Certificate Examination Research Articles

Athena: Specialty Certificate Examination case for cutaneous oncology.

This is a case of Kaposi sarcoma, and the Athena question focuses on its management.

An assessment of core mathematics performance of selected single-sex schools in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana

This cross-sectional study was designed to compare gender difference in mathematics achievement in four selected single-sex senior high schools in Ghana. Results of 18,781 students from the selected schools were analyzed based on the final examinations, West African senior school certificate examination (WASSCE) data for 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018-year groups. In 2010, there was no examination; thus, the data analyzed excluded that of 2010. The results are graded from grade A1 to F9 so to ensure clarity in the results, grades were coded from 1 to 9. The grades were coded to correspond with the codes, ranging from the highest grade (A1) to the lowest (F9). The findings indicated that girls performed better than boys and the independent sampling t-test also showed there was a significant difference in the performance of girls and boys. This indicates that there is no equality in core mathematics performance of boys and girls. Teachers of mathematics are encouraged to identify underlying factors that account for the disparity in performance and also to ensure that students of both gender exhibit excellent performance in mathematics.

Coverage of Core Mathematics Syllabus among Senior High Schools in Ghana: The Case of Sagnarigu Municipality

As far as students’ academic performance in the West Africa Secondary School Certificate Examination is concerned, coverage of syllabus among other factors has been identified as key. The purpose of the study was to investigate the perceived factors that influence core mathematics syllabus coverage in Senior High Schools in Ghana. A qualitative research approach with case study design, guided by four research questions and semi-structured oral interview guide as well as questionnaire were used in the study. Participants were selected using a purposive and convenient sampling techniques. The data was analysed in themes and presented on frequency tables. The study found that national education policies, Covid 19 pandemic, school programs, and teacher/students-related issues were the perceived factors that influenced coverage of the core mathematics syllabus. The study employed the Goal Setting and self-Efficacy theories. The instrument was pretested by the researcher to determine its validity. It was therefore recommended that government should provide schools with textbooks, furniture, teaching and learning materials, more classrooms, library, laboratories as well as motivate teachers with better conditions of service.

Athena: SpecialtyCertificate Examination case forformulationandsystemic therapy.

This Athena details the case of a 53-year-old woman with ongoing hair loss who was taking several medications.

Athena: Speciality Certificate Examination case for general dermatology and dermatology in primary healthcare.

This Athena case describes a young man with sudden-onset eruption of localized plaques on the right neck in the setting of treatments for recently diagnosed acute myeloid leukaemia.

ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4 dermatological knowledge level based on the Specialty Certificate Examination in Dermatology.

The global use of artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to revolutionize the healthcare industry. Despite the fact that AI is becoming more popular, there is still a lack of evidence on its use in dermatology. To determine the capacity of ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4 to support dermatology knowledge and clinical decision-making in medical practice. Three Specialty Certificate Examination in Dermatology tests, in English and Polish, consisting of 120 single-best-answer, multiple-choice questions each, were used to assess the performance of ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4. ChatGPT-4 exceeded the 60% pass rate in every performed test, with a minimum of 80% and 70% correct answers for the English and Polish versions, respectively. ChatGPT-4 performed significantly better on each exam (P < 0.01), regardless of language, compared with ChatGPT-3.5. Furthermore, ChatGPT-4 answered clinical picture-type questions with an average accuracy of 93.0% and 84.2% for questions in English and Polish, respectively. The difference between the tests in Polish and English were not significant; however, ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4 performed better overall in English than in Polish by an average of 8 percentage points for each test. Incorrect ChatGPT answers were highly correlated with a lower difficulty index, denoting questions of higher difficulty in most of the tests (P < 0.05). The dermatology knowledge level of ChatGPT was high, and ChatGPT-4 performed significantly better than ChatGPT-3.5. Although the use of ChatGPT will not replace a doctor's final decision, physicians should support the development of AI in dermatology to raise the standards of medical care.

Examining the Relationship between Learning Context, School Choice, and Academic Performance: A Study of Government-Assisted Adventist Secondary Schools in the Ashanti, Ghana

This study aimed at examining the association between the learning context, school choice, and academic performance. An Embedded Mixed Methods design was applied within the framework of the pragmatic research paradigm. The target population consisted of 5 Government-Assisted Adventist secondary schools in the Ashanti Region, Ghana, with 27,388 students and stakeholders. The study involved a sample of 396; 200 students and 196 stakeholders (management and teachers, old students, pastors, church members, and parents). Sampling strategies included simple random, stratified random, purposive, and snowball due to the diversity of the respondents. The data were analysed using ANOVA, Correlation, Crosstabulation, and documentary techniques. The findings indicated a significant difference between Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE) and West Africa Senior School Certificate Examinations (WASSCE) performance with p-values of .016 and .000, respectively, P&lt;.05 at a 95% Confidence Interval. There was a significant correlation between the learning context standard and parental school choice. The results showed that schools with low-standard learning contexts mainly attract average and low-performing applicants. The study suggests enhancing the learning context standards of less-endowed secondary schools to boost their competitiveness. Policymakers are urged to incorporate diagnostic, formative, and summative assessment approaches in evaluating secondary schools, taking into account their learning context to ensure fairness, reliability, and equity.

