Final Marks Research Articles

A computer-based evaluation system: Its design, implementation and results obtained on a general chemistry course

Using multiple evaluation methods and systems give a comprehensive assessment. A computer-based multiple-choice assessment system was designed, implemented, posted online, and used to assess students as part of their final evaluation marks for a discipline. The online system of evaluation was intended to be used multiple times for evaluating the assimilation degree of a specific course at the end of the course. The data recorded for the period 2017–2023 with about 1400 distinct users were used to analyze the performance of the evaluation system. The system worked fine and a slight modification of it served well on remote evaluation during COVID-19 period. However, the upturn of mobile phone applications requires the creation of a system adapted to the new virtual reality.

Evaluating classroom response systems in engineering education: Which metrics better reflect student performance?

AbstractClassroom response systems (CRS) represent an innovative educational technology that can be used to promote active learning and student engagement. This study explores the effectiveness of CRS in enhancing student learning and performance across various engineering courses related to heat engines. During five academic years, CRS have been used weekly in six subjects that belong to two bachelor’s degrees and one master’s degree to promote continuous learning. The performance of the students in the CRS benefits the student by up to + 10% in the final mark. In this period, data from more than 1,000 students has been collected, including key performance indicators (KPIs) derived from Kahoot!, such as the number and correctness of responses and time spent answering, and other evaluations such as theory and numerical problem exams results. The objective of the study is to find the KPI that best identifies the knowledge acquisition by the students. In order to do so, the correlation of the KPI with the final exams is analysed by means of the correlation of determination and the root mean square error. The findings reveal that KPIs based on the number of questions asked exhibit stronger correlations with exam results compared to those based on responses or correctness. The study also highlights the positive impact of CRS on student engagement, classroom dynamics, and exam preparation, supported by student feedback. In essence, this research provides insights into the relationship between CRS metrics and academic outcomes, offering valuable considerations for the integration of technology in engineering education.

Factors determining high academic attainment in primary school (based on the longitudinal study of year 2 and year 4 Russian schoolchildren)

Introduction. The study attempts to solve the problem of predicting academic attainment in primary school. The main emphasis in selecting factors to predict success in learning was on personal and contextual ones. Among personal factors, executive functions were considered, which are described by many authors as significant for successful learning. Among the contextual factors, the main focus is on marks given to schoolchildren in each subject by their teacher. An attempt is made to predict children’s academic attainment in Year 4 based on data on academic attainment in Year 2. Materials and Methods. 53 primary schoolchildren were examined first in Year 2 and then in Year 4. The following executive functions were studied: working memory (using the O. M. Razumnikova’s technique) and inhibitory control (using E. G. Vergunova and E. I. Nikolaeva’s inventory). In addition, final marks in all subjects were analyzed for each year. All schoolchildren were assigned to one of the following groups: ‘excellent students’, ‘good students’, ‘C students’. This parameter was called ‘academic attainment’. First, using factor analysis, correlations between the studied parameters were identified separately for Year 2 and Year 4, then a regression analysis was carried out, with the help of which the factors influencing high academic attainment in Year 2 and Year 4 for the same children were identified. Finally, a factor analysis was conducted in order to assess academic attainment in Year 4 based on data collected in Year 2. Results. Factor analysis revealed that marks given to primary schoolchildren by the main teacher in Year 2 correlate with each other, that is, a halo effect is noted when marks are given not for a particular student’s answer, but according to teacher’s general impression about them. As part of the regression analysis, it was shown that in Year 2, academic attainment is determined only by final marks in the Russian language. Only in Year 4 the influence of inhibitory control and working memory on academic attainment was found. An attempt to predict academic attainment based on the results of Year 2 showed that academic attainment in Year 4 can only be predicted on the basis of final assessment in the Russian language. It can be assumed that this subject is more difficult for children than others; therefore it requires maximum inclusion of executive functions. Conclusions. The study revealed that executive functions do not affect academic attainment in Year 2, but inhibitory control is a significant factor predicting academic attainment in Year 4. Inhibitory control at the behavioral level is assessed as the level of manifestation of volitional quality in a child. A significant relationship was found in Year 4 between high scores in Reading and high scores in Music, Art, and Science. This indicates that central processes that underlie activities in these subjects are interconnected. Finally, it was found that a significant factor predicting academic attainment in Year 4 is the mark for Russian language in Year 2.

