ABSTRACT

There are two major myths concerning A level exam standards in England. First, the Ancient Myth, which insists that standards were norm-referenced until the 1980s, when they transitioned to being criterion-referenced. Second, the Modern Myth, which insists that standards transitioned again, during the 2010s, to being based upon the comparable outcomes principle. The present paper debunks these myths, arguing that: except for the occasional use of comparable outcomes to bridge qualification reforms, A level standards have always been attainment-referenced; and that this has always been operationalised using a combination of methods, including both examiner judgement of exam performances and statistical expectations of cohort attainment. The paper also argues that what has changed significantly is the degree of confidence that the exam industry has placed in examiner judgement relative to statistical expectations, which has waxed and waned over time. When statistical expectations have prevailed, pass rates have tended to plateau; somewhat implausibly. When examiner judgement has prevailed, pass rates have tended to rise; also somewhat implausibly. These trends have given a false impression of principled transitions, which the paper dispels.

摘要

关于英格兰的 A-level 考试标准有两个主要的神话。首先是古代神话，它坚持标准是规范参考的，直到 1980 年代，当它们过渡到标准参考时。其次，现代神话坚持认为标准在 2010 年代再次转变为基于可比结果原则。本文揭穿了这些神话，认为：除了偶尔使用可比较的结果来桥接资格改革外，A-level 标准一直都是以成绩为参考的；并且这一直是使用多种方法来实现的，包括考官对考试成绩的判断和对队列成绩的统计预期。该论文还认为，发生显着变化的是考试行业对考官判断相对于统计预期的信心程度，这种信心随着时间的推移而起伏不定。当统计预期占上风时，通过率趋于平稳；有点难以置信。当考官的判断占上风时，通过率往往会上升；也有些难以置信。这些趋势给人以原则性转变的错误印象，而本文消除了这种印象。