Athena: Specialty Certificate Examination case fordermatopathology.

A 48-year-old woman presented with a 2-year history of a lesion arising from the umbilicus. The lesion exuded a cyclical serosanguinous fluid with menses. Histology demonstrated a dermal lesion of glandular structures lined by endometrial-type epithelial cells.

A critical view of National Senior Certificate examination discourse and First Additional Language writing tests

Critical views on language testing have long pointed out that tests are not neutral and that the use of test results requires a deeper interrogation of who is assessed, in what language and to whose benefit In South Africa, English, especially Standard English, creates a linguistic market where additional language (L2) students' writing and English language proficiency are under constant evaluation. Various systemic tests since 1994 highlight students' low English language proficiency, often resulting in negative discourses about their L2 proficiency and teachers' pedagogy. However, a key factor missing in such a narrative is how writing test design and its corresponding examination discourse impact pedagogy and the required writer identities needed in post-school contexts. This study draws on systemic functional linguistics (SFL) to illustrate the relationship between L2 writing discourse in the National Senior Certificate (NSC) examination (2017-2019) and the writing requirements stipulated in the national curriculum. The findings reveal that narrow definitions of writing proficiency underpin the test items and that the assessment documents are unlikely to contribute to academic writing and discourse competencies in school or post-school contexts in South Africa.

Teacher Accountability and Student’s Academic Achievement in Mission Secondary Schools in Anambra State, Nigeria: An Appraisal of Market- Based Accountability Model in Education

This study investigated teacher accountability and students’ academic achievement in mission secondary schools in Anambra State, Nigeria: an appraisal of market-based accountability model in education. The study adopted the correlational survey method, covering all principals, teachers and students’ result in the senior school certificate examination (SSCE) in mission secondary schools in Anambra State, Nigeria. The stratified random sampling technique was used to select 500 principals and teachers, and 500 students’ SSCE result from 50 schools. The Teacher Accountability, Students’ Academic Achievement Questionnaire (TASAAQ) and Students’ Academic Checklist (SAAC) were used to collect data from respondents. Data collected were analyzed using percentages, means scores, standard deviation, Pearson’s product moment correlation co-efficient and T-test. Findings revealed that the market-based accountability model is not fashionable for teacher accountability in mission secondary schools in mission schools, students’ academic achievement was high, teacher accountability has positive correlation with students’ academic achievement and both principals and teachers agree that teacher accountability is necessary for students’ academic achievement. Study recommended that important tenets of market-based accountability model should be adopted to bring teachers to accountability and increase chances of students’ academic achievement.

Effect of Undergraduate Business Students’ Entry Characteristics on Academic Success

The purpose of this study is to explore the effects of undergraduate business students’ entry characteristics (West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE), Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE), General Certificate of Education (GCE) ordinary level certificate, and matured entry) on academic success in terms of cumulative grade point average (CGPA), competencies (soft skills), acquired, and overall academic performance. Through a cross-sectional survey, 382 final year business students were selected from two universities in Ghana to participate in the study. Academic records of the students were obtained and complementary primary data were collected from these same respondents through questionnaire administration. Data were analyzed using PLS–SEM. The only statistically significant results the study established were that WASSCE has a positive relationship with competences and overall academic performance, and mature entry also had a negative relationship with competence. The study recommended revisions to the current admission criteria as universities need to entrench individualized curricula to cater the diversity occasioned by the variety of entry qualifications students. While direct applicants (e.g., applicants with WASSCE) may follow the current curriculum, bridging courses may be necessary to bring the mature applicants to the level of the direct applicants to ensure parity of knowledge.

Athena Specialty Certificate Examination case for Paediatrics and Genetics.

This is an Athena Specialty Certificate Examination case of a child who presented with marked ichthyosis at birth, alongside clinical features including rhizomelic limb shortening, bilateral cataracts and conductive hearing loss. We discuss the diagnosis, along with potential causes of congenital ichthyoses, highlighting distinguishing features among them.