Addressing musculoskeletal curricular inadequacies within undergraduate medical education

BackgroundMusculoskeletal (MSK) injuries and diseases place a significant burden on the health care system. Despite this, research indicates that physician training in the area of MSK medicine has historically been inadequate, with a majority of medical students feeling that their training in MSK medicine is lacking. The goal of this investigation was to evaluate the efficacy of a new preclinical MSK curriculum that was implemented within a nationally accredited allopathic medical program.MethodsRetrospective analysis was completed on five consecutive years (2017–2021) of preclinical MSK curricular data for 549 medical students, including mid and end-of-course examinations and end-of-course student satisfaction surveys. Both parametric and non-parametric methods of analysis were used to examine within and between class differences (P < 0.05).ResultsThe new MSK curriculum covered 15 of 16 “core or must know” topics in MSK medicine, and academic performance was consistently high over the 5-year period of analysis (final course marks ranged from 76.6 ± 7.1 to 81.4 ± 8.1; failures/year: range from 0 to 4), being equal or above levels of student performance observed for other courses delivered during preclinical studies. Likert data from end-of-course surveys demonstrated that feedback was overwhelmingly positive (overall course satisfaction ranged from a low of 3.07/4.00 to a high of 3.56/4.00) and indicated that students felt that the new preclinical MSK curriculum did effectively support medical student learning and knowledge retention.ConclusionResults are expected to help advance the current body of knowledge that is dedicated to improving physician learning and knowledge retention in the area of MSK medicine and provides a curricular model that could be used by other nationally accredited medical programs to help enhance MSK learning at the preclinical levels of physician training.

Investigating the link between students’ learning intentions and their learning outcomes: A clustered randomised controlled trial

We investigate the impact of repeated contextual nudging on task com- pletion and performance within the setting of traditional face-to-face education, adding to a literature which has focused on non-contextual nudges, provided contextual nudges in online learning settings, or used one-time nudges. We undertake a clustered randomised controlled trial on first-year Business School students at Heriot-Watt University, employing weekly nudges during tutorials to encourage students to establish learning intentions for the upcoming week. We rule out significant treatment effects from the nudging intervention on tutorial attendance, the most important predictor of final marks of all intermediate outcomes that we consider. We are unable to make causal statements on the effects of the intervention on final marks. Nonetheless, this experiment yields valuable insights into the dynamics of repeated contextual nudging within traditional educational settings as well as shedding light on aspects of student behaviour.

Expectancies, learning anxiety, and students’ achievement

ABSTRACT This paper attempts to estimate the relationships between teachers’ and parents’ expectancies and students’ achievement in mathematics and literacy as measured by matriculation exam scores and final marks in the 12th-grade. Furthermore, it was examined whether these links are mediated by students’ self-expectancies and their mathematics and literacy anxiety. The hypothesised direct and indirect links were tested using structural equation modelling based on data gathered in a cross-sectional study (n = 479). The exam scores in mathematics and literacy were directly related only to parents’ expectancies, in contrast to mathematics and literacy marks which were directly related only to teachers’ expectancies. Moreover, students’ self-expectancies acted as a positive, while mathematics and literacy anxiety acted as a negative regulator of the links between significant others’ expectancies and students’ outcomes in both subjects. The findings were discussed in the light of theories and results of studies concerning teachers’ and parents’ expectancy effects.

