > >I did not understand. Why do you need exit tests? > >Arnulfo Castellanos-Moreno > A Rusli.-