Truancy, Indiscipline and Peer Pressure as Correlates of Students’ Academic Performance in Social Studies in Ekiti State, Nigeria

The study investigated truancy, indiscipline and peer pressure as correlates of students’ academic performance in social studies in Upper Basic Schools in Ido/Osi Government Area of Ekiti State, Nigeria. The study adopted correlational research design. The sample of this study was made up 100 upper basic 3 students from 5 out of 16 public upper basic schools in Ido/Osi LGA of Ekiti State, Nigeria was selected using multistage sampling techniques. The instruments used for data collection were Truancy, Indiscipline and Peer-Pressure Questionnaire (TIPPQ) and result of basic education certificate examination (BECE) for 2022 set. The result of BECE and TIPPQ used was validated by two experts in social studies and one expert in measurement and evaluation. TIPPQ was trial tested which yielded the reliability coefficient of 0.88 using Cronbach Alpha. Three research questions raised in the study were answered using multiple regression analysis while the three null hypotheses formulated in the study were tested using ANOVA of regression analysis. The study revealed among other that there is significant relationship between truancy and students academic performance [F1, 99 = 34.737; p&lt;0.05]. There is significant relationship between indiscipline and students academic performance [F1, 99 = 12.009; p&lt;0.05]. There is significant relationship between peer pressure and students’ academic performance [F1, 99 = 10.319; p&lt;0.05]. It was recommended among that, to improve students’ academic performance in social studies, school administrators including principals and vice-principals should set up disciplinary committee reduce or curb truancy, indiscipline and peer group among students in upper basic schools.

Athena: Specialty Certificate Examination case for general dermatology and dermatology in primary healthcare.

A 75-year-old woman presented to the dermatology clinic with a 6-month history of painful oral erosions. Clinical examination of the oral cavity revealed two intact tense bullae at the right retromolar trigone, the features of which were accentuated by white light illumination using a dermoscope. We discuss further assays, diagnosis and treatment.

Athena: Specialty Certificate Examination case for infectious disease.

A 63-year-old man presented with an extensive pruritic and painful rash on his arm that had gradually progressed over 8 years after pricking his wrist on a bush, despite treatment with antifungals and antibiotics. Physical examination showed numerous erythematous, coalescing verrucous plaques in a sporotrichoid distribution on the arm with crust and scale. We discuss further tests, diagnosis and treatment.

Performance of ChatGPT on dermatology Specialty Certificate Examination multiple choice questions.

ChatGPT is a large language model trained on increasingly large datasets by OpenAI to perform language-based tasks. It is capable of answering multiple-choice questions, such as those posed by the dermatology SCE examination. We asked two iterations of ChatGPT: ChatGPT-3.5 and ChatGPT-4 84 multiple-choice sample questions from the sample dermatology SCE question bank. ChatGPT-3.5 achieved an overall score of 63.1%, and ChatGPT-4 scored 90.5% (a significant improvement in performance (p<0.001)). The typical pass mark for the dermatology SCE is 70-72%. ChatGPT-4 is therefore capable of answering clinical questions and achieving a passing grade in these sample questions. There are many possible educational and clinical implications for increasingly advanced artificial intelligence (AI) and its use in medicine, including in the diagnosis of dermatological conditions. Such advances should be embraced provided that patient safety is a core tenet, and the limitations of AI in the nuances of complex clinical cases are recognised.

Content Validity Index of Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) Test Items in Basic Science and Technology (BST)

This study quantitatively provided evidence of content validity of BECE items in BST by estimating content validity index (CVI). Descriptive survey research designs were employed. Purposive and accidental sampling techniques were adopted in selecting 31 BST teachers in Abia State junior secondary schools. Three research questions were addressed. The instrument for data collection was 2021 BECE items in BST comprising four subtests with 30 items each. Item level CVIs, test level CVI and modified kappa statistic were computed. Findings revealed that 95% of the items of BST reported I-CVIs ranging from 0.70 – 1.00 and were accepted as having adequate content validity whereas the remaining 5% of the items, four from PHE and one from Computer Studies had low I-CVIs. The T-CVI yielded a high index of 0.95. Finally, kappa statistic adjusting for chance agreement indicated 0.763 – 1.00 for 95% of the BST items which proved excellent agreement among the experts.

Athena: Speciality Certificate Examination case for general dermatology and dermatology in primary healthcare.

A 62-year-old man was referred to the emergency department with a 6-day history of a progressive pustular eruption; he had commenced ceftriaxone to treat suspected facial cellulitis 2 days prior. He had no significant past medical or dermatological history. This is a case of a rare severe cutaneous adverse reaction to a prescribed drug.

Athena: Specialty Certificate Examination case for general dermatology and dermatology in primary healthcare.

An Athena case of a 16-year-old teenager with patchy hair loss.

A Comparative Study of the High School Leaving Certificate (H.S.L.C.) Examination Results of Government and Private High School Between 2017-2021

A comparative study of the High School leaving Certificate (H.S.L.C.) Examination Results of Government and Private High School is a study to compare the results of students in class X standard in Aizawl city. This study is a study to compare the results of students in class X standard studying in government and private schools. A purposive sampling technique was applied for the present study, comprising 4394 students from 11 government schools and 12 private schools in Aizawl city. The study revealed the pass percentage of private schools are better than government schools within the five year span of school session.