”Skolan är i kris” är ett utmyntat begrepp om dagens svenska skola i media. Begreppet har sitt ursprung från Pisa undersökningarnas försämrade resultat. Pisa provet har börjat få mer kritik och en anledning till det är att det anses vara ett low-stake prov för eleven. Ett low-stake prov innebär att det inte har någon betydelse för elevens betyg vilket då leder till att eleven inte gör sitt bästa på provet. Syftet med föreliggande studie är att undersöka lärare och rektorers uppfattningar om Pisa provet och hur motivationen hos eleverna kan påverka resultatet. Följande frågeställningar genomsyrar undersökningen: Hur ser lärare/rektorer på möjligheten att motivera och förbättra förutsättningarna för att höja elevernas resultat i internationella undersökningar som PISA? Hur ser lärare/rektorer på att media beskriver att skolan är i kris? Hur uppfattar lärare/rektorer betydelsen av internationella undersökningar som PISA? Undersökningens metod har varit personliga intervjuer och en egen modell har konstruerats och använts som ett analysverktyg till intervjuerna. Resultatet av undersökningen är att lärare och rektorer anser att motivationen har en stor betydelse för elevers resultat på Pisa undersökningen. För att motivera eleverna till att prestera sitt bästa på Pisa provet behövs betygssättning, feedback och att eleverna förstår sitt sammanhang med Pisa provet. Undersökningen visar också att lärarna/rektorerna uppfattar Pisa som ett low-stake prov.

Syftet med den här masteruppsaten är huvudsakligen att undersöka hur Tisus, ett språkprov som kan ge behörighet i svenska för universitetsstudier, uppfattas av testtagarna. Detta görs medelst en enkät med 227 respondenter, varav drygt hälften hade godkänts på testet och de övriga hade underkänts. Enkäten följdes upp av en intervjustudie med åtta av nämnda respondenter. Två av dem hade underkänts på Tisus men godkänts på annan väg; den ena genom betyg från behörighetsgivande utbildning och den andra genom Swedex B2 vilket accepterades av det finländska universitet hen sökte sig till. I enlighet med fenomenografiska studier fokuserade intervjuerna på hur respondenterna upplevde språkprovet och de universitetsstudier de följde och vilka känslor de hade rörande kraven på Tisus i jämförelse med hur de erfor de språkbehov de hade på universitetet. De åtta respondenterna skiljer sig åt inbördes vad gäller förstaspråk, studieinriktning, studieort och hemland. Även om respondenterna skilde sig något åt i vissa avseenden så var de ändå förvånansvärt lika i det att de, med kanske ett undantag, lyckas oerhört väl med sina studier. Majoriteten av dem tycker också att Tisus fungerar som språkprov inför högskolestudier och att kraven på Tisus stämmer någorlunda väl överens med de krav de upplever på högskolan. Under studiens gång ställde jag mig ofta frågan om den här intervjustudien hade attraherat vissa studenter mer än andra. Enkätsvaren visar nämligen en delvis annan bild, nämligen att det bland de godkända respondenterna finns ett antal individer som menar att de inte har tillräckliga språkfärdigheter för att klara högskolestudier och/eller anger att de inte möter språkkraven för C1 så som de uttrycks i enkäten. Samtidigt uttryckte flera underkända enkätrespondenter att de språkligt skulle ha klarat av att läsa på universitetet, om de bara hade getts chansen. Tydligt är att det finns gott om utrymme för vidare studier inte bara på ämnet high stake-testning inför universitetsstudier, utan fler studier som inkluderar andraspråkstalande högskolestudenters syn på saken måste också genomföras. / The aim of this master's thesis is mainly to investigate how a Swedish language entrance test for university studies, Tisus, is received by the test takers. This is done by a survey study that covers 227 test takers of which little over half have passed the test and the others had not. The survey was followed by interviews involving eight of the test takers, among which two had failed the Tisus test but had been granted admission to university studies after having had their language skills tested and approved by means of other, different language tests. In accordance with phenomenographic studies, the interviews focused on how the respondents perceived the entrance language test and their university studies and how they felt about the requirements for passing the test in comparison with the experienced language demands on students at their university. The eight respondents represented a diverse group regarding their L1, their choice of studies and university, and home country. However, even though they differed slightly in some regards, they were surprisingly similar in that they, with perhaps one exception, all succeeded extraordinary well as students. The majority of the respondents mainly approve of the requirements of the Tisus test and finds it reasonably comparable to the language needs they experience at university. The question arises if an interview study such as this one attracts some students more than others, because from the results of the survey it is clear that not all students who passed the test have the necessary language skills, according to themselves, and many have not yet become students. At the same time, a number of the survey respondents, who had failed at the test, were of the opinion that the requirements were too high and that they, given the opportunity, might well have managed university studies. It is clear that there is a lot of room for more work in this area, looking at the gate keeping task that high stake testing for university studies needs to fulfill. Also, more studies need to be conducted to gain knowledge about student’s views on the matter.

