ASSESSMENT SCORE POLLUTION AS CATALYST OF POOR QUALITY OF STUDENTS' PERFORMANCE

Umar Safianu Abukari, Kenneth Asamoah-Gyimah, Ruth Keziah Annan-Brew, Simon Alhassan Iddrisu

Abstract


The present learners' dissatisfaction with their assessment scores in terms of their use, inferences, and educational improvements has urged many facilitators and examiners to train and prepare examinees to complete their assessments. The demand to raise assessment scores has resulted in conditions and practices that pollute and contaminate the reliability and validity of assessment scores. This study, therefore, seeks to examine the factors perceived as contributors to assessment score pollution. The study employed a descriptive survey to gather data and analyzed using means and standard deviations. A sample size of 248 teachers who had access to an Android device and internet connectivity were purposefully selected for this study. The results confirmed that factors related to assessment preparation, assessment administration, and external factors (parents and community) were the primary causes of assessment score pollution in the district. The researchers recommended that the District Education Service directorates should organize in-service training for teachers on testing procedures. Parents and the community should also be educated on the consequences of test pollution through parents’ association meetings and seminars by the district education office. Authentic and differentiated assessments were also recommended to replace the current standardized assessment practices.

 

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assessment, scores, performances, reliability, validity

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejes.v12i1.5782

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