Thai Students Get Gat Surprise

[george]

Students get gat surprise

BANGKOK: -- In order to teach students that they should not rely on tutorial schools all the time, the National Institute of Educational Testing Services (NIETS) has included a surprise in the latest round of General Aptitude Test (GAT).

Unlike the previous rounds, the third round of GAT had 41 answers in the analytical part.

"In the first and second rounds of GAT, this part just had 40 answers and we heard that tutorial schools kept reminding their students of this figure," NIETS director Dr Utumporn Jamornman said yesterday.

In a bid to teach a lesson to the tutorial schools and their students, Utumporn said NIETS had deliberately increased the number of answers.

"It is regrettable to see many students erased one answer after they found they had 41, though some of them could have got full marks," Utumporn said.

She added that NIETS wanted to encourage students to have confidence in themselves and to not believe everything they are told at tutorial schools.

Results from the third round of the GAT/PAT (Professional Aptitude Test) are now available on www.niets.or.th and www.gatpat.samart.co.th/GPRSRegisterweb. These two tests are very important for students because they are part of the university admission criteria.

Students who doubt their results have between November 14 and 20 to submit a request to check the answer sheets. NIETS will release the answer sheets on either December 19 or 20.

According to Utumporn, NIETS also redesigned PAT in the latest round by increasing the analytical parts.

"We have replaced many multiplechoice questions with filltheblank questions," she said, adding that this made the tests more difficult for some students. However, she said, the new design should not pose a problem for those with a strong academic background.

So far, she acknowledged that the third round of PAT saw low scores in all subjects. The highest score in PAT1 (Math) was 270 and 237 in PAT 3 (Engineering Aptitude).

In the second round, the highest scores in PAT 1 and PAT 3 were 300 and 260 respectively.

In the first round, the highest scores in PAT 1 and PAT 3 were 300 and 240 respectively.

Utumporn added that security on the NIETS website had been upgraded and that it could survive more than two million virus attacks. Last month, the website was brought down by hackers.

"We will try to find out whether the virus came automatically from students' infected computers or if they are being sent by illintentioned people," she said.

-- The Nation 2009-11-11

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[Scott]

First of all, thanks George for thinking of us down here in our lowly, but important Teaching Forum!

I am not quite sure what the gov't's intentions are. Is it to determine the knowledge of the students? Is to undermine tutorial schools? Is it give a boost to gov't schools?

It is sad to think that the gov't might actually be trying to do something other than determine the level of knowledge.

[Xangsamhua]

There was a recent outcry after students sitting the New South Wales HSC (Year 12 external exam) paper for Study of Religion complained that a question had been included for which they had not been prepared and was outside the normal frame for questions in this subject's exam format. There were also many fewer options than 40 or 41.

Examiners claimed that the question should have been quite manageable for students who had grasped the understandings necessary, as they should have if they'd done more than simply cram the kind of questions given on past papers.

Not all students complained, of course, but enough did to provoke the examiners to review the issue and ensure that no students would be disadvantaged. One can ask if high stakes exams are the appropriate sites for springing surprises on students or making a point about cramming. I don't know how "high stakes" the GAT is and adding an extra question to an already expected 40 doesn't seem all that crucial, but students' legitimate expectations should be acknowledged. I wonder how long it is since Dr Utumporn and the others sat an exam. I did for an MEd paper in 1998 for the first time in 30+ years and it was quite traumatic.

[PeaceBlondie]

The news article in English may have lost something in translation, but I don't quite see the problem. Maybe the cram schools are focusing on mechanicals such as the number of questions on each part of a big exam. The testing board should not play games simply to thwart legitimate exam prep courses.

The reported declines in max test scores suggest the tests are getting tougher. The inclusion of fill-the-blank questions does the same. However, I wonder if the examiners are well trained to grade the answers.

[TerryLH]

Does anyone know the high scores on the latest GAT and PAT 2 (Science) tests?

[Bagwan]

OK, I'll admit to being old and crotchety at times but I have never understood why multiple answers are supplied on an examination paper. What is wrong with setting test questions and expect those sitting the exam to answer as best they can? Why should guessing be part of the test procedure? I learned my 'times tables' by rote and the only teaching aid available then was chalk and and a blackboard. Many of the lessons that I attended were carried out in an air raid shelter to escape the predations of the Luftwaffe, and I remember writing an essay with an exercise book on my knees and wearing a gas mask.

In a previous life part of my professional remit was to interview graduates with a view to employment by a major computer company. I was constantly appalled by the standard of general education, the misuse of the English language and its grammar, and an inability to understand the simple rules of arithmetic displayed by the youngsters in front of me. I would interview about 200 young persons every year just to find 12 who I thought would emerge as tyro systems engineers after undergoing a rigorous 2 year education and training programme.

So what had gone wrong? Why did I consider so many of the interviewees who had the benefit of an university education as being thick? Why did the UK education system churn out young people fit only to be 'factory fodder'? All too many were virtually unemployable. I shudder to think what the Thai education system produces.

[Scott]

Testing is a double-edged sword. On one hand it gives us an idea of what students know and have achieved. On the other hand, a lot of students only learn what they (or their teachers, or their tutorial school) believe will be on the test.

When it comes to correcting exams, it can be an extremely onerous task if the questions are open-ended. Multiple choice is the alternative to this.

Because of the silliness in scoring tests in Thailand (no-failures), I use the test to help me understand if what I have succeeded in teaching them.

I am not sure what it is the MOE is doing with testing--other than trying to trick tutorial schools.

[KhaoNiaw]

The reported declines in max test scores suggest the tests are getting tougher. The inclusion of fill-the-blank questions does the same. However, I wonder if the examiners are well trained to grade the answers.

Also more M5 students who are just taking it to see what it's like, even though they haven't covered a lot of the material yet. Less M6 students because many have already got places lined up at university through direct admission or are happy with the scores they've already got.

I don't think M5 kids will be allowed to take the exams next year?

[Scott]

It should also be added that as more students enter the Mathyom level classes--which has occurred because of 'free' education through G. 12 and more people being able to afford to send kids to school, the scores will likely go down.