Garden Ecological Quality Evaluation Based on Green Landscape Image Semantic Segmentation Model

This work suggests predicting student performance using a Gaussian process model classification in order to address the issue that the prediction approach is too complex and the data set involved is too huge in the process of predicting students’ performance. In order to prevent overfitting, a sample set consisting of the three typical test outcomes from 465 undergraduate College English students is divided into training and test sets. The cross-validation technique is used in this study. According to the findings, Gaussian process model classification can accurately predict 92% of the test set with a prediction model, and it can also forecast students’ final exam marks based on their typical quiz scores. Furthermore, it is discovered that the prediction accuracy increases with the sample set’s distance from the normal distribution; this prediction accuracy rises to 96% when test scores with less than 60 points are taken out of the analysis.

Mathematics self-concept and response pattern in higher education examinations: differences between genders

The study examined how mathematics self-concept, mathematics anxiety and endorsement of mathematics gender stereotypes may impact female students’ response pattern in multiple-choice examinations in courses with mathematical content. Questionnaires measuring these three variables were completed by 435 undergraduates (327 enrolled in a non-mathematical course and 108 in a course with mathematical content). Achievement was measured via multiple-choice examinations, thus allowing us to analyse students’ response patterns (i.e. not only their mark but also the number of hits, errors and unanswered questions). In females, a poorer mathematics self-concept and higher levels of mathematics anxiety (compared with male classmates) did not impact negatively on their final mark in the course with mathematical content. However, the response pattern in this course differed according to gender and mathematics self-concept: a poorer mathematics self-concept was associated with a higher number of unanswered questions in women and a tendency toward a greater number of errors in men. This suggests that a poorer mathematics self-concept leads women to be more cautious during multiple-choice examinations so as to minimise mistakes, whereas in males it tends to be associated with a risk-taking response strategy. These results raise further concerns about the use of multiple-choice examinations, particularly for assessing mathematical knowledge in students with low mathematics self-concept.

Evaluating the Academic Benefits of Clinical Legal Education: An Analysis of the Final Average Marks of Five Cohorts of LSBU LLB Graduating Students, 2011-2015

This article seeks to contribute to the ongoing pedagogic debate about the aims and benefits of clinical legal education and to do so using a quantitative methodology. It is the result of a collaborative project within the School of Law &amp; Social Sciences at LSBU, researching whether placements in our Legal Advice Clinic have had any positive impact on Law students’ academic performance. We have analysed the academic results[1] of five cohorts of LLB full-time undergraduates, those graduating from 2011 to 2015,[2] to see whether students who volunteered in our Legal Advice Clinic achieved better grades than those who didn’t. Generally, they do. However, given the fact that places at the clinic are limited and recruitment is selective and to try and eliminate the possibility that the most academically successful students are the most likely to volunteer and be selected, we have controlled for first year average results. Even so, it appears that students who achieve similar grades in their first year are likely to get slightly better final grades, just under 2% better, if they volunteer in our Legal Advice Clinic in their second year. [1] We would like to thank Dr Bond’s Post-graduate student, Joshua Freeman-Birch, who undertook the long hours of date entry to code the results of five cohorts of LLB law students results, to allow the research to be conducted. [2] Unfortunately, writing up our research has taken longer than we hoped. Conducting the data analysis and the impact of COVID are the two main reasons.

The Role of Science Teachers in the Implementation of Quality School based Assessments in Selected Zambian Secondary Schools