<p>Syftet med studien var att undersöka försvarsmaktlärares uppfattning om</p><p>relationen mellan kursernas examinationsform och faktorer som har med de</p><p>studerandes lärande att göra. Studien hade dessutom som syfte att undersöka om</p><p>det finns några betydande skillnader i uppfattning mellan skolor med olika</p><p>karaktär i form av generalist- eller specialistinriktning på utbildningen.</p><p>Konstruktionen av empirisk data har möjliggjorts genom att vi har intervjuat</p><p>lärare från två olika skolor, dels Militärhögskolan i Halmstad (MHS H) dels</p><p>Försvarsmaktens tekniska skola (FMTS).</p><p>För att kunna tolka vårt resultat har vi använt oss av två referensramar. Det är</p><p>Marton och Booth teoretiska referensram om lärandet samt Biggs teorier om</p><p>konstruktiv gruppering av de faktorer som främjar lärandet. Resultatet pekar på</p><p>att det är av betydelse för de studerandes lärande att lärarna gör medvetna val för</p><p>att examinationen skall vara ett stöd i lärandet och inte enbart en</p><p>kontrollfunktion. Vidare kan vi konstatera att det inte föreligger några skillnader</p><p>i uppfattning om examinationens vikt för lärandet utan skillnaden ligger i</p><p>uppfattning om i vilken grad man faktiskt har möjlighet att realisera sina planer</p><p>med hänsyn taget till de ramfaktorer som styr planeringen av den genomförda</p><p>utbildningen.</p>

Syftet med studien var att undersöka försvarsmaktlärares uppfattning om relationen mellan kursernas examinationsform och faktorer som har med de studerandes lärande att göra. Studien hade dessutom som syfte att undersöka om det finns några betydande skillnader i uppfattning mellan skolor med olika karaktär i form av generalist- eller specialistinriktning på utbildningen. Konstruktionen av empirisk data har möjliggjorts genom att vi har intervjuat lärare från två olika skolor, dels Militärhögskolan i Halmstad (MHS H) dels Försvarsmaktens tekniska skola (FMTS). För att kunna tolka vårt resultat har vi använt oss av två referensramar. Det är Marton och Booth teoretiska referensram om lärandet samt Biggs teorier om konstruktiv gruppering av de faktorer som främjar lärandet. Resultatet pekar på att det är av betydelse för de studerandes lärande att lärarna gör medvetna val för att examinationen skall vara ett stöd i lärandet och inte enbart en kontrollfunktion. Vidare kan vi konstatera att det inte föreligger några skillnader i uppfattning om examinationens vikt för lärandet utan skillnaden ligger i uppfattning om i vilken grad man faktiskt har möjlighet att realisera sina planer med hänsyn taget till de ramfaktorer som styr planeringen av den genomförda utbildningen.

Traditional tests for large-scale assessment of mathematics learning have been criticized for several reasons, such as their mismatch between the vision of mathematical competence and the content covered by the test, and their failure to provide relevant information for guiding further learning and instruction. To achieve that large-scale assessments can function as tools for monitoring and improving learning and teaching, one has to move away from the rationale, the constraints, and the practices of traditional tests. As an illustration this paper presents an alternative approach to largescale assessment of elementary school mathematics developed in Flanders, Belgium Using models of item response theory, 14 measurement scales were constructed, each representing a cluster of curriculum standards and covering as a whole the mathematics curriculum relating to numbers, measurement and geometry. A representative sample of 5,763 sixth-graders (12-year-olds) belonging to 184 schools participated in the study. Based on expert judgments a cut-off score was set that determines the minimum level that students must achieve on each scale to master the standards. Overall, the more innovative curriculum standards were mastered less well than the more traditional ones. Few gender differences in performance were observed. The advantages of this approach and its further development are discussed.

Traditional tests for large-scale assessment of mathematics learning have been criticized for several reasons, such as their mismatch between the vision of mathematical competence and the content covered by the test, and their failure to provide relevant information for guiding further learning and instruction. To achieve that large-scale assessments can function as tools for monitoring and improving learning and teaching, one has to move away from the rationale, the constraints, and the practices of traditional tests. As an illustration this paper presents an alternative approach to largescale assessment of elementary school mathematics developed in Flanders, Belgium Using models of item response theory, 14 measurement scales were constructed, each representing a cluster of curriculum standards and covering as a whole the mathematics curriculum relating to numbers, measurement and geometry. A representative sample of 5,763 sixth-graders (12-year-olds) belonging to 184 schools participated in the study. Based on expert judgments a cut-off score was set that determines the minimum level that students must achieve on each scale to master the standards. Overall, the more innovative curriculum standards were mastered less well than the more traditional ones. Few gender differences in performance were observed. The advantages of this approach and its further development are discussed.

