B020 Assessment Correlation

Correlation between test and examination for different types of tests: A Hong Kong study

Brief:

Assessment is an important part of the teaching and learning process. Assessment allows the instructor to assess the understanding of the students on the subject matters taught. Essay type of questions with calculation components are reckoned to be an accurate tool of assessment and has become the typical examination and test format in the universities worldwide.

The advantage of multiple-choice questions is that marking can be done very quickly and rapid feedback can be given to students. In the case of online multiple-choice tests, the test results can be obtained immediately after the test. If it was found that the correlation between the multiple-choice tests to that of examination is as good as the conventional essay-type questions, we can use it to assess the students with good confidence that it will accurately indicate the students’ performance.

In a first year technical subject at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the author has attempted different types of tests in different years over a 4-year period. The test results are compared with the examination results for the respective years. The purpose of the comparison is to find out whether there is good correlation between the different types of tests to that of examinations.

The association between the test and examination results were analyzed using contingency tables. The result showed that a significant correlation exists. Further evaluation was carried out by Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients and Kendall’s rank correlation coefficient. It was found that both assessments were significantly correlated.

Further information:

To D, Wong LT, Mui KW, 2005. Correlation between test and examination for different types of tests: A Hong Kong study, The 1^st International Conference on Enhancing Teaching and Learning through Assessment, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 13-15 June, Hong Kong. Abstract II, pp. 96-97.