The introduction of School based Assessments in Zambia were aimed at improving the teaching and learning as well as raise the bar of students performance in the country. However, the implementation of SBA in secondary schools faces unique challenges, particularly in the context of Zambia, exacerbated by the global COVID-19 pandemic. This study investigated the implementation of SBA in science subjects within selected Zambian schools, aiming to develop an evidence-based framework for sustaining the quality delivery of SBA in science education. Through a comprehensive investigation, this research examined the alignment of SBA practices with guidelines and identified gaps in implementation processes. Key objectives included assessing the evaluation of SBA policy since its rollout, examining administration processes, identifying challenges faced by stakeholders, and proposing interventions for improvement. Methodologically, the study employed tools such as questionnaires, interviews, and Focus Group Discussions to collect data. Qualitative data was analysed thematically while quantitative data was analysed using SPSS tool. Research findings revealed that teachers perceived SBA as a process of enhancing teaching and learning of science through the conduct of experiments which in turn improved teachers’ capacity and confidence in handling practical lessons. SBA provided teachers with an opportunity to closely monitor learners’ strengths and weaknesses as well as checking progress of learning. However, a considerable number of teachers held that SBA was an additional load onto their already burdened schedules but mandated to implement it as it was policy. Low staffing levels, time allocated to each science period, the number of tasks, inadequate laboratories and apparatus, resource constraints, high levels of enrolment resulting from positive response of Free Education Policy, many classes to teach by one teacher and lack of motivation, dominated the challenges faced by teachers in SBA implementation. The categorization of SBA revealed a duty-bound approach towards SBA (symbolic compliance), as SBA marks were mandatory for totalling learners’ final marks at the end of secondary school level. The study's recommendations aimed to enhance SBA implementation and foster positive educational outcomes. Furthermore, suggestions for future research include exploring the long-term impact of SBAs on academic performance, conducting comparative studies across different subjects, investigating technology integration, and exploring stakeholder perspectives. The research has contributed valuable insights to the discourse on educational assessment practices, providing a foundation for informed decision-making and strategic actions to improve science education in Zambian schools and beyond.

School Well-Being and Academic Performance of Children With Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A National Register-Based Study.

We aimed to investigate how school well-being (SWB) and academic performance of children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) compare to their peers on a national level using the Danish national registers. Further, we investigated the potential influence of socioeconomic status (SES). A population-wide, register-based, cross-sectional study was performed. We compared the results of children with and without JIA in the Danish National Well-Being Questionnaire (DNWQ), the National Danish School Testing (NDST), and their ninth grade (aged approximately 16 yrs) final school marks in Danish and mathematics. The results were analyzed using adjusted ordinal logistic regression (SWB) and linear regression (tests and marks). In separate cohorts, we included a total of 505,340 children answering the DNWQ, 812,461 children with NDST results, and the ninth-grade final marks of 581,804 children. Of these children, 1042, 1541, and 1410, respectively, fulfilled the criteria of JIA. Children with JIA reported SWB comparable to their peers, except for the question "Do you perform well in school?" (odds ratio 0.89, 95% CI 0.81-0.99). In the NDST, the children with JIA in general did just as well as their peers. We found no differences in the ninth-grade final marks in either Danish or mathematics. Stratifying the analyses on SES showed no significant differences in the associations. Overall, children with JIA report SWB comparable to that of children without JIA and perform equally well in school as children without JIA.

Predictive Modelling of Students’ University English Language Performance by Classification with Gaussian Process Models

This work suggests predicting student performance using a Gaussian process model classification in order to address the issue that the prediction approach is too complex and the data set involved is too huge in the process of predicting students’ performance. In order to prevent overfitting, a sample set consisting of the three typical test outcomes from 465 undergraduate College English students is divided into training and test sets. The cross-validation technique is used in this study. According to the findings, Gaussian process model classification can accurately predict 92\% of the test set with a prediction model, and it can also forecast students’ final exam marks based on their typical quiz scores. Furthermore, it is discovered that the prediction accuracy increases with the sample set’s distance from the normal distribution; this prediction accuracy rises to 96\% when test scores with less than 60 points are taken out of the analysis.

Análisis exploratorio de la asignatura Trabajo Fin de Grado en las universidades españolas

