Abstract
Statistical procedure used in adjusting test score difficulties on test forms is known as “equating”. Equating makes it possible for various test forms to be used interchangeably. In terms of where the equating method fits in the assessment cycle, there are pre-equating and post-equating methods. The major benefits of pre-equating, when applied, are that it facilitates the operational processes of examination bodies in terms of rapid score reporting, quality control and flexibility in the assessment process. The purpose of this study is to ascertain if pre- and post-equating results are comparable. Data for this study, which adopted an equivalent group design method, was taken from the 2012 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) pre-test and 2013 UTME post-test in Use of English (UOE) subject. A pre-equating model using the 3-parameter (3PL) Item Response Theory (IRT) model was used. IRT software was used for the item calibration. Pre- and post-equating were carried out using 100-items per test form in an UOE test. The results indicate that the raw-score and ability estimates between the pre-equated model and the post-equated model were comparable.
Highlights
Developments in the field of education, psychology and statistics communities have immensely assisted resear chers in assessment through its contributions towards the rapidly growing statistical and psychometric methodologies used in test equating
The Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) is compulsory for any candidate seeking admissions into any tertiary institution in Nigeria
The computer-based testing administered by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) takes place at different times and dates and so, several forms of the same test are required in each session in order to forestall item over-exposure of the items in the item bank
Summary
Developments in the field of education, psychology and statistics communities have immensely assisted resear chers in assessment through its contributions towards the rapidly growing statistical and psychometric methodologies used in test equating. In many large-scale, high stakes examinations such as the UTME where immediate reporting of scores are required, pre-equating is often a preferred alternative to post-equating since the equating transformation must be produced in a rather short period of time. The computer-based testing administered by the JAMB takes place at different times and dates and so, several forms of the same test are required in each session in order to forestall item over-exposure of the items in the item bank This is a strategy for curbing incidences of examination security breach. Since immediate score reporting is needed, all forms of tests for all the subjects are preequated in order to make them equivalent This is to ensure that no candidate is in any way placed at a disadvantage because of administering any form of the test forms. A guide against committing serious equating errors through ensuring that model assumptions are to a reasonable extent complied with adds value to the final equating results
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