While there is general agreement about its importance, the construct of educational readiness is nebulous with much debate about what constitutes readiness. Readiness has been found to be a multidimensional psychological construct from a psychometric perspective. However, there is a growing awareness that this psychometric focus is lopsided, and that readiness does not only reside in the child. Further, there is an accompanying appreciation that readiness research may need to focus more on the subjective experience of individuals within the context of their environment. This phenomenological study, using Bronfenbrenner's social-ecological model, explored how Antigua and Barbudan students experienced readiness as they prepared to take the 2017 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate Exam (CSEC). In an interview, each of the 12 participants recounted their experience as they readied themselves for the CSEC. The data were analyzed through content and framework analysis. The results support findings in the literature that showed that readiness is a complex and iterative process. It is the result of the dynamic interplay of various inputs of a host of individuals functioning at different levels of the readiness system. These results can then provide a point of entry for both national dialogue and policy formulation culminating in the provision of comprehensive services to support students' readiness experiences. The ultimate hope is that readiness for the CSEC Exam will lead to actual success on the exams, which in turn will translate into improved life chances of Antigua and Barbudan students.

Faking in applications was found to be an important issue in which social desirability plays a relevant role. The present study brings Social Desirability Responding, Honesty-Humility, and different stakes of situations into relation. Social Desirability Responding, i.e. Communion Management and Self-Deceptive Enhancement, operationalized by the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR) and Honesty-Humility (HEXACO-60) are analysed regarding their relationships and differences in and between high-stake, low-stake, and high-stake-low-framed situations. Relationships between Honesty-Humility and Communion Management were significantly positive, while no relationship between Honesty-Humility and Self-Deceptive Enhancement was found. There were also no significant differences in the constructs across situations. It was further investigated whether individuals scoring low in Honesty-Humility show different responding behaviour dependent on situational frames compared to individuals scoring high in Honesty-Humility. No significant differences were found. Results imply that Social Desirable Responding scales do not measure what they intent to, hence further research is needed. The tested high-stake-low-framed situational instruction did not significantly reduce faking. However, exploring the option of framing application situations is recommended for organizations. Further, the problematic nature of measuring Social Desirability Responding is considered.

This study explored the associations of students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation towards high-stake tests in Physical education. The study collected data with questionnaires from 81 Swedish compulsory school students. The questionnaires in this study were based on the Academic Motivation Scale. Furthermore, this study was based on Self-Determination Theory. In congruence with previous research, this study found that females received a significantly higher grade than male students. The results also suggest that there was no significant difference between the different test-groups actual performance. The results of the study concluded that there are no correlations between motivation [towards high-stake tests] and the actual performance of students. Moreover, students were more motivated by external regulation (receiving higher grades) than intrinsic motivation to know (to learn a skill for life). Students perceived higher test anxiety if they were to perform in front of their classmates. However, the test-groups did not perform statistically differently which then leads to the question on the necessities of using these forms of high-stake test since it does not increase performance but is perceived to be more stressful for students. Further research is necessary to draw any generalizable conclusions if there is any correlation between motivation, high-stake tests, and perceived test anxiety.

At ABCD High School, students with disabilities (SWDs) pass state-mandated English High School Assessments (HSA) at a lower rate than do their nondisabled peers, even with remediation. The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers' perceptions of appropriate remediation for preparing SWDs for the English HSA. The theoretical foundation for the study was based on social constructivism with an emphasis on individual experiences. The 3 key research questions investigated how teachers perceive their role in the delivery of remediation, how they describe the remediation program, and what factors they say influence their ability to remediate SWDs effectively. Data were collected from observations of remediation instruction (n = 12), individual interviews of English teachers (n = 6), and school documents pertaining to remediation. A qualitative data analysis was conducted with constant comparison and open, axial, and selective coding in order to identify emergent themes and sub-themes. Findings indicated inadequacies in instructional materials, teachers' poor understanding of student disabilities, a lack of formal teacher training, scheduling problems, difficulty motivating students, and a lack of collaboration among colleagues. The creation of teacher professional development workshops was recommended to study various disabilities and to share strategies for improving remediation of SWDs. Implications of positive social change include improved teacher buy-in regarding SWDs, a more cohesive learning community, and an openness to innovative strategies of remediation, leading to greater instructional effectiveness.