Introduction and objectiveThe Bachelor Thesis (BT) is a compulsory subject in the Physiotherapy Degree. The objective of this work was to elaborate an exploratory analysis of the BT in the Spanish Universities 12years after its implementation. Material and methodsCross-sectional descriptive study using a structured search on the websites public and private Spanish universities offering Physiotherapy Degrees. The variables studied were number of credits, timing, type of work, teaching guide, language, distribution of hours, supervisor profile, evaluation system and defense format. Results57 degrees in 53 universities were analysed. The number of credits most frequently assigned was 6. Observed distribution of hours was face-to-face hours (17.5±19.5); hours of supervised work (18.8±21.3); hours of autonomous work (144.4±46.9). The most frequently used methodological design was the bibliographic review (n=24). In the evaluation criteria, the supervisor's rating ranged between 0 and 90% of the final mark (41.7±23.7) compared to 10-100% corresponding to the thesis evaluation panel (58.1±24.4). Only 21 degrees report the profile of the tutor teachers. ConclusionsThe assignment of credits, methodologies and evaluation systems are very heterogeneous among Spanish universities in the BT of the Physiotherapy Degree. After 15years since its implantation into the degree, it is necessary to establish a consensus to rationalize the subject.

A New Assessment Approach for High School Students in Cameroon

The purpose of this study was to provide the Cameroonian educational community with a new evaluation approach capable of including in the mentalities of students entering the first year of the second cycle in secondary education. To do this, we carried out, in turn, a bibliographic work, data collection in the field, then data processing, followed by the drafting of the final document. Evaluation approaches in the Cameroonian education system are changing. Parents, teachers, and administrators of academic institutions deplore the behavior of students entering the first year of upper secondary school; in fact, they shine with their casualness. For them, the context, due to the absence of an official exam at the end of the school year, makes the level concerned a level of resting. The project-based evaluation system appears here as a solution trial that should be responsible for creating a challenge, specific to the second cycle. Thus, facing this reality, students will have to understand that a new variety of efforts are now required of them to leave the second cycle with solid skills in the conducting projects. The project based evaluation system will count for the third quarter. His mark will represent 75% of the final mark for the subject.

Teaching mathematics in an EFL context at higher education; before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: a comparative study

Teaching mathematics in an EFL context at higher education; before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: a comparative study

Marking group projects in a large classroom: a case study in the Introduction to Project Management course

The "Introduction to Project Management" is a core online graduate course in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Calgary. During the Fall 2022 semester, 373 students enrolled in this course, and the course grade mainly depended on a group project report. The marking task was split between two Teaching Assistants (TAs), which could affect the marking consistency and fairness of grades. This study presents an approach for grade consistency in such large classrooms with multiple markers. For this, TAs and an instructor marked the same 10% of the submissions using a pre-defined rubric and discussed any differences in their marks. If there was a significant mark discrepancy, markers marked an additional few submissions and reconvened. Afterwards, the TAs marked the remaining submissions, and the final marks were validated for any remaining bias. Discussion on the implementation issues of this marking scheme can provide lessons learned for other instructors.

“Pharmacotrophy”: a playful tournament for game- and team-based learning in pharmacology education - assessing its impact on students’ performance

BackgroundAt the Faculty of Pharmacy of Paris, we conducted a pharmacology tournament in 2021 and 2022, named “Pharmacotrophy”, to offer a game-, team- and competitive-based learning innovation based on fun and challenge. This article aims to (1) provide a detailed overview of the organisation of “Pharmacotrophy,” (2) present and compare feedback from both students and teachers, and (3) assess the impact of student participation on their exam marks.Methods“Pharmacotrophy” took place in 2021 and 2022 over a two-week period at the beginning of the exam revision phase. It involved a combination of remote matches using the online quiz creation tool Kahoot!® and in-person matches. Teams, consisting of three students from the 4th or 5th year, participated in several selection rounds leading up to the final match. The questions covered various topics from the pharmacology curriculum. Using an anonymous online survey, we collected the feedback from students and teacher regarding the organisation of the tournament and the interest and difficulty of the different type of questions. We retrospectively compared the exam marks of 4th year students who took part in “Pharmacotrophy” (n2021 = 19 and n2022 = 20) with those of the rest of the 4th year (n2021 = 315–320 and n2022 = 279–281), both in the year before “Pharmacotrophy” and just after the tournament.ResultsStudents highlighted the educational benefits of team-based and game-based learning. This novel approach positively and constructively motivated students to review pharmacology. Additionally, students appreciated the establishment of a trust-based relationship with their teachers. All students had a similar pharmacology level based on their exam results in the year before “Pharmacotrophy.” After the tournament, participants had marks 20.1% higher in pharmacology questions compared to non-participants (p = 0.02), while they had comparable overall levels, as evidenced by their final grade averages and marks in non-pharmacology questions. Moreover, participants who advanced further in the competition achieved higher marks in pharmacology questions compared to those who were eliminated early in the tournament.ConclusionThe implementation of “Pharmacotrophy” provided students with an enjoyable way to review pharmacology coursework and revived the interest in pharmacology for some. Specifically, participating in “Pharmacotrophy” led to an increase in pharmacology marks for students who were not among the top performers in the class or did not excel in pharmacology in the previous year. This study quantified the pedagogical value of this innovative curriculum in terms of knowledge acquisition.

First-year engineering students’ affective behavior about mathematics in relation to their performance

The present study examines the first-year engineering students’ attitudes towards mathematics, their beliefs and self-efficacy about mathematics, as part of their affective performance, in relation to their mathematical academic performance before and after attending an introductory mathematics course. It aims to contribute on the ongoing discussion about the teaching of mathematics at the level of higher education in engineering programs. First-year engineering students completed a questionnaire and a test after their entrance at the university. Their mathematical performance was examined by using their results at the midterm and the final mathematical mark during AMAT111 course offered at the first semester of their studies. Results indicated that aspects of the affective domain were related with students’ performance, while the predominant role belonged to their previous mathematical knowledge and skills (as learning outcome of the high school education), which undoubtedly need further enhancement. The belief about a formalistic perspective of mathematics and the lack of understanding of the implementation of the mathematical concepts on engineering problem solving situations were obstacles for them on recognizing the importance of attending mathematics courses as part of their engineering studies. Discussion concentrates on the following up steps, which have to be done at the level of higher education in order to face the initial difficulties, which have been identified.

Applying Lean to Improve Software Project Management Education

This article describes how different Lean principles and techniques have been adapted and applied to identify, analyze, and improve the value chain of a Software Project Management module in a computer science curriculum. This research is part of an initiative to improve the processes related to higher education teaching management, at a university, with the main goal of maximizing the value that is provided to students when taking a module. To represent and visualize the whole value chain of the module, the value stream mapping Lean management tool has been used. The essential module activities and the necessary elements to teach each one of these activities, from the first session to the final mark, were detected, collected, and represented using diagrams. The value chain analysis and review were performed by applying Lean principles and techniques. This article details several improvements to be applied to the module to eliminate the waste that did not add value to students.

Unveiling the impact: Anatomy internal assessment exclusion in MBBS first professional results

Introduction: In 2019, the National Medical Commission (NMC) implemented the Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) curriculum, altering teaching, learning, and assessment methods. Internal assessment marks, once contributing to final grades, now only serve as eligibility criteria. This study, conducted at the Department of Anatomy, HIMS, Safedabad, examines the impact of excluding internal assessment from MBBS 1st year students' final Anatomy marks. Materials and Methods: This study assessed the performance of MBBS 2019 (CBME) and MBBS 2018 (old) batches in Anatomy. Parameters examined included: 1) first attempt exam clearance rates, 2) passage via grace marks, and 3) distribution of scores (students who scored &gt;70%, between 60-70% and between 50-60%). Statistical analysis employed chi-square tests. Results: In the MBBS 2018-19 batch, 86 out of 100 students passed Anatomy, compared to 94 out of 99 in the MBBS 2019 (CBME) batch. In the MBBS 2018 batch, excluding internal assessment would have resulted in 44 failures, reduced to 14 with inclusion. Chi-square tests demonstrated significant differences in scores and failure rates. Conclusions: Excluding internal assessment markedly affected Anatomy exam outcomes, highlighting its pivotal role in MBBS 1stProfessional success. Keywords: Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME), Internal assessment, Anatomy, Medical education, MBBS curriculum